Front Range Birding

My Backyard 1/17/12

2012-01-17T14:16:00.003-07:00

This morning I was putting out some Perfect Patio seed blend on my deck railing and under our picnic table for the little Juncos after our snow last night andto my delight on my suet cage was a beautiful Hairy Woodpecker! He continued to eat his breakfast as I went along my morning business of filling the feeders, putting out fresh water and feeding the squirrels. I watched him from the kitchen window as the Juncos, Goldfinches, and House Finches flew in to eat the seed I had put out for them. After he was done, he flew up into the tree and wiped his bill clean of the insect suet he had enjoyed. He hopped higher up up the tree and out of sight so I didn't
get to see him fly away, but it certainly was a nice start to my day.

Lower Rio Grande Birding

2011-04-05T11:38:00.056-06:00

I had the pleasure to travel to McAllen, Texas to join Bill Schmoker who led a photo trip organized by the Partnership for International Birding Tour Company. I certainly accomplished my goal of enjoying the excellent birding opportunities offered along the Rio Grande Valley and practicing and learning photo and digiscoping. We documented 174 species during the week and did so at a leisurely pace that suited our shutter speed perfectly. Bill Schmoker was able to expertly construct and implement an agenda to accommodate our needs. Check out some of these shots.. most were shot from my Leica D-Lux 4 camera on a Swarovski HD spotting scope.

Our group of 5.... Nancy, Wendy, Bob, Bill and me

Below is an overlook ofthe Laguna Atascosa Natinal Wildlife Preserve.Near the shore is a digiscoped Great Blue Heron

Above is a shot looking out onto open space on South Padre Island. To the right of the tree is a digiscoped White Tailed Kite.

Right a Least Bittern

Above a Golden Fronted Woodpecker

Left a Great Kiskadee

Altamira Oriole

Green Jay

Black Chinned Hummingbird

Black -bellied Whistling Ducks

Black Necked Stilt

My favorites a Tri Colored Heron and a Green Heron

Black Skimmers and Laughing Gulls

Couch's Kingbird

Rosy Finches at Red Rocks Trading Post

2011-01-18T13:59:00.042-07:00

Rosy Finches at Red Rocks Trading Post

Like many I have enjoyed the nice group of not so familiar birds that are now reliably showing themselves at the Red Rocks Park Trading Post. Of note is the Flock of 100 +/- 50 Rosy Finches that do a group swirl around the structure. All three Rosy Finches are present (Grey Crowned, Black, and Hepburn.)They seem to enjoy hanging out on the cliff by the Trading Post planning their strategy on how to attack the birdseed deposits on the wall and ground under the bird feeders. They certainly are a cool sight considering most will soon depart for the northwest coast of Canada. They like the cold weather and many mornings return upslope to probably Evergreen in the 9 AM time frame so if you want to see them get there early – 7:30 or so. Accompanying the Rosy’s is a Curve Billed Thrasher, Gold-crowned, Harris's and White Throated Sparrow. All are not normal visitors of the Front Range and it is a great opportunity for Denver folks to enjoy.

All bird pictures were digiscoped using a Swarovski 20x60 80mm HD scope with a Leica DLux-4 Camera.

Looking up at the Red Rocks Trading Post. You can see the wall many of the birds like to perch on.

Groups watch and photograph from the porch.

From below the Trading Post porch. A great spot to shoot photos.

A single Grey Crowned feeding.

Group of Grey Crowned Rosy's on the wall.

Grey Crowned Rosy Finches on the rocks below the Trading Post.

Another shot on the rocks.

2 Grey Crowns perched on the wall.

Spotted Towhee.

Scrub Jay's are not to be denied at Red Rocks!

Eclipse on the Winter solstice

2010-12-26T16:30:00.032-07:00

It was chilly but the perfect night to try and capture the total eclipse of the moon last week. On the night of December 21 I stayed up to digiscope the event. Using my Swarovski spottingscope and 20x60 eyepiece and a Leica DLUX-4 camera with a modified Leica digiscope adapter I got these shots.

The only difficult part was the moon was near vertical and my tripod wanted to tip over being so out of balance. Holding the tripod and shooting a burst of 3 shots at a time helped. I used shutter priority for the most part. It seemed my best results were with shutter speed between 1/160 and 1/180 and the exposure set at -1.5.

Here are the results. All times are mountain time. My only disappointment was not capturing the orange glow of the moon during the full eclipse. I guess I need to work on shutter speed and exposure settings.

Moon pre-eclipse at 9:42 PM 21 Dec

Moon at 12:28 AM 22 DEC

Moon at 12:24 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 12:48 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 12:54 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 1:03 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 01:17 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 01:27 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 01:43 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 01:46 AM 22 Dec

Moon at 01:50 AM 22 Dec

Walk the Wetlands the first Sunday in November

2010-11-13T23:29:00.016-07:00

This past week I joined the Audubon Society of Greater Denver on the “Walk the Wetlands “bird walk in Chatfield State Park. It was a great day with perfect fall weather. Just a couple of days later we got our first snow and cold blow from the north. About 20 or so birders joined Urling kingery and other Master Birders to take in the great weather and the birds of Chatfield.

Our bird count with many already left on their migration was surprisingly good. Here is a list of the species we saw.

American kestrel
White Breasted Nuthatch
House Finch
American Crow
Downey Woodpecker
Common Merganser
Starlings
Northern Flicker
White Crowned Sparrow
Black Capped Chickadee
American Tree Sparrow
Yellow Rumped Warbler
Magpie
Golden Eagle
Ferruginous Hawk
Red Tail Hawk

I was without my scope and not able to digiscope but this female Downey Woodpecker came close but hid in the brush. Downey’s are always neat to watch foraging up and down limbs and trunks of trees.

