One of the better visits of the year this morning between 7:45am and 11:30am.
HIGHLIGHTS:
PINYON JAY (only the second ever, flyover, first one was exactly 8 years ago to the day). FOY at GC, obviously.Plumbeous Vireo (1) getting yellowjackets in scale-infested elms, FOY at GC
Townsend's Warbler (2-3) getting yellowjackets in elms
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (3-4)
Empidonax sp.
Western Wood-Pewee (1)
Hairy Woodpecker (heard)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (4)
Wilson's Warbler (few)
Song Sparrow (1)
House Wren (1)
Pine Siskin (heard, flyover)
Dark-eyed Junco (1 pink-sided feeding on grass seed with chipping sparrows)
Chipping Sparrow (25+)
Barn Swallow (last of this year's young out flying with parents)
Coolest thing was photographing Black-capped Chickadees engaged in their unique way of getting hackberry blistergall psyllids out of blistergalls. They fly up, pull a leaf, take the leaf to a bare branch surface, stand on the leaf, wail thru the blisters with wonderful precision, wail until the biggest and best blisters are emptied of their respective psyllid nymphs, drop the leaf, repeat.
BcChickadee extracting psyllid nymphs from blistergalls on Northern Hackberry.
Psyllid blistergall completely punctured by chickadee beak (L). Four blistergalls showing shallow, more delicate extraction of nymphs (R).
Total of 34 species for visit, including breeding species, migrants and wintering species. Total for the year at GC: 96
Dave Leatherman
Fort Collins
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