I have a small flock of bushtits in my trees, and what I suspect maybe a few Vireos feeding on the insects feeding on the leaves of my elms. Will report back on the latter, later when I get better sightings. They appear to be here for a while.
Two of the Western Grebes have young ones on their backs. I haven't seen any sign of the Double Crested Cormorants with young so far, but there are plenty of adults on the northwest area of the lake. The American Pelicans are increasing, some days there are a several dozen or more on Highland Lake, other days, only a handful. There is a noticeable lack of Mallards and Canada Geese on the lake this year. They were scarce last year as well. I remember times when we would have 100s of geese on the lake at one time, and it wasn't that many years ago. Could the pelicans have something to do with this? Right now, I only see two pairs of Mallards, and a lone Canada Goose. The Killdeer are back in good numbers. The four bachelor Great Blue Herons have divided the lake into quarters. It is fun watching them when one gets spooked and moves into another's territory. The one whose territory is invaded then moves to the next one, and so one, until they have all traded spaces. Lots of baby robin fledglings around. At this point I can walk right up to them and almost touch them - if I wanted to. Saw a common nighthawk fly low through my yard a little after dark last evening. The Barn Swallows are here in numbers and nesting. I also have several Western Kingbirds hanging around. They have been here for a few weeks now. I suspect they have a couple nests down in my Pine and Spruce trees, or perhaps one of the cottonwoods near them. Lots of nests in those trees. Right now, we have a mama red fox who is decimating my chicken flock, and I have seen evidence that she is also lunching on Ring-necked pheasants, and at least one Canada Goose. Her kits are now old enough and learning to hunt, so I'm pretty sure there will be more damage to the local water fowl - and my flock - before it gets better. That's all for now, I'm pretty limited these days to my yard and the shore of the lake closest to my house. Hopefully that will change soon. Pauli Smith Highlandlake near Mead, Weld -- 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.com/group/cobirds?hl=en.
