[cobirds] Grandview Cemetery on 2Jan2019

I was at the cemetery and surrounding area twice today (from 9a-1p and again from 3-4:30p) and had a total of 29 species, counting 5 at Sheldon Lake in City Park.  I also saw Joe Kipper, Josh Bruening, and John and Ann Reichhardt.  Besides these folks, other highlights were:

NORTHERN GOSHAWK adult working the area north of the old office at the entrance, including the heavily wooded yard ne of the cemetery entrance at the Mountain Avenue/Grandview Avenue intersection.  I initially got onto it as the Eurasian Collared-Dove it was pursuing zoomed past, followed by a large light gray blur.  As far as I can tell, the chase was unsuccessful.  A few days ago I found clumps of feathers I am sure are those of a gray-phase Eastern Screech-Owl in the middle of the cemetery.  I assumed the predator was in all likelihood a Great Horned Owl.  Now there is another possibility.  Time of the goshawk sighting was approximately 9:15-9:30am.  This is only the third goshawk I have ever seen at the cemetery going back to 1974.

    

Spotted Towhee female in an alley just e of Frey Avenue about midway between Mountain Avenue and Laporte Avenue (i.e., one block ne of the cemetery entrance).  The shrub row it was hiding in is cotoneaster (I think).

                                                    

Red Crossbills, only 2, were heard twice and seen once flying over.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker immature male was mostly working a tall American Linden, which is the first tree due north of the flag cluster near the cemetery entrance (e of the office).  This bird also retreats into the westmost pine in the Mountain Avenue median just e of the cemetery entrance.  At dusk I saw it fly from the linden southeast toward the City Park softball fields.

I checked the Austrian Pines midway along the cemetery south boundary road for the adult male Yb Sapsucker twice and did NOT see the bird, which surprised me. 

In the way of a heads-up, I drove all the way up to the Hamilton Reservoir Visitor Overlook today and found it closed.  Ironic that the only place with open water has a closed gate.  And irritating how often that road into the overlook is closed, supposedly due to adverse weather conditions, when the weather is not adverse.  If any of the leaders of the Rawhide CBC have a phone number we could call to find out about the overlook being open BEFORE going up there, I would appreciate it being posted to COBIRDS.  Thanks in advance.

Dave Leatherman

Fort Collins