Hey COBirder, It was a very good day of banding at Clear Spring Ranch this morning. (!!!!)
After the record-high temps and stagnant air for a few days, I didn’t expect much today. At dawn it was clear and pretty calm, but wind was starting to increase. Quickly it changed from clear to totally thick clouds with upslope conditions, and the SE winds. About 7:30 I saw the first interesting bird - an FOY Rose-breasted Grosbeak female which then cooperatively jumped in a net to be banded. Then it got crazy. Several waves of birds hit, and nets filled up, especially with Chipping Sparrows (90!). Birds were actively hitting the nets until about 11:30-12:00, before the cloud-cover finally broke, it got sunny, and birds settled down. 168 birds from 28 species caught today, my best spring day at CSR by 50. HIghlights: FOY Dusky Flycatcher (3) FOY Western Kingbird male (by crown and primary distinctions) FOY Rose-breasted Grosbeak (f) FOY Vesper Sparrow FOY Lazuli Bunting (m) FOY Bullock’s Oriole (m) FOY Yellow Warblers (5) FOY Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (m) FOY Myrtle Warbler (f) FOY Yellow-rumped Warbler Intergrade (f) FOY Clay-colored Sparrow (6) Plus Orange-crowned Warbler (2) Com Yellowthroat (6) House Wren (7) Chipping Sparrow (90!) Lincoln Sparrow (5) Gambell’s White-crowned Sparrow Spotted Towhee (3) Red-winged Blackbirds (netted 21 out of about 250 in the flooded fields nearby, and one M Yellow-headed Blackbird with them). I don’t expect this kind of activity again, but wanted to pass along the report so you could see what is finally coming North. Also, I am not doing visitors at the banding station this season for COVID reasons, obviously, and my COS Utilities permission to operate was contingent on my being solitary, at least for the time being. Thanks for understanding. Happy Migration, Steve Brown Colo Spgs -- 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/50219688-3B98-4496-9914-A96CC86636B4%40gmail.com.
