13 - 24 June 1996

by Doug DeNeve

My wife and I were in Colorado June 13-24.  We spent a week camped at Rocky Mountain National Park, including a day when we drove from there to the Pawnee National Grasslands.  After our week at RMNP, we drove to Colorado National Monument, near Grand Junction and Fruita, and camped there for a couple of nights.  Within that framework, most of the specific places we went were suggested by people who responded to my RFI a while back, and/or to the summary of responses I posted.  We are extremely grateful to all of you who helped out in this way.  The trip was wonderful, with amazing scenery, plentiful non-avian wildlife, and of course plenty of good birding.  We totaled 159 species, of which 29 were life birds for me.  More than 20 were also lifers for Ann, who has had a few more opportunities than I have for birding in the West.

ITINERARY

June 13:

We flew out of Greensboro, NC, Thursday evening.  We arrived in Denver, by way of Pittsburgh, rather late.  We had arranged to stay in a motel near the big circus tent called Denver International Airport.  (Travel tip: "Near" is a relative term.  Nothing is actually "near" DIA.) We located an all-night grocery, and bought our food and other supplies for the week.  We didn't want to waste any birding time the next day.

June 14:

Up at dawn, and on the road.  We stopped for breakfast in Broomfield, and got our first lifer of the trip when we spotted Cassin's Finches in the restaurant parking lot.  Later, on the way to Estes Park, we found an unexpected hotspot between Lyons and Estes Park.  The highlights - Lewis's Woodpecker and a perched Golden Eagle.  We passed through Estes Park, and into RMNP.  We camped at Moraine Park, in a very nice site on the edge of the campground.  (Travel tip: If you want to camp in RMNP in the summer, especially on weekends, MAKE RESERVATIONS.) After lunch, we went for an exploratory walk around the campground, and wound up having a close encounter with a Williamson's Sapsucker.  Later, we drove to the Cub Lake Trailhead, not far from the campground.  This is a wonderful area for birding.  Our pursuit of a small flycatcher (never identified - Dusky?) led to our discovery of a Northern Goshawk, standing on the ground in the middle of a field.  That night, in the after-dinner twilight, we got a look at a Great Horned Owl in flight through the campground.

June 15:

Saturday, and sure to be crowded in the park.  We decided that this would be the ideal day to explore the Pawnee Grasslands.  We were awakened before sunrise by the sound of rain on the tent, and got an early start.  (Travel tip: The Donut Haus in Estes Park opens at 6:00 AM, and has great pastries.) We drove out to the Grasslands, then to Crow Valley, Latham Reservoir, and Ireland Reservoir, loosely following the itinerary of a similar trip described by William Kaempfer in a COBIRDS posting on June 3.  The weather was cool and rainy most of the day, but we had our highest single-day species count of the trip (70).  Highlights included larking Chestnut-Collared and McCown's Longspurs, a nest full of baby hawks in the only tree for miles around, with a Ferruginous Hawk nearby (can't be certain, but .  .  .), Wilson's Phalaropes (first time I've seen them in breeding plumage), American Avocets, and at Ireland Reservoir, a Great-tailed Grackle, a white-phase Little Blue Heron (yes, I can tell them from Snowy Egrets), and of course the pair of Olivaceous (or Neotropical) Cormorants.

After Saturday, we established a routine that worked very well for the rest of the trip.  Up at 5:30 AM (7:30 back home, we tried to tell ourselves), brew a quick pot of coffee on the camp stove, grab a couple of granola bars, and get out birding before the tourist traffic starts.  If you're birding in a high-traffic area, this approach can work wonders for you.  We frequently went to places that would be crawling with people in the afternoon, and had them all to ourselves in the early morning, before the birds were scared off.

June 16:

Up Trail Ridge Road, working the overlooks on the way up.  Across the ridge as far as Medicine Bow Curve, where, yes, we got our White-tailed Ptarmigan.  A visit to the Alpine Visitor's Center, then we retraced our path back to the campground.  (Travel tip: Don't try to bird on Trail Ridge Road on a nice Sunday afternoon.  It's a traffic jam.) We then made a late-afternoon visit to the Alluvial Fan.  Non-ptarmigan highlights of the day: American Pipits all over the tundra, a Golden Eagle flyby at Medicine Bow Curve, "probable" Three-toed Woodpecker and Band-tailed Pigeons at Many Parks Curve, and a five-minute, closeup performance by an American Dipper at the Alluvial Fan..

