I am glad to see the ferruginous hawk on your list, Ted. I saw one perched on a beam at the Kaiser Rock Creek building yesterday, head tucked in as it was harassed by a pair of ravens. I doubted my eyes a bit - it seemed early in the season - but had a good view of bright white underparts and belly, pale head, rusty-streaked flanks, brown streaky back. It seemed like an odd spot to me, but it's a fine high perch and Lafayette's Rock Creek open space is just across the road, with plenty of prey for a morning nosh (and not far south of where you saw yours).
Rather a crowd gathered to look, so that was fun. Moral, take your binocs to the docs! Sandra Laursen On Saturday, October 28, 2023 at 11:45:06 PM UTC-6 Ted Floyd wrote: > Hey, all. > > Some odds and ends from these past few days in eastern Boulder Co. All > reports from within a proverbial stone's throw of US-287, which runs > north–south near the county's eastern border. > > Thurs., Oct. 26. Greenlee Wildlife Preserve & Waneka Lake. A flyover *evening > grosbeak* and several flyover *red crossbills.* The latter are uncommon > in eastern Boulder Co., the former rare. I didn't get audio of either, but > I believe the grosbeak was a Type 4 and the crossbills Type 2s. Also that > evening, overflying Waneka Lake, a late *Baird sandpiper,* and possibly > more than just the one. > > Fri., Oct. 27. Hecla Pond. 6 *long-billed dowitchers,* a *Wilson snipe *and > an* American White Pelican,* 4 *hooded mergansers,* and the last singing > orthopteran of the year: an Allard ground cricket, *Allonemobius allardi*. > Way up there: 3 *sandhill cranes,* barely visible, but delectably > audible. Also up there: *cackling geese* by the hundreds, many of which > had put down by mid-afternoon on nearby Waneka Lake. > > Sat., Oct. 28. McIntosh Lake. I arrived there just as the morning snow > squall was intensifying, and a nice little fallout was in progress. Strange > for the date were no fewer than 9 *barn swallows.* Shorebirds, apparently > disoriented, were flying around the lakeshore—definitely 2 *greater > yellowlegs* and 20+ *killdeer,* along with a *Pluvialis* plover that > sounded better for American golden-plover than for black-bellied plover; > and a *spuh,* heard-only, that I thought might have been a sanderling. > FOSes included 3 *horned grebes* and 8 *red-breasted mergansers.* And a > dark-morph eastern fox squirrel, *Sciurus niger*, and an > *Audubon warbler.* > Sat., Oct. 28. Prince Lake No. 2 and adjoining Schofield Open Space. 6 > *long-billed > dowitchers,* a late *Say phoebe,* a flyover *American pipit,* and gulls. > Among the 61 *ring-billed gulls* were an adult *herring gull,* a bit > early, and a *Franklin gull,* rather tardy. Or, at least, I think it was > a Franklin gull. Genus *Leucophaeus* for sure. If anybody wants to sneak > a peek at my eBird checklist and make sure it's just a Frankie, be my guest. > > Sat., Oct. 28. "Raptor Alley" area around 95th & Lookout. 500+ *cackling > geese;* 5 *bald eagles* (all adults) and 2 FOS *ferruginous hawks.* And > at a little pond south of 95th & Lookout, 3 drake *hooded mergansers* and > an unexpected garamond of 11 *double-crested cormorants,* mostly > hatch-years. > > Sat., Oct. 28. Stearns Lake. The *bald eagles* at their nest. Also a trio > of 3 frosty-tailed *American tree sparrows,* FOSes. And in the parking > lot cattails, a chatterbox *marsh wren* and 2 > *swamp sparrows.* > Ted Floyd > Lafayette, Boulder 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/42cf869a-50c2-4aa4-9879-5c0e2f293ae8n%40googlegroups.com.