Urling Kingery spotted possibly the last hurrah of a Dainty Sulfur butterfly. The great weather we have been having has enabled this summer resident to hang in there well into November.

A Ferruginous Hawk soared above and took sentinel duty on a hill top about half mile away. Once again I wished I had my spotting scope and point and shoot camera for this digiscoping opportunity.

I love the age range of birders that Audubon attracts on the walks. Nature provides a great bond for kids and adults.

Walden, Colorado trip August 20010

2010-08-28T21:53:00.023-06:00

On August 15,2010 our trip to North Park and Walden, Colorado with the Audubon Society of Greater Denver was a great success and enjoyed by all. Lee Farrell and myself lead 12 participants to see the late summer breeding grounds of many colonial nesting ducks, geese, grebes, and a variety of shorebirds. In all our bird count topped 84 species as we traversed several types of high planes habitats. Click here to view American White Pelicans foraging for fish at Windy Gap, Colorado.

The trip began with a rendezvous at the historic Peck House B&B in Empire, Colorado where we began with coffee, beagles, and hummingbirds. The Peck House front porch was abuzz with Broadtail and Rufus hummers. Our next stop after crossing Berthoud Pass was Windy Gap reservoir just north of Grand Lake. Here several species were observed to include a large group of American White Pelicans doing their unique fish herding routine.

The road to Walden from Windy Gap was an education of Pine Beetle devastation. Entire valleys of dead and dying lodge pole pines lined both sides of the road. It will be interesting to see the forest in succession. It will not be fast enough however.

The rest of the day was consumed with an auto tour of the Arapahoe National Wildlife Refuge and the Walden Reservoir. Many shorebirds were noted to include Western, Eared, and Pied Billed Grebes.

The accommodations were at the North Park Inn in Walden which was a great stay.
On Sunday we began an ambitious day with an early morning nature walk in the riparian area of ANWR followed by a trip to Lake John to see Western Grebes with babies on their backs – a real treat to see.

The return trip to Denver was over Cameron Pass and through Pudre Canyon to Ft Collins. Below are just some of the pictures I took.

Our group of 14 North Park travelers.

This guy got away. Walden is the Moose viewing capital of Colorado but not seen ot this trip. This picture was digiscoped on an earlier scouting trip

A neat digiscope picture of a Barn Swallow early in the morning in the Arapahoe National Wildlife Refuge.

This was a shot of an elusive Greater Sage Grouse. A life bird for several in the group. The Greater Sage Grouse is under threat with habitat loss.

Pied Billed Grebe let me get close with my Leica camera.

A big goal was to find grebes with young riding on their backs. Here are 2 shots of Western Grebes parents doing just that.

An overlook of the Arapahoe Nathional Wildlife Refuge. Home of many a Moose.

Diane with our spotting scope trying to find a Moose!

Bird walk in Wash Park with The Friends of Washington Park

2010-03-16T13:45:00.012-06:00

Had a fun time leading a bird walk for The Friends of Washington Park (FANS) recently in Washington (Wash) Park The winter cold weather was winding down but the partially frozen Smith Lake allowed some close watching of ducks, geese, greebs, and shorebirds. Seeing them this close up is in the urban setting of Denver is a real treat.

Coopers Hawk left overlooks Smith Lake.

Just a Ringbilled but had fun digiscoping from about 60 yards with my Cannon point and shoot and Swarovski Spotting scope.

This Northern Shoveler and about 6 others were in character swimming in tight circles to create vortexes to have food rise to the serface.

Common Golden Eye was a very entertaining diver at Smith Lake.

Most pictures taken with Leica cameras.

RAPTOR ROAD TRIP RECAPS

2010-02-27T21:04:00.070-07:00

The Eagles, Owls, Hawks, and Falcons of the Northern Colorado Front Range

The winter months bring great raptor watching on the front range with many species checking out nest sites and beginning their courtship rituals. Along the back roads of Weld County and Bolder County north of Denver and midst the spreading sprawl of urban neighborhoods mixed with farms and open space, we found an abundance of Eagles, Owls, Hawks, and Falcons. Our expert guides Harold and Betty Oliver of the Audubon Society of Greater Denver led our group to raptor hot spots and produced a total of 84 raptors including 15 Bald Eagles, 2 Golden Eagles, 43 Red Tail Hawks, 7 Ferruginous Hawks, 2 Great Horned Owls, 12 American Kestrels, and 3 Northern Harriers. It was a great day trip and we plan to do it again on April 18th to check on the nest sites to see how the Eagles and Owls are doing. We hope to see Ospreys by then as they should have returned from South America.

A lone Red Tail Hawk uses a idle oil pump as a pedestal to survey its territory. Click here to see a Red Tail in flight.

Our Birding group a one of many stops looking at raptors on display in their natural habitat.

Many on the road trip took advantage of the photographic opportunities.

These two eagles were close to a nest site in Weld County. We saw them a year earlier on a another road trip. Click on the picture and see a digiscoped video of them watching over a field with rabbits and other rodents. Digiscoped with a cannon point and shoot camera on a Swarovski spotting scope
from 1/4 mile.

This digiscoped Great Horned Owl is on eggs that will hatch soon. We expect her chicks will be available to observe by April. We plan a "nesting" road trip on April 18 to see them. Click here or on the picture to see chicks we observed last year near Chatfield State Park

Our very esteemed Raptor Road Trip leaders- Harold and Betty Oliver of The Audubon Society of Greater Denver. You can do other trips sponsored by the Olivers and ASGD by visiting denveraudubon.org

We were lucky to get close up views of several Ferruginous Hawks. They are the largest of all hawks and have been considered to be included in the family of eagles.

