Thanks David! This is a great compilation. It is really entertaining to watch all of the local birds in Loveland/Fort Collins hanging out at the intersections waiting to swoop down on our miller friends. The current flight also happens to be a boon to Flammulated owls and Black Bears.
Michael Tincher Loveland, CO On Tuesday, May 23, 2023 at 9:34:13 AM UTC-6 DAVID A LEATHERMAN wrote: > Here is a composite of just some of the birds eating millers in Lamar over > the last three weeks. Molting male Baltimore oriole, black-headed > grosbeak, brown-headed cowbird (scavenging a pile of dead millers I think > somebody dumped out of their RV onto a dirt road within Hasty CG), > Lincoln's sparrow, Bullock's oriole, brown thrasher, Army Cutworm adult > (THE miller), prothonotary warbler, white-crowned sparrow, yellow-headed > blackbird and yellow-rumped warbler. Not great photos, highly cropped, but > good enough to document the phenomenon. > > Some of the comments I got to yesterday's post asked if birds somehow > follow the miller migration. My take would be they travel their general > migration flyways. What they encounter along the way no doubt alters their > schedule. In other words, they get on the interstate. They get off the > road periodically to rest (mostly where there are trees). If there's > water, they drink. If there's food they eat. If there's lots of food, > they maybe stay for days. No different than us. An exit with no services > is maybe nothing more than a place to pull off and nap. The availability > of services can mean a different itinerary. Given the variability of > miller populations from year to year, no way the birds can no what they'll > encounter starting out, but being the adaptable, opportunistic creatures > they are, they know what works best when they come across certain > circumstances. > > Dave Leatherman > Fort Collins > > -- -- 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/16579e71-900e-4967-b3e3-9d7f1a4095c3n%40googlegroups.com.