June 17:

Hiked the trail up to Cub Lake.  This was a scenic trail, with great birding to slow you down along the way.  Another group of birders, a couple and their teenage son, started out at the same time we did.  We stayed close for a while, but they finally moved on when we were trying to find the source of an unfamiliar bird song.  (Virginia's Warbler) On the way back, we saw a nice pair of coyotes and heard an ungodly scream/growl that had to be a mountain lion.  (We didn't follow up for a visual confirmation.)

June 18:

Over the ridge again, this time all the way to the other side, the "wetter, better" side of the park, as a ranger proudly told us.  The birding wasn't spectacular that day, but the west side of the park is a beautiful place, and we thoroughly enjoyed the day.  Highlights: a pair of Pine Grosbeaks, some decent photos of Wilson's Warblers, and a singing Hermit Thrush.

June 19:

Beat the crowds to the Bear Lake parking area, and hiked up to Emerald Lake.  Again, the birding was not as good as in some other areas, but the scenery, especially around the lakes along the way, was breath-taking.  By the time we came down, the parking/trailhead area was a zoo.  We escaped, and drove to the Endovalley Picnic Area.  Fall River Road was not open, but after lunch we scrambled up a hillside from the picnic area to the road, then walked back down the road to return to the picnic area.  While we were up there, we got a good look at a Western Tanager and saw our life Red-naped Sapsuckers.  We investigated Upper Beaver Meadows in the late afternoon, and found a Prairie Falcon soaring on an updraft.  Later, just before dusk, we encountered a flock of Red Crossbills in Moraine Park.

June 20:

Hiked a mile up Fall River Road, before the high winds and blowing dust convinced us to quit.  No point in getting sandblasted!  Returned to the Alluvial Fan, and got some nice photos of Tree and Violet-green Swallows.  Into town for showers, laundry, and a meal cooked indoors.  On the way in, just outside of town, we saw a Prairie Falcon dining on a ground squirrel (I assume) on top of a telephone pole next to the road.  (Travel tip: There are no showers in RMNP.  There are several places you can get one in Estes Park.  I can recommend Dad's Laundry and Showers.  It's clean, and the facilities offer a degree of privacy and security.) (Another Travel Tip: Try the Rocky Mountain Trout at the Sun Deck restaurant between Estes Park and RMNP, where Mary's Lake Road intersects US36.  Delicious!)

June 21:

Out of RMNP, and across the state to Colorado National Monument.  We stopped and birded along the way, of course, but tried to stay focused on getting there in time to get set up and explore a little before dark.  We got a campsite, up on the plateau, with no difficulty, and tried hard to turn some Blue-gray Gnatcatchers into Black-tailed, but ultimately we were unsuccessful.  (Question: Why is it that Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and Black-capped Gnatcatchers have black tails, and Black-tailed Gnatcatchers also have black caps?  Who's in charge of names around here?) Other highlights: Peregrine Falcon on a close fly-by, Cooper's Hawk on a nest, Common Nighthawk displaying and swooping directly over the campsite.

June 22:

Started out, early again, by birding the beginning of a trail starting across the road from the Visitor's Center.  (Highlight: Gray Vireo) Then we went down to the base of the plateau, and worked a riparian area along a small stream just inside the west entrance to the monument (south of Fruita).  We found a lot of birds, and wound up spending most of the morning there.  Highlight: Zeiss Moment with a Gambel's Quail.  (Zeiss Moment : When I see a bird unobscured, in good light, for an extended time, so close that I can see its individual feathers and the glint in its eye through my 10X40's) In the afternoon, we went looking for something called the Telephone Trail, described in the "Colorado Wildlife Viewing Guide".  The directions were a little hazy, the roads were not well-marked, and we spent all afternoon trying to find this place.  We finally did, late in the afternoon, and the birding was decent.  Unfortunately, by then we didn't have much time left.  I can't recommend making a special trip to bird there, especially as getting there involves driving over dirt roads that are meant for 4-wheel-drive vehicles.  We had something almost as good - a rental car!  ;-)

June 23:

Broke camp for the final time, and packed the car.  Birded a nature trail, also starting across from the Visitor's Center, before starting back toward Denver.  On the way back, we stopped at an Interstate rest area at a place called Grizzly Creek, in Glenwood Canyon.  We followed a trail about half a mile up the creek in a side canyon, and had great birding.  Highlights: An extended look at a Western Tanager feeding near the creek and outstanding looks at a pair of Band-Tailed Pigeons.  Continued toward the east to Idaho Springs, then detoured to the south to Mt.  Evans.  Rosy Finches are supposed to be a possibility there, but not on a pleasant Sunday afternoon in June.  The place was too crowded, but the scenery, again, was great, and we enjoyed the mountain goats.  After that, it was on to Denver, and a hotel where we could pack all of our gear for air travel.

