All:
Rain and snow continues in the high country, driving most
"normal" people to hike and bird elsewhere. I concentrated on creek
bottoms, shrub lands and adjoining ponderosa pine woodlands this weekend in
Boulder County. Trails in Boulder Mountain Park and elsewhere still have
sections that are rivers of mud. See list at bottom of report for
closures.
For May 16 \ 17 -
BMP = Boulder Mt Park
G = Gunbarrel
BC = Boulder County General
H = Heil Ranch
L = Lyons and vicinity including Meadow Park and Old St Vrain Road
*Noteworthy species in CAPS (brown thrasher, great tailed grackle) *
Common merganser - L - St Vrain River
Mallard - BC
Canada goose - BC - goslings have hatched
Turkey vulture - BC, BMP
Golden eagle - Meadow Park, Lyons - one half fledged young on nest, both
adults present; Meadow Park is mostly repaired and open for business,
except all access to the river is fenced off.
American kestrel - BC
Red tailed hawk - BC, on nests
Spotted sandpiper - L - lots along the St Vrain River
Rock dove - BC
Mourning dove - BC
Eurasian collared dove - BC
Broad tailed hummingbird - BMP, L, H - large concentrations of displaying
males at Gregory Canyon and lower Flagstaff Mt.
Hairy woodpecker - H
Downy woodpecker - H
Northern flicker - BC
Empidnax ssp: - unidentifiable flycatchers in several locations: South
Mesa Trailhead, Gregory Canyon Trailhead, Old St Vrain Road (no songs for
any of them)
Say's phoebe - BMP
Western kingbird - BC
Eastern kingbird - BC
Warbling vireo - BC, BMP, L
Plumbeous vireo - BMP, L - ponderosa forests, singing
Blue jay - BC
Stellar's jay - BMP
Scrub jay - BMP
Black billed magpie - BC - nesting, carrying food items
American crow - BC
Common raven - BC - nesting, carrying food items
Violet green swallow - L, BMP, G, BC, - large concentrations along St Vrain
River and cliffs near Hall Ranch
Barn swallow - BC
Cliff swallow - L, BC - nesting under bridges, and in culverts, gathering
mud
White throated swift - BMP, L
Mountain chickadee - BMP
Black capped chickadee - BC
Bushtit - L, BC
Brown creeper - BMP
Red breasted nuthatch - BMP
Pygmy nuthatch - BMP - nesting
House wren - BMP, L, G, BC
Canyon wren - L - along Old St Vrain Road and Hall Ranch
Rock wren - L - along Old St Vrain Road
Blue gray gnatcatcher - L, BMP, G - shrub lands and ponderosa woodlands
Western bluebird - BMP
Townsend's solitaire - BMP
Hermit thrush - BMP - songs, South Mesa Trail near Shadow Canyon
American robin - BC - feeding young on nests; Note: ALBINO ROBIN is still
at the CU Space Science parking area adjoining the Boulder Bikeway.
Gray catbird - BMP, L - singing, chases, - shrub habitat
BROWN THRASHER - L - seen and heard singing along Old St Vrain Road; Walk
100 yards past a construction zone with orange markers; Look for a sign
that says: "Boulder County, No Entry Permitted" on the river side. The
thrasher can be lured out by imitating the songs.
European starling - BC - nesting
Virginia's warbler - BMP - about 6 males singing and foraging in Douglas
fir, ponderosa, chokecherry, and skunk bush - Upper sections of the South
Mesa Trail complex
Yellow warbler - L, BMP, BC, G - large concentrations along Old St Vrain
Road, Lyons - both males and females
MacGillvray's warbler - BMP, G - singing in riparian sections
Yellow breasted chat - BMP, G, L - high concentrations along the South Mesa
Trail \ Big Bluestem complex - estimate over 40 in shrub habitat and mixed
shrub habitat. Very vocal. Lots of chases.
Western tanager - BMP - large concentrations in upper South Mesa Trail
system and adjoining trails in ponderosa habitat - dozens, both males and
females; at one point I counted 8 in one tree chasing and singing.
Green tailed towhee - BMP, H - a few singing
Spotted towhee - BC, BMP, H, G, L
Chipping sparrow - BMP
Savannah sparrow - 2 singing at City of Boulder Open Space main operations
center, Cherryvale Road. This is a nesting area for Savannah sparrows.
Song sparrow - BC - nesting
Vesper sparrow - BMP - singing has begun
House sparrow - BC - nesting
Gray headed junco - BMP
Black headed grosbeak - BMP, L - numbers increasing; songs, chases. Both
males and females present.
Lazuli bunting - BMP, L, G - throughout Boulder Mt Park in fairly large
numbers. Both males and females present.
Western meadowlark - BC, BMP, L
Red winged blackbird - BC
GREAT TAILED GRACKLE - 1 male on power wires along Marshall Road between
Marshall and Superior
Common grackle - BC - nesting
Brewers blackbird - BC, G, BMP - nesting
Bullock's oriole - BMP, G, L - large concentrations along Old St Vrain Road
in Lyons - loss of trees along the river has pushed them into
denser numbers where surviving cottonwoods and box elder exist.
House finch - BC - nesting
American goldfinch - BC
Pine siskin - H, G
Conspicuously absent; western wood pewee
*Flooding and trails:*
Heatherwood trail is still closed - water has flooded the walkway under the
bridge; Closed until further notice
Heil Ranch Trails are Closed, except for the Lichen Loop Trail; Closed
until further notice
Picture Rock Trail in Lyons is Closed: Closed until further notice. The
Parking lot and restrooms are also closed. There is almost no parking
along the road near Picture Rock.
Old St Vrain Road is Close to all but local traffic.
Gregory Canyon Road, and parking lot is still closed; The footbridge over
Gregory Canyon Creek is still gone.
Doudy Draw Trails are Closed; the parking area is Open, but the trails are
Closed until further notice.
South Mesa Trail and adjoining Big Bluestem Trail and Homestead Trails are
Open - but its nothing but mud, mud, mud.
Blooming: Pasqueflower, spring beauties, hawthorn in full bloom,
chokecherry in full bloom down low (lots of birds are foraging in
chokecherry now); scorpion weed, water hyacinth, bluebells, vetch ssp;,
dandelion, toadflax, goldenbanner, mountain lupine, wild iris (past peak),
yellow iris, yellow violet, lavender penstemon, skunkbush,
Visuals on red fox, mule deer (fawns are being born), fox squirrel, black
tailed prairie dog, cottontail, coyote, abert's squirrel.
More rain, snow, and mud-mud-mud coming your way.
Happy mud-birding; John T (Tumasonis) of Louisville CO
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