Since last night's storm didn't drop as much rain as the night before, I tried to access the area where I found the Black-throated Sparrows at 9:15. CR79 had sustained some more storm damage but was passable in my Subaru Forester. I spent the next hour looking and listening for the Black-throated Sparrows where I had found them as well as several hundred feet further east and west along the road without success. Fortunately I was entertained by vocalizations by a small flock of Bushtits that came through, a distant flock of Pinyon Jays, a few Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers, a family group of Say's Phoebes calling repeatedly as well as several of the species I mentioned in yesterday's post.
I finally decided to leave but looked and listened as I drove slowly east on CR79 until I spotted two sparrows several hundred yards each of where I had watched them the past two days. I stopped and after a little bit I saw an adult Black-throated Sparrow fly north of the road between shrubs along the ditch. This bird was not singing but was giving a high-pitched call as it flew. Then I heard the same calls from the south side of the road in the tree chollas. After a while several Black-throated Sparrows flew from the south side to the north side of the road and from cholla to cholla. There was an adult and several birds in juvenal plumage. I watched them forage for about 5 minutes in the bottom of the cholla and on the ground before disappearing another 70-80 feet further north in the cholla and grass. I got a couple of more pics that I am posting on my blog at http://BirdsAndNature.blogspot.com. Interestingly, I saw an adult bird with something relatively large in it's beak, possibly a large insect. It flew and I didn't see the disposition of this object--could it have been a large insect to feed a young bird (BNA says that though they are seed eaters they feed insects to their young). Today I saw at least 5 birds, of which 2 were adults and at least 2 were in juvenal plumage, and possibly 6 birds. They emitted high pitched calls when they foraged and when they flew. *Birds of North America *online states, "Taylor described low “chips” by birds with bills full of insects. While foraging, male and female give contact call note . When member of a pair leaves or approaches nest, call notes often given." What I heard did not sound like "chips". Sounded like "si" (as in the sound made when saying sit without the 't' at the end)--but like si,si,si,si,si,si made quickly and repetively. Since these birds have moved down gulch several hundred yards, and the male was not singing, it may be that the young birds have improved their flight skills enough to start a post breeding dispersal. *BNA *online states, "In central Arizona, and s. New Mexico, family groups observed together until resumption of flocking in Jul and Aug." I will look for them again tomorrow morning. I updated the google map to show the new location. SeEtta Moss Canon City http://BirdsAndNature.blogspot.com --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Colorado County Birding: http://www.coloradocountybirding.com/ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.as/group/cobirds?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