Click here and on the small picture below to view a short Ferruginous video

We came across this cooperative Bald Eagle sitting on top of a slag rock pile.

We invite all of our Raptor Road Tripper's to share some of their pictures with us. We will give credit and links to any web site promoting pictures of birds and wildlife in their natural habitats. Send your pictures to frontrangebirding@gmail.com.

2010-02-07T11:44:00.022-07:00

Here is more on our Front Range Birding trip to the Northwest Coast in January. Our trip was with Partnership with International Birding http://www.pibirding.com/. Our trip yielded 114 species including 32 lifers for me. It was quite the winter trip for great photos and digiscoping. We owe Harry Fuller our expert guide all of our appreciation for leading us to all of our finds. Check out Harry's blog pibirding.wordpress.com

Check out this youtube video of a Black Oystercatcher foraging

Bald Eagle

Check out this youtube video of a Winter Wren defending his territory

Sandhill Cranes over Sauvie Island.

Harlequin Ducks on the Olympic Peninsula

Barrows Goldeneye

2010-01-24T23:15:00.013-07:00

Here are several pictures from our Northwest
Birding trip.

Our intrepid group on a beautiful sunny Oregon afternoon. Trip with our expert guide Harry Fuller of Partnership with International Birding. More photos and trip discription can be viewed at http://www.pibirding.wordpress.com/.

Black Oyster Catcher on Haystack Rock at

Cannon Beach, Oregon. digiscoped with Swarovski 20x60 ATS HD scope

Right is Haystack Rock

On the beach with scopes and digiscoping in

Oregon.

Mt Saint Helens, WA

Below is part of a large group of Sandhill Cranes.

Many Dulins were seen every day at surfs in

Oregon and Washington. digiscoped with Swarovski

ATS HD scope.

Pictures taken with Leica CLux 3 and VLux cameras.

2010-01-22T23:59:00.004-07:00

Just one day into our birding tour of the Northwest in the dead of winter. Some say we are nuts to do such a thing but the fact is it is a great place to bird as many shorebirds, ducks, and raptors chose this food rich relatively mild weather environment to overwinter in. Check out here some of the pictures of our first day that produced 60+ species today and several “lifers” for me. More to come.

New Swarovski Binoculars and Red Tail Hawk

2009-11-12T11:56:00.014-07:00

Today I received my new pair of Swarovski EL 8.5x42 WB binoculars, which also included a snapshot adapter for taking digital pictures with the binoculars. Not five minutes after opening the box, I looked out in my backyard, and saw a red-tailed hawk sitting in a tree! What a perfect opportunity to try out my new toy. I grabbed the binoculars, adapter, and my Canon PowerShot A590IS camera. Here's the first pic I got -

Not bad! The hawk shortly flew down to the ground and kicked some leaves around.

Something scared him into a tree then, and I got these great pics -

Here's what it looked like without the magnification from the binoculars and adapter -

Makes a big difference. The hawk then flew over my head (!) to another tree and hopped around trying to get a better view of a squirrel. Eventually a bunch of blue jays landed in the tree and started harassing it, even running into it, until it had enough and flew away. I was so glad I had the chance to try out my new Swarovski binoculars and look forward to getting more practice with the snapshot adapter. This red-tailed hawk made species #22 for my yard list.

You can see all the pictures I took, good and bad, here: http://www.picasaweb.google.com/frontrangebirding/RedTailHawk#

Digiscoping Workshop 2009

2009-10-22T21:54:00.024-06:00

Always busy but the birding buzz this past Sat-Sun-Mon Oct 10-11-12 was exceptional at FRBC even if the weather did little to cooperate. On Saturday we held our first Optics workshop delving into the art of digiscoping at the South Platte Park and the Carson Nature Center. All toll 58 nature photographers braved snow, wind and 20 degree weather to gather in expert advice from the masters from Swarovski, Leica, Zeiss, Vortex, and Nikon.

Clay Taylor presents digiscoping at the Carson Nature Center

Our lead instructors Clay Taylor from Texas, Jeff Bouton from Florida, and Bill Schmoker of Denver were fantastic in their presentations and demonstrations of the various spotting scopes, cameras, and binoculars. Even with harsh weather conditions much was learned from the classroom, field work, and duck blind. We observed over 150 ducks, grebes, and shorebirds from the Carson Center’s duck blind and on the trails winding along the South Platte River.

Bill Schmoker talks technique on wildlife and birding photography

People attending were very appreciative of the great facilities provided by the South Platte Park. We highly recommend the excellent birding to be had year round in this close in Denver City Park.

Equipment demonstrations of Swarovski, Leica, Zeiss, and Vortex in 20 degree weather!

Leica's Jeff Bouton works one on one with attendees.

Following the Saturday digiscoping workshop, on Sunday I participated in the annual “Big Sit” bird watch at the Heronry Overlook in Chatfield State Park. I was only able to do about an hour late in the day of this dawn till dusk event as work at the store got in the way. However I was pleased to see our out of state experts Clay Taylor and Jeff Bouton help out along with Bill Schmoker. The day was still cold but not as overcast as Saturday and the attendees almost broke a record for species counted. I believe over 65 were seen by the time I left shortly before sunset.

The Chatfield State Park Big Sit at the Heronry Overlook

The Big Sit is a national event sponsored by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Each state has several and individuals can even establish their own to report findings. The Chatfield Big Sit is hosted by the Denver Field Ornithologists (DFO) and is organized by DFO member Joey Kellner. It is in its 7th year and is a great opportunity to contribute while honing your birding skills. The public is welcome to look into the fun event next year.