June 24:

A leisurely morning.  We slept until almost 8:00 AM, then went out for breakfast.  Our flight wasn't until 3:00 PM, so we still had time for one more birding fling.  We went to Barr Lake State Park, north of Denver.  The Bald Eagle nest is the highlight there, though it looked like a nice all-around birding site.  We were surprised to get an Eastern Kingbird there, and we added an American Goldfinch to the trip list.  I wouldn't mind spending more time there a on another visit.  We wound up getting home around midnight.

"BIRDING MOMENTS" AND OTHER ANECDOTES.

Roadside, Highway 36:

US 36 and highway 7 intersect in the town of Lyons, CO.  Driving up 36 through the canyon from Lyons toward Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP), we went about 2.6 miles from that intersection, to a place where a smaller canyon joins the main one from the right.  It looked interesting, so we parked in a small turnout on the side of the road and got out to explore.  We immediately heard Yellow Warblers singing from the trees along the creek across the road.  When we went to get a better look, we found Song Sparrows in the undergrowth at streamside.  As we were investigating all of this, we looked up to see my life Golden Eagle gliding by, going up the side canyon.  We moved to the mouth of the canyon to get another look, and eventually found the eagle perched on a rock outcropping on the hillside, posing for a nice scope view.  High above the junction of the canyons, there was a tree from which a bird was flycatching.  We put the scope on it, expecting an exercise in long-range flycatcher identification.  Instead, we got our first look at a Lewis' Woodpecker.  It proved to be our only one of the trip.  A week later, after leaving RMNP, we stopped at this spot again.  This time we added, among others, a Bullock's Oriole, a pair of Lazuli Buntings, and our first Black-capped Chickadees of the trip.  All in all, not a bad roadside stop!

Moraine Park Campground, RMNP:

Upon arriving in the campground, we set up camp in the company of Mountain Chickadees, Stellar's Jays, and Mountain Bluebirds.  We decided to go for a walk, just to stretch our legs and get a feel for the place.  About 150 yards from our campsite, near a "facilities" building, we heard something tapping on a power pole.  We went to investigate, and discovered just how beautiful a Williamson's Sapsucker is in person.  (In bird?  Whatever.) Once again, we found that the guide books just can't reproduce the colors of real life.  We followed this bird around for awhile, seeing it from every angle and from whatever range we felt like.  It steadfastly ignored us, and went on feeding.  Finally, we decided that we'd had enough, and walked away from it.  It was the first Williamson's either of us had seen.  We're still looking forward to seeing a second.

Many Parks Curve, RMNP (1):

This was another unexpected delight.  We first arrived at this gorgeous overlook on Trail Ridge Road early one morning, when there were only a handful of other people present.  As I stepped out of the car, I heard, then saw, a woodpecker on a dead tree just off the parking lot.  It was silhouetted against a bright sky, and I couldn't make out any details.  Naturally, it flew before I could get a better look.  We followed it in the direction of the overlook.  As we did a Pine Siskin landed on a small marker within a few feet of us.  It looked us over (and we it) before flying on.  We got to the overlook just in time to see a woodpecker fly by, followed a few seconds later by a pair of medium-sized gray birds.  I watched the woodpecker flying off as Ann identified the Band-tailed Pigeons.  The woodpecker was black, with a white streak up the back and a light spot on the top (NOT back) of its head.  It was a less-than-satisfying look, but we never saw another Three-toed Woodpecker.

Many Parks Curve, RMNP (2):

On our second stop at this spot, trying for another look at the you-know-what, we had the overlook to ourselves on a beautiful, bright clear morning.  A Hermit Thrush serenaded us with a wonderful song for the whole time we were there (15-20 minutes).  It took us a while to locate him, but we finally saw him perched on the very top of a dead tree on the other side of the road.  We didn't see anything else of note, but the sights and the sound and the feel of the early morning air were almost overwhelming.  When we left, we drove up the road a couple of hundred yards to the first tiny, nameless turnout we came to, and parked again.  Our reward?  A pair of Pine Grosbeaks!

