Our final day was the slowest of the season - made us feel that it was a good time to end! Banded only 7 birds, and then caught another 14 that we had caught earlier this season (a few migrants that had yet to move on and other birds that are likely to stick around for the winter). The 7 new birds were:
Red-shafted Flicker 1 Yellow-rumped Warbler, Audubon's 1 Spotted Towhee 1 Chipping Sparrow 1 Lincoln's Sparrow 1 White-crowned Sparrow, Gambel's 1 Dark-eyed Junco, Pink-sided 1 People have noted that this year seemed slow, but in reality, with a total of about 1450 birds, it was above the average. I suspect it seemed slow compared to last year, which was a record-breaker at just over 1900. I look forward to getting the data into the computer and looking at the results by species. In the meantime, my best memories of the season were not necessarily rare birds but unexpected combinations that provided enlightening moments - the three young Blue Grosbeaks with their mom; the three young Savannah Sparrows, caught on different days and so easily confused with other species; the adult and young Blue Jays, caught together, that provided a perfect example of the difference in plumage between hatch year and after. We had a few really rare birds which were real treats, including the Black-throated Blue and Prothonotary Warblers, but my absolute favorite species of the season was the male Golden-crowned Kinglet - a stunning bird up close and personal! Thanks to the wonderful team of volunteers who make it possible for us to run this station 6 days a week for 7 weeks every fall! And thanks to all of you who shared the season with us! Meredith McBurney Bander, Barr Lake Station Bird Conservancy of the Rockies -- 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 view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/73e069b1-0c48-4d17-9d5e-edcef3b49151%40googlegroups.com.