On Monday I was privileged to join Clay Taylor on a birding adventure in the Rocky Mountain National Park. We started out early from Littleton at 5 AM had breakfast in Lyons and promptly entered the East Gate around 8 AM. The trail ridge road was closed for the winter but we got around the east part of the park pretty good. Two herds of elk were roaming the meadows and we practiced some digiscoping. I got a few shots of them as well as video of Clarks Nutcrackers foraging some Ponderosa Pines. Clay, being from the East, enjoyed seeing and photographing Magpies, Red Breasted Nuthatches, and Mountain Chickadees. All birds he rarely has the opportunity to see. We finished at noon and departed the park as Clay needed to catch a4:30 flight back to Texas.

Clay Taylor digiscoping Clarks Nutcrackers in the Rocky Mountain State Park

An immature White Crowned Sparrow shows himself outside the Carson Duck Blind

Colder Weather Brings in All the Birds

2009-10-14T13:16:00.001-06:00

When the weather turned so cold last weekend my feeders were covered in all different species of birds. My two thistle socks and the tube thistle feeders were covered with American Goldfinches, Lesser Goldfinches, and a few House finches. The Northern Flickers, Red-shafted Flickers, Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers and a few Red-breasted Nuthatches kept the suet feeder quite busy. The Eastern Blue Jays and Chickadees were eating the peanut slipts so fast it was hard to keep up with them. They can be quite demanding at times. The Sparrows, finches, and Chickadees filled the six perches in both of my caged feeders constantly. The Mourning Doves and the one Collared Dove ate a lot of safflower. I go through a ton, at least it seems that way, of bird food during the colder seasons, but it is truley worth it to see such a variety of birds.

Digiscoping/Wildlife Photography workshop OCT 10

2009-10-02T15:44:00.086-06:00

Tops in the field come to FRBC to put on an interactive wildlife photography workshop at the Carson Nature Center Saturday October 10 from 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm. Pictured here top down is Bill Schmoker, Jeff Bouton and Clay Taylor.

.................................................................................................................

On October 10th we at FRBC will be joined by S & S Optika and Mike's Camera of Denver to host a digiscoping/wildlife photography workshop. We are extremely pleased to have Clay Taylor, the top digiscoping expert from Swarovski Optik, and Jeff Bouton, the top digiscoping expert from Leica Camera, available to lead the half-day event at Denver's South Platte Park.

You can learn to take pictures like these nesting Great Horned Owls or Broad Tailed Hummingbirds both in Chatfield State Park.

Clay and Jeff will be joined by one of Denver's premier nature photographers Bill Schmoker of Nikon Camera to give classroom presentations, demonstrate equipment in the field, and photograph live in-the-wild birds and raptors from the nature center's fabulous duck blind. Check out Nikon Digiscoping where Bill is a featured Nikon Prostaffer. After taking photographs in the field, a review of the experience will take place back in the classroom with a demonstration of photo shop software.

We will have available the spacious and very pleasing Carson Nature Center's classroom that overlooks the South Platte Park and all of the trails that wind along the South Platte river to work with. The classroom offers fabulous views of the Rocky Mountains. Along with Clay, Jeff, and Bill there will be a host of representatives from the top sport optics manufacturers of cameras, spotting scopes, and binoculars available to answer questions about their products. On hand will be the latest and the hottest equipment from Swarovski, Leica, Zeiss, Vortex, Kowa, and Nikon at a minimum. Mike's Camera will have a multitude of point and shoot and SLR cameras available for demontration.

There are so many things you can do when photographing and or digiscoping wildlife, especially birds. Check out this short video of the baby Broadtailed Hummingbirds pictured above being fed in the nest digiscoped with a Leica point-and-shoot camera and a Swarovski spotting scope. It can be seen here on youtube.com.

No matter what your experience level, if you are interested in what's new in wildlife/outdoor photography and/or learning more about the exploding popularity of "digiscoping" then this is a perfect opportunity for you. Space is limited and there is a small rental fee of between 6-11 dollars for the facility depending on your residence. We will fill the workshop vacancy on a first come first served basis.

You will need to contact the South Suburban Park and register at this direct link at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=nsuvg5cab.0.0.9w7x99aab.0&ts=S0409&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ssprd.org%2Fsouthsubnew%2Fregonline.asp%3Ftl%3D2%26pdept_id%3D130%26pfid%3D23392%26dept_id%3D920%26strMode%3D4%26loc%3D34. You can also call the Carson Nature Center at 303-347-5999 and register for class number 674401 or 674402. Either way you will be able to secure a place in the workshop but hurry.

The Carson Nature Center is located near the NW corner of Mineral and Santa Fe Drive in Littleton. It is directly behind the Aspen Grove Shopping Center along the South Platte River. Overflow parking can be accommodated in the adjacent Park- and- Ride lots. The exact address for google map service is South Platte Park 3000 W Carson Dr Littleton, CO 80120-2968.

Snacks and refreshments will be available in the classroom. The event will be co- hosted with S and S Optics of Denver and Mike's Camera.
Morning Session: 9 AM - 1 PM
Afternoon Session: 2 PM - 6 PM

Check out the article on the workshop in the Denver Post Littleton Hub section entitled The Art of Digiscoping.

With interest we have the all presenters available for Sunday sessions as well.