Middle of Nowhere:

Driving from Wellington toward Nunn, down a gravel road, we went into birding mode.  What this means is, every time somebody saw a bird that wasn't instantly recognizable, or was recognizable as something interesting, we'd stop.  There was no traffic on Nunn Road, largely because there are almost no people in that part of the world, so our stops were usually right in the middle of the road.  This had zero effect on anybody else in the state of Colorado until we spotted a strangely-shaped, dark bird perched on a fencepost a short way off the road.  I hit the brakes, and we again stopped in the middle of the road and jumped out.  This time, we were almost in front of two of the very few houses we'd seen since leaving the paved road.  The bird was interesting, so we set up the spotting scope, also in the road, to get a better look.  We took a few minutes to sort it out and identify it.  (Common Poor-will.  A life bird for both of us.) About the time we were getting it figured out, a lady came out of the nearest house with a pair of alleged dogs (an undersized, dark-colored Collie with Dachshund legs and her puppy) and walked down to the road, "to check her mail".  I saw her first, and alerted our Public Relations Department.  Ann struck up a conversation with the lady, and tried to explain why these two funny-looking strangers had parked their Buick in the middle of the road in front of her house and set up a telescope pointing toward an empty cowpasture.  She was friendly, and not frightened by crazy people, and we had a nice conversation with her.  She confirmed that we were on the right road (which was in doubt until then) and described some other birds she had seen in the area.  (Either she wasn't terribly observant, or there were some birds in the area that were previously unknown to science, or she'd been adding some local mushrooms to her spaghetti sauce.) She then pointed to her neighbors' yard, where we saw three or four Guinea Fowl walking around, and told us that her neighbor raised Peahens.  We thanked her for her help, and went on our way.

Pawnee Grasslands (1):

It was a cold, rainy day, when we went exploring in the Pawnee.  Our most-hoped-for birds on this day were the Longspurs, and we weren't seeing any.  We saw plenty of Lark Buntings, and had wonderful looks at a couple of Grasshopper Sparrows, and were really not doing badly with a variety of species.  As the morning wore on, though, we were getting wetter and colder, and we reached a point emotionally at which we just hoped that the Horned Larks and Brewers Sparrows, which had excited us earlier in the day, would get out of the way of the car before we got too close.  Ann, normally the last birder standing at the end of the day and an eternal optimist, began saying things like, "It's cold and it's wet and all we're doing is killing time.  I don't even know what we're doing out here." Clearly, we needed something special to turn the day around.  All of a sudden, we got it.

We were approaching an intersection (roads 114 and 45, as it turned out), when we saw several small birds, different from the ones we'd been seeing, flying over the field beside the road.  We stopped, and quickly realized we were seeing Longspurs.  I started into the field, while Ann stayed behind long enough to change into dry shoes and socks and pull out a warmer jacket.  As I walked through the field, McCown's Longspurs kept erupting from the grass, rocketing high into the air, then parachuting back to the ground on flared, fluttering wings and tails, all the while singing gloriously.  I looked around, and spotted a single Chestnut-collared Longspur, perched on a dried weed.  It sat there for more than a minute, offering a great front view.  When it finally flew, before Ann could see it, I wasn't concerned.  I had come across it so quickly, and there were so many birds displaying, that it must surely be the first of many that we'd see in that field.  Unfortunately, especially for Ann, it turned out to be the first of exactly one that we'd see there.

Ann caught up, and for some time we wandered around the field in a state of amazement at what we were seeing.  One after another after another, McCown's Longspurs were rising up to put on a show.  One started his descent right over me, so close that I thought for a second that it might actually hit me as it came down.  We walked about 100 yards, to the top of a rise overlooking the intersection, and the show continued.  There must have been dozens of them in that one small corner, and we could see many more in the adjacent areas.  Our spirits rejuvenated, we finally left Longspur Corners and moved on.  It was yet another "birding moment" that will always stick with us.

