Deb and I went to the non-private GPC lek on CR45 North of Wray yesterday afternoon (5ish) to scope out its location for this morning. The directions to it were precise and accurate. Satisfied with that, we were naturally even happier to see some chickens at that hour. There were 3 on the ridge where the lek is, and we had a near-direct flyover of 9 more on their way there. If all we wanted was the list-tick, we could've turned around for home. Ah, but those displays....
Up and out by 5 this morning, we were positioned, dark and quiet, to enjoy the display by 5:35. Billions of stars in the pitch dark, eerily quiet in the windless morning, this is an awesome place to be, even lacking our purpose. It was 17 degrees. Zero snow anywhere on the ground out there right now. Coyotes started howling before 6. Then nothing. Sky gradually lightened. More coyotes. 6:15. A Mourning Dove. Then, at 6:20, the air filled with the sound of Greater Prairie Chickens, loud and non-stop. Finally, after 15 or 20 minutes of listening to them, they started to pop up, climb up, and skulk out. As the morning grew brighter, the early sun on the birds highlighted their air sacs and eye combs. No violent interaction that we could see, just lots of ritual posturing and circling. Despite some early departures, several males carried on with it for over 2 hours. An amazing treat to see. The other highlight of the trip was, among other raptors, 8 Ferruginous Hawks in Washington County yesterday on the way there, and one more this morning on the way home. Last Chance was dead, except for House Sparrows, Collared Doves, and Red-winged Blackbirds. Dave Cameron Denver -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/9dba702c-26fb-4d32-89bc-85160ee70669%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