Learn more about Clay Taylor at
http://www.birdwatchersdigest.net/cd1000/?page_id=7

Learn more about Jeff Bouton at
http://leicabirding.blogspot.com/

Learn more about Bill Schmoker at
http://birdcapemay.org/times/2008/07/01/july-2008-bill-schmoker/

http://www.schmoker.org/

Learn more about the South Platte Park on their Facebook page here

http://www.facebook.com/SouthPlattePark?ref=share

Hope to see you at the workshop. Check out this digiscoped picture of a young Osprey in the nest. Picture was taken with a Leica C Lux 3 camera and a Swarovski 80mm HD 20x60 scope. The second picture shows the nest, which is about 200 yards away, with no scope and at 1x zoom.

Pretty cool! Mom and Dad Osprey would get upset if we came any closer.

September 3, 2009

2009-09-03T10:43:00.017-06:00

No excuses for the lack of blogs so here I go turning over a new leaf with a commitment to more frequent posts . It has actually been a great year of activities so far at Front Range Birding and I will retrace some of our steps and share them here over the next few weeks so please bear with me as we cover such outings as the Raptor Road Trips of January, the 5th annual FRBC Open House in May, our July Alpine Wildflower Walk on Shrine Ridge above Vail Pass, and the ongoing Walk the Wetlands treks with the Audubon Society of Greater Denver. We just joined Twitter so you can follow our future excursion plans as well. Be sure to sign up with us on Twitter here: http://twitter.com/frontrangebird. You will be up to speed on such items as our Book signing event with author, illustrator, and photographer Scott Rashid and his new book Small Mountain Owls on September 12 from 3 to 5 PM at the store and our upcoming digiscoping workshop on October 10 at the Carson Nature Center with Swarovski’s Clay Taylor and Nikon's Bill Schmoker. Anyway I will start with our most recent adventure in August in Chatfield State Park. The first Sunday of each month we “Walk the Wetlands” of the South Platte River in Chatfield State Park just southwest of Denver, Colorado. This recent walk was productive as usual with the added bonus of a great view of nesting Broadtail Hummingbirds being. Here are several pictures along with video. The picture and video wss digiscoped with a Leica C-Lux camera and a Swarovski HD 20x60 Spotting Scope at a distance of 50 feet. On an earlier walk in Chatfield I digiscoped this Red Tail Hawk chick in the nest with the same equipment from about 1000 yards.

My Backyard Update

2009-07-18T11:32:00.002-06:00

Things have been quite busy lately and noisy too. Yesterday I saw my Red-shafted Flickers bring in their two babies to feed on the suet. They look so funny trying to figure out how exactly to hang on to the tail prop suet feeder. The Blue Jays are bringing their babies in to feed on the peanut splits. You can easily tell when they show up because the babies haven't found their "voice" yet and squawk loudly. The same goes for the Flicker fledglings. The little house Finches are showing their babies how to land on the bird bath on our deck railing. They flutter around until they decide that they can land on the edge or the rock in the middle. The Lesser Goldfinches are teaching their little ones to hang on the long nyjer thistle sock. Most of the baby Robins are starting to loose their spots and have learned where the raisins are and carry on to let me know when the raisins are gone. On last Wednesday my husband called me to the kitchen window to see a chipmunk checking out our deck. We live near Kipling and Bowles and were wondering how the little guy came to our area. Are they finding their way into residential areas or did he just hitch hike down from the mountains via some one's trailer? Has anybody else seen chipmunks this close to town? Anyway I love this time of year and seeing all our new little residents.

My Very 1st House Wren

2009-05-30T13:24:00.002-06:00

On Thursday, May 28th I was out refilling my ground feeder for the Mourning Doves, when a little House Wren hopped off the feeder and went behind a small storage unit, tail straight up and all! I went back indoors as I didn't want to frighten him away. I was so excited to finally have a little Wren at my feeder! Maybe he will eventually use the Bronco wren house I bought for my husband at our Open House here at the store last year. I've got my fingers crossed!

April Snowstorm

2009-04-19T15:25:00.002-06:00

It's spring at Shannon's house, but I'm still in awe of what the end of winter (hopefully) brought to my house. We just has a large storm, which brought snow, rain and thunderstorms. After shoveling for the first time, I filled up my feeders and put some extra ones out. The number and variety of birds I got was amazing! Here is a list of what I saw during the two days of the storm.

Pine Siskins - large flocks, first time I've ever had them
American Goldfinches - bright yellow for spring
House Finches - ever present at my house
Western Meadowlark - under the feeder picking at sunflower seeds
Dark-eyed Junco - I saw one, but there could have been more
Red-winged Blackbirds - males still wearing their winter coats
Doves - two flew over, don't know if they were Mourning or Eurasian Collared
American Robin - one sat on my fence
American Crow - also on the fence

I feed 100% Black Oil Sunflower. I had a hopper style feeder, a caged tube feeder, and a metal mesh No/No Feeder. I loved the madness of all the birds, but I'm also happy the snow is melting now! Sara

They're Here!

2009-04-19T14:47:00.000-06:00

It's beautiful today. A little while ago I was out on my deck cutting up some string into little pieces for nesting material, when I saw a male Goldfinch at my sunflower chip feeder. I thought I heard another little finch when I spied a female Lesser Goldfinch in the neighbors crab apple tree. I sat down on the steps and waited. While sitting there I saw no less than four pairs of Lesser Gold Finches coming to my feeder. What a joy to see! Now I know Spring is officially here! And while watching the finches a pair of Downy Woodpeckers came to my feeder as well.

My Backyard

2009-03-11T13:56:00.002-06:00

This winter has been terrific for viewing birds in my backyard. I've had everthing from Flickers, Red and White breasted Nuthatches, Chickadees, Sparrows. Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers, Juncos, Blue Jays, Robins, and of course all kinds of Finches. I can finally pick out the difference between the House Finches and Gold Finches. There has been a male Finch that is orange instead of the usual pinkish red ones that you normally see. He is just as orange as a pumpkin! I thought that maybe I had a new Finch! After doing some research, I found out that this guy is just a variation of the House Finch that can even have a yellowish tint to to them. I've been trying to get a photo of him, but either I've got the camera and don't see him come or he's there and I can't get to the camera fast enough. As soon as can get a picture of him I will post it. Wish me luck!

Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers

2008-12-29T19:12:00.002-07:00

Just a quick pic I snapped at my parent's house in Pennsylvania. A Hairy Woodpecker is the larger bird on the left, and the smaller bird on the right is a Downy Woodpecker. As you can see, the two species are almost identical except for the size. My mom came up with an easy way to remember it though. Downys are Diminutive, and Hairys are Huge. Hope that helps you remember, and have a happy new year!

South African Birding (continued)

2008-12-10T21:50:00.056-07:00

Birding Kruger Park!

This is the 3rd posting of pictures of our birding trip to South Africa with Nestling Tours and Avian Leisure. Included here are photos from traveling through the regions known as the Tanqua Karoo, the Langeberg Mountains, the west coast, the Agulhas Plain, the Grootvadersbosch Forest, the Gargen Route, and the famous Kruger Park.

Pictures here are a few of 348 species we observed and photographed, many of which are endemic. My traveling companion Bill Eden and I found pristine bio diverse environments rich in bird, insect, floral, and the highly sought after "big five mammals." We were fortunate to see African Elephants, Cape Buffaloes, Rinos, Lions, and Cheetas. We did miss out on the Leopard. Maybe next time.

All posted pictures taken with a Leica V Lux 1 camera.

Yellow-Billed Stork catches a fish. Just as I pressed the shudder.

Stripped Kingfisher in Kruger Park

Spotted Thick-Knee

Southern Yellow-Billed Hornbill

Southern Masked Weaver

Secretarybird

Scarlet-Chested Sunbird

Long-Crested Eagle

Lilac-Breasted Roller

Knysna Turaco

Black-Bellied Bustard (Korhaan)

Blue Crane (the National Bird)

African Pygmy Kingfisher

African Jacana

African Green Pigeon

African Hoopoe

South Africa Birding

2008-11-20T14:17:00.065-07:00

Pin-Tailed Whydah

It's mid November and my traveling companion Bill Eden and I have recently returned from a birding/wildlife photographic safari in South Africa. Our trip took us over much of the country ranging from the pristine surrounding of Cape Town, the off shore pelagic environment of the Cape of Good Hope, along the Atlantic seaboard, the inland arid land known as the Great Karoo, the succulent forest and rugged mountains of the Cape peninsula garden route, and the internationally acclaimed Kruger Park. Our host and guides Patrick and Marie-Louise Cardwell of Avian Leisure present the country to us and deliver over 350 species of birds, many of which are endemic. Along the way we observed and photographed a wide range of wildlife in the incredible South African varied bio-diverse landscape.

The first few days of our trip are in and around the small coastal community of Simons Town. It is situated just about 10 miles north of the Cape of Good Hope on the western shore of what is known as False Bay. Bill and I explore and photograph birds in the Cape Peninsula, the Cape Point Nature Reserve, Boulders Coastal Park, the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, the Cape of Good Hope Park, and the Strandfontein wetlands. All pictures taken with Leica C-Lux and V-Lux cameras and all digiscope shots are with a Swarovski spotting scope and a Cannon 540 point and shoot camera.

Blacksmith Lapwing Plover

Cape Weaver

Southern Red Bishop

Common Chaffinch

Cape Francolin and chicks

Cape Francolin

Spotted Eagle Owl

Cape Canary

Greater Flamingos

Black-Headed Heron

Great White Pelican

Black-Winged Stilt

Glossy Ibis

Reed Comorants

Cape Bunting

Whale breaching in False Bay

Southern Double-Collered Sunbird

Cape Bulbul

Spotted Prinia

Cape Sugarbirds

African Jackass Penguin

African Black Oystercatcher

nesting Cape Cormorant digiscoped with Swarovski scope & Cannon 540

Moon over S. A. digiscoped with Swarovski scope & Cannon 540

South African Pelagic Birding

2008-11-20T10:04:00.075-07:00

Africa Trip continued:
A big part of our S. A. birding and wildlife tour was a 30 mile excursion off the Cape of Good Hope. Patrick Cardwell of Avian Leisure hooks us up with Chris Fallows of Apex Predators tours (http://www.apexpredators.com) in order to view the wide array of seabirds and other wildlife that forage off the bottom of the African continent.

Chris and Apex Predators are internationally acclaimed with their pictures, interviews, and documentaries seen in National Geographic, 60 minutes, CNN, and the Discovery Channel. You can see Chris’s awesome videos of Great White Sharks in pursuit of sea lions in the Discovery Channel‘s Planet Earth series. They specialize in the conservation of aquatic ecosystems to include promoting the positive awareness of the Great White Sharks.

We did not chase Great Whites, but the thrill of riding 25 foot waves photographing a mix of Shearwaters, Petrels, Skuas, Albatross’s and Gulls was quite a treat. To add to the adventure were sea turtles, sun fish, sea lions, and breaching Southern Right Whales.

The rough seas where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet did smooth out a bit as we powered our 18’ craft past the continental shelf. There we played tag with several fishing trawlers and container ships that attracted prolonged aquatic feeding frenzes. These were the same seas back in 1487 that the Portuguese explorer Bartholomeu Dias ventured through as he rounded the Cape in search of an eastern sea trade route to India. Dias did not make it to India but 10 years later in 1497 the equally intrepid adventurer Vasco da Gama did which started a rich history that the Portuguese, Dutch, and English all played a part in. The windy, rocky cape was and is a dangerous place for seamen and many met their demise here including tragically Dias himself.

