After hardly finding any Red Crossbills at all over the past 12+ months, there seems to be a shift going on, with crossbills appearing now before my ears and eyes. I've had a number of encounters over the past several days. For example, I had Red Crossbills at 7 places on a survey on July 1 up Old Squaw Pass Road and along the road up to Mt Evans peak in Clear Creek County. These were both Type 2 and Type 5 Red Crossbills, and I was excited to see that there is a new cone crop ripening up there for bristlecone pine, lodgepole pine and Engelmann spruce. The Type 2 birds were clearly associated with the bristlecone pines, such as a flock in the old bristlecone stand near the Mt Goliath Natural Area. I did not see any foraging, and the cones were not ripe, but the crossbills were hanging there. I'd suggest hanging around near bristlecones if you are up there is a good way to find some crossbills. Some Type 5 birds seemed to be engaged in courtship near Squaw Pass.
Down at my Ken Caryl Valley home in Jefferson County I've had 5 detections of Red Crossbill (Type 2) in just three days July 5-7. All were passing over as if on the move, not foraging locally. This is a record-paced frequency for noting crossbills near my home, where I have had a number of detections but they are sporadic and infrequent. Now I feel I must be ready to record flight calls at any moment when I step out.. David Suddjian Ken Caryl Valley Littleton, CO -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ --- 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/CAGj6Roq_T-ZJ0P9yb_zDDtqH6fuse_3CE8J-%3DRurdKEY8BMO%2Bg%40mail.gmail.com.
