Yesterday Todd Deininger and I scouted out some spots in NE Colorado in preparation for a trip that I will be leading in three weeks (see below if you are interested). We started by heading directly to Haxtun in Phillips County to try for the Inca Dove reported by Cole Wild a week before, but had no luck. Overall, we had very few migrant passerines for the day except for a few Chipping Sparrows (which would certainly have been Ted Floyd's highpoint). The few waterholes in Phillips County were not very productive except for a rather unpleasant looking spot on a feedlot right on the Phillips/Yuma County that had Least, Semi-palmated and Bairds's Sandpipers, just east of Lake Linfield (don't look for that on a map; it's my name for a ephemeral pond on the county line at CR 2 X CR 29).
Things were a bit more interesting in Holyoke where we had a couple of Mississippi Kites and what must have been a very early Olive-sided Flycatcher. We then went north to Sedgwick County where there wasn't too much shaking out until we got to Jumbo Reservoir which had lots of expected gulls and terns and a small scattering of shorebirds For the whole trip we managed 10 shorebird species including a Solitary Sandpiper and a Willet plus lots of Baird's. Red Lion's shorebird best habitat was entirely bone dry. Continuing to Sterling, we found even more Kites, up to eight over Cheair Park which I've discovered is really kite central in town. Todd's car's thermometer also hit 100 at about this point in our trip. A final stop at Prewitt was a disappointment in that we found many more campers and swimmers than shorebirds (and precious little habitat). I was also disappointed in that we found only one active hummingbird feeder in Phillips and Sedgwick Counties on our whole trip (and no hummingbirds). So, if this hasn't turned your mind, allow me to post the following about my upcoming CFO Field trip to the same area. Bill Kaempfer August 28th and 29th, Saturday & Sunday 2010 Birding North East Colorado with Bill Kaempfer and John Vanderpoel: A joint trip with the Boulder Bird Club - 6:00 AM Join Bill Kaempfer on a two-day trip to Northeastern Colorado visiting Prewitt Reservoir, Sterling , North Sterling State Park, Tamarack, Red Lion and Jumbo Reservoir State Wildlife Areas for fall migrants including shorebirds, warblers and eastern specialties. The trip will leave from the Niwot Park-and-Ride at 6:00 AM on Saturday, August 28th and proceed east. We will return by 6:00 PM on Sunday. Please plan on car pooling with at least 3 (and hopefully 4) per car since the trip will cover several hundred miles. Bring all your optical equipment, lunches for Saturday and Sunday, snacks, water, comfortable footwear, appropriate clothing for this time of year and day, hats as well as insect and sun protection. Cars will need to have Colorado State Parks passes. We will stay at 2 motels in Sterling (Super 8 or the Comfort Inn) at the Sterling interchange on I-76. Dinner on Saturday evening and breakfast on Sunday morning will be at restaurants in Sterling (see Gary Matthews' "Hungry Birder in Sterling " article in the 2007 volume of Colorado Birds). Please let Bill know if you plan on coming by contacting him at [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> or 303-954-8998. ________________________________ -- 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.