Please enjoy these pelagic pictures and short videos. Photographs are from a Leica D-Lux unless otherwise noted.

The Cape of Good Hope looking North
all of Africa is above here

Cape Gull digiscoped with Cannon 540 and Swarovski HD 80 scope

Who's on first?

Pintado Petrel

Sea Lions on the chase

Competition of the species

The Shy Albatross

Incredible aviators, Albatross's play the waves

A Sun Fish approaches our boat

Our Sun Fish pulls up along side the boat

Check out the rockin video!

Birds in my Backyard

2008-10-12T13:53:00.002-06:00

Saturday, October 11, 2008 was a very exciting day in my backyard. We had a Lewis's Woodpecker stop by our woodpecker style suet feeder. After eating, it found a nice spot in the tree where it stayed for about the next three hours napping and occasionally checking for bugs in the tree bark. After the Lewis's Woodpecker was finished eating, we saw a Flicker on the suet feeder, but it had a red triangle on the back of it's head/neck. I went crazy looking through all of my Colorado bird books and couldn't find it. So, when I came into work today, Sunday, October
12th, I grabbed a Kaufman's Field Guide and found out it was "Yellow-shafted" Flicker. We really enjoyed watching our "new" Flicker and it's mate for several hours.

How Swainson's Hawks Got Their Name

2008-10-02T10:15:00.002-06:00

Swainson’s Hawks were named after William Swainson, who lived from 1789 to 1855. An English writer, artist and naturalist, he seemed to be followed by misfortune everywhere. On a collection trip to Brazil in 1816 to 1817 he ran into a national revolution. Despite great and effort and achievements, he always had trouble making ends meet and funding his studies. He received much criticism for speaking out for the Quinary System, a method of classifying all living things, while everyone else used the more popular Linnaean System we still use today. In an attempt to start his life over, he moved to New Zealand and lost his entire collection on the way. He lives on today with nine birds named after him, including the Swainson’s Hawk, the Swainson’s Thrush, and the Swainson’s Warbler. The warbler was named by John James Audubon, the hawk by Charles-Lucien Bonaparte.

Bonaparte, who lived from 1803-1857, was a nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte. One of the foremost ornithologists of his time, he is mostly forgotten to history because of more famous contemporaries such as John James Audubon. He spent eight years studying North American birds and published American Ornithology. After returning to Europe he continued to study birds, but also got more involved in politics, including the independence of Italy.

Two famous ornithologists were behind the name of Swainson’s Hawks. If you discovered a new bird, what would you name it?

Itasca State Park and the Headwaters of the Mississippi

2008-09-13T15:14:00.017-06:00

This past week Diane and I, in an effort to “hold on to summer”, took a trip to visit our daughter, son-in-law, and grand kids in Saint Paul, Minnesota. There we caravanned north to visit and play in Minnesota’s Itasca State Park. I mention this in our blog as I discovered it to be a fantastic natural playground for those who love to take in history, flora, and fauna. Itasca State Park is located about 160 mile northwest of Minneapolis. It houses the source of the mighty Mississippi river as it begins its 2,552 mile journey to the Gulf of Mexico. Named by explorer Henry Rowe Schoolcraft in 1832 from the lain words verITAS CAput meaning “true head,” Itasca was established in 1891 to preserve remnant stands of virgin pine and to protect the basin around the Mississippi’s source. The historical significance, lodge, camp ground, multiple lakes, visitor center, and numerous trails make this 32,000 acre park a famous and cultural landmark well worth any outdoor adventure.

While at Itasca we hiked, kayaked, and crossed the Missippii River on foot! It trickles out of the north end of Lake Itasca and is enjoyed by visitors who kick off their shoes and wade through the 12 inch deep water 10 feet to the other side. Looking around a common sight to enjoy are diving Loons and soaring Bald Eagles. We chose a trail to hike called Dr. Robert’s trail along the lake and learned a lot about the indigenous plant life and how native Indians utilized their natural resources. Along the way birding we observed American Redstarts, Brown Creepers, Hairy Woodpeckers, grebes, cormorants, hummingbirds, chickadees, nuthatches, kinglets, finches, and new families of Northern Flickers.

Itasca State Park, a worthy stop for anyone looking for outdoor adventure.

Enjoy these pictures of Common Loons on Lake Itasca taken with a Leica V-Lux camera. Visit us also at http//:www.frontrangebirding.com

Vociferous Baby Birds

2008-08-23T13:45:00.002-06:00

This summer I have had numerous baby birds, Sparrows, Finches, Grackles, Starlings, Robins, and Flickers, all coming to my backyard to feed their new little fledglings. It's been such a joy to watch all the new babies getting fed. At first I thought the Grackles and Starlings had the loudest lot of babies, until the Flickers arrived with their new little ones. The Flicker babies make the most racket of them all. They are slightly smaller than the adults and have not guite got all their pretty markings and colors yet, but they sure can raise a ruckus. I can always tell when the Flicker babies are there. As of this posting, I am still getting Finch and Sparrow babies with their little pin feathers sticking up on their heads like little punk rock stars! They are so cute, mouths open wide and flapping their stubby little wings and making as much noise as possible so that the feeding parent will feed them first.

On another note, I finally am rid of most of the Grackles and Starlings. They were draining my hopper feeder on a dailey basis. This was getting rather expensive, so I switched to putting just safflower in the hopper and now all I have are just a few straglers here and there. The little song birds love the safflower and I'm not going broke feeding the birds.

