At beautiful Grandview Cemetery today in Fort Collins, there was a first fall
female BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER feeding steadily on adult hackberry
psyllids in the e-w hackberry tree row along the ditch in the northwest corner.
The tree it favored most is about the 5th tree from the absolute nw corner of
the cemetery and is directly south of the City Park Liquor store just across
LaPorte Avenue. At certain angles and in certain light, this bird appears all
yellow-headed, with little to no smudginess in the auriculars. When it is high
in a tree, which it often was, the yellow vent area is difficult to discern.
In other words, it looks a lot like the Last Chance Hermit Warbler. Or a first
fall female Golden-cheeked. But under the influence of something other than
adrenalin, and in better light and at closer distances, an observer is able to
see differences: greener, unstriped back; slight eyeline behind the eye; yellow
top of the head; fairly prominent flank stripes; and, yes, the broad yellow
wash across the vent. The bird infrequently gives a dry, metallic chip note.
It goes to other trees, including other hackberries and non-hackberries (Green
Ash, Siberian Elm and American Elm), but at least this afternoon, kept coming
back to its favorite Northern Hackberry. Rachel Hopper and I saw the bird
foraging actively in a Siberian Elm next to its favorite hackberry. I got a
net and swept thru the foliage, thinking the bird might be getting elm flea
weevils. Besides one house fly and a few small midges, all I found in the net
were many adult hackberry psyllids. The adult psyllids overwinter in bark
crevices. It matters not which kind of tree they choose for their hunkering
over the next 6 months, as long as it has nooks and crannies.
Other birds of interest at GC today:
Lincoln's Sparrow (in grass along the ditch north of the entrance, which is at
the west terminus of Mountain Avenue)
White-crowned Sparrow (1 first-winter, believe it or not this is a FOY at
Grandview for me this year - apparently the understory is too groomed)
American Crow (two big groups of about 25 each flew over, both n to s)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (1, in hackberry)
White-breasted Nuthatch (at least 5, one of which sounded and looked "eastern")
[no Golden-crowned Kinglet (yet)]
Great Horned Owl was a no-show (apparently now that the leaves have mostly
fallen from its big fall roost tree (the champion Thornless Honeylocust in the
southeast corner) it has moved elsewhere (which in past late falls/winters has
been the interior of a monster Colorado Blue Spruce)
Dave Leatherman
Fort Collins
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