Say's Phoebe

2008-08-20T17:05:00.003-06:00

A Say's Phoebe stopped by to visit today. Last summer I had a family spend a day in the yard, sitting on the fence and waiting for their parents to bring them bugs. I think this one was a juvenile as well. The wings of adults are a solid color, instead of the rufous bars this one has. I've heard them around the neighborhood all summer and got some good pics today.

Golden Eagle Nest at Roxborough State Park

2008-08-15T15:21:00.008-06:00

A few weeks ago my husband Kevin and I took my Vortex Sandpiper Spotting Scope and digital camera to Roxborough State Park to try digiscoping a Golden Eagle nest. We found the nest pretty easily because the nestling was making a loud screeching call over and over again. It was up in the rocks on the hogback, and much easier to see with binoculars or spotting scope than with the naked eye. The nestling was sitting on the edge of the nest and sat patiently for us to take pictures. Digiscoping involves shooting pictures through a spotting scope, which with my scope can magnify the picture up to 45 times more than the camera alone. Adapters are available depending on the camera and spotting scope, but Kevin and I have practiced just holding the camera up to the spotting scope and lining it up right to get a good picture. It definitely takes practice, and I need to learn how to get better focus and color. The hardest part was seeing the image in the LCD field because it was so sunny out!

Here's a picture taken with the zoom lens I have for my camera, you can see the magnification is nowhere near what we get with the spotting scope. Can you find the eagle and nest?

Seeing this Golden Eagle was a first for me! Golden Eagles always make me think of a time when a former co-worker referred to them as the "birds with hairy legs," because their legs are feathered to the toes.

Northern Cardinal on the Colorado Front Range

2008-08-15T14:52:00.001-06:00

A rare site on the Front Range is a Northern Cardinal. On 3 of the past 4 days a single male Cardinal has visited our back yard in the Ken-Caryl neighborhood of Littleton, CO. We are just inside the “Hogback,” a ridge line just to the west of Denver. Our Red Bird was comfortable on and around our feeders with Black Headed Grosbeaks, Lesser Gold Finches, Spotted Towhees, and Black Headed Chickadees. This has been reported on the Colorado Field Ornithologist Rare Bird Alert hotline.

American Kestrel Watch in Littleton CO

2008-07-30T16:09:00.000-06:00

July 2oth was the last day we observed a Kestrel on the nest or in the area. Our male Kestrel was on the eggs all day. It seems now though they have given up the ghost after over 109 days diligently incubating and turning unhitched eggs. It is incredible that they kept trying for almost 3 months longer than the normal 30 day gestation period. There are 2 eggs left in the box and we will remove them in due course.

This is a disappointing end to our Kestrel watch but we’ll have the cameras rolling again next year and hope our “more experienced” couple will return and try having a family again in 2009.

American Kestrel Watch in Littleton CO

2008-07-22T16:08:00.000-06:00

We just got back in town from visiting relatives and are now back seeing how our Kestrel couple is doing. To our surprise the number of eggs is now back up to two! This is now after the nesting birds have been incubating them for 103 days now. Obviously the female has laid at least one egg in the past week or so. We do know if she broke the last egg before starting over but at any rate the gestation clock is reset in hopes of having at least one chick hatch before the end of summer. Assuming the last egg was laid in the past week we could see a chick around August 7th or so. We have noticed both Kestrels in the area and they are still both very involved in tending to their eggs.

American Kestrel Watch in Littleton CO

2008-07-02T16:07:00.001-06:00

For the past two years we have enjoyed American Kestrels nesting in a nest box on our roof. Last year four chicks successfully fledged and gave us over 2 months of enjoyment as the parents labored through gestation, fed their fledglings, and taught them how the fine art of raptoring.

This year I placed an infrared camera in their nest box and wired it directly to our family room TV. We have watched with total amazement as a male and female Kestrel have taken up residence and fended off both Northern Flickers and European Starlings to lay undisputed claim to “their nest box.” So far however the would be parents seem to be unlucky in love as none of their eggs have hatched. The first egg was laid on April 2nd followed by number 2 on April 6th, number 3 on April 8th, and number 4 on April 10th. With normal gestation at approximately 30 days we feel there is no hope for a family on this outing. In fact three of the eggs have already disappeared – one on May 4th, another on May21st, and another on May 29th. As of July 1st the Kestrel couple is still trying to incubate their lone egg although we have observed much less participation by the male in the past couple of weeks.

Both female and male Kestrel has shared the egg warming and turning chores constantly. We are not sure what the cause of their failure is. Perhaps they are not experienced or perhaps they nested too early and the temperatures were too cold. The big news is how dedicated to the cause they are. As of this writing they have been on eggs for 89 days.
We will continue the watch and report our findings.

Welcome to the Front Range Birding Club

2008-06-29T16:04:00.001-06:00

Welcome to the Front Range Birding Club Blog!

This is a window to our world of field and backyard birding. Please welcome our bloggers Shannon Jennings, Sara Nelson and myself Tom Bush as we explore the many fascinating aspects of wild birds, their habitat, and unique behavior. We will utilize our many resources, contacts, and experience that daily enter our door at the Front Range Birding Company in Littleton, Colorado. Our stories will not only come from our local area in Colorado but also include travels all over the country. Look for storylines corroborated by experts from the Audubon Society of Greater Denver, the Denver Field Ornithologists, the Colorado Field Ornithologist, Master Birders, and other experts throughout Colorado. This blog will include features on backyard habitat, birding hot spots, photography, digiscoping, and have features on many specific birding subjects.

Please join us in our endeavor to learn more about the birding vocation. It is a great activity for the entire family so grab a pair of binoculars and let’s go birding!