Pawnee Grasslands (2):

Driving along another of the gravel roads, through mile after mile of rolling grassland, we noted a real oddity a few hundred yards off to one side - a tree!  It was the first we'd seen in a while, and the only one in sight at that point.  We deduced that a lone tree in an area like that would probably be very attractive to birds, and we parked the car.  We took a closer look, using binoculars from the roadway, and saw that there was a nest in the tree, and a big one, at that.  We also saw fuzzy, white heads sticking up above the sides of the nest, and decided to move in for a better look.  We slowly walked 20-30 yards toward the nest, and paused to take another look.  We repeated this sequence several times, walking and pausing in an effort to minimize any potential disruption.  As we got closer, we could see clearly that the babies were hawks, of indeterminate species.  We moved a little closer, and all of a sudden saw an adult hawk, a large, pale buteo, low in the sky not far from the tree.  We stopped, and the hawk circled upward a time or two.  Then it turned and came straight at us, slowly and deliberately.  While it never acted like it was attacking, we still interpreted its behavior as threatening.  We abandoned any idea of getting still closer to the tree, and started back toward the car.  The bird flew almost directly overhead, at low altitude, giving us a good, clear look at our first-ever Ferruginous Hawk.  Since then, we've found that the tree was not a place where one would expect a Ferruginous Hawk to nest, and that in fact it was much more appropriate for a Swainson's Hawk.  We never did see it actually go to the nest, and it's entirely possible that the behavior we interpreted as that of a parent defending its young was, in fact something entirely different.  (See what anthropomorphizing will get you?) We can't say what the young birds in the nest were.  Regardless of that, the adult Ferruginous was quite a thrill!

Crow Valley Campground:

Crow Valley Campground is located just outside of Briggsdale, CO.  (Rhetorical question: Does Briggsdale have an "inside"?) An island of trees in a sea of grass, it is a magnet for birds, especially during migration.  Unfortunately, we weren't there during migration, and Crow Valley's other claim to fame seems to be that it's a good place Westerners to see birds normally seen in the East.  We, of course, are Easterners who were more interested in seeing Western birds.  It's not that I don't appreciate Brown Thrashers, Eastern Kingbirds, and Gray Catbirds, but I can see those almost any time I go birding at home.  If I want to see Northern Mockingbirds and Blue Jays, I just look out my window.  I'll admit that the Rose-breasted Grosbeak was nice, but it was probably the tenth or fifteenth I'd seen since mid-April.  All in all, I was more excited by the Bullock's Oriole.  Probably the best thing for us about Crow Valley was meeting a gentleman named Dieter, and his wife (Alicia?).  We had a nice conversation with them, and Dieter gave us directions for finding a couple of good birds.  Thanks to him, Ann finally got to see Chestnut-collared Longspurs, in a place called Murphy Pasture that we never in a million years would have discovered on our own.  (Classic birding directions: "Go down the road for about 2.1 miles, until you come to a big white gate on the right.  Turn left, across the road from the gate, and drive through the pasture for about 2 miles until you come to a windmill next to a water tank.  If you come to an intersection, you've gone too far, so turn around and go back.  There were eight Chestnut-collared Longspurs perched on the water tank this morning." Sound vaguely familiar to anyone?) When he heard we were planning to go to Colorado National Monument, he gave us directions to a spot where he said he gets his Gray Flycatcher.  ("Take the trail early in the morning, before breakfast.") I don't know whether that was a slip of the tongue or not.  When we followed his directions there was no Gray Flycatcher, but there was a Gray Vireo (seen before it was heard, believe it or not).  I'll take that trade-off any day!  I didn't catch Dieter's last name, but he was obviously very knowledgeable on birding in general and Colorado birding in particular.  He said that he and his wife sometimes lead trips to Costa Rica and other great places.  If anyone out there knows these folks, please give them our regards and tell them that we found the Longspurs and the Gray Vireo, and that we said "Thank you!"

Colorado National Monument (1)

When you drive in to Colorado NM at the west entrance, outside of Fruita, CO, one of the first things that you (as a birder) will notice is that there's a small riparian area just past the entrance station, on the left.  The trees and bushes along the small stream were full of birds.  In our first scan of the place, on the way in, we noticed that there was a large nest in one of the trees near the road.  Since the roadway is elevated in that area, we found ourselves with a nice view of a Cooper's Hawk nestled down snugly in the nest, with only a head and a tail sticking out.  We later saw a second Cooper's nearby, presumably the mate of the one on the nest.  Among the other sights as we worked our way downstream the next morning were a pair of Western Kingbirds vigorously defending their nest from anything that came near it and a Peregrine Falcon (not near either nest).  There were a number of Bullock's Orioles, some Lark Sparrows, Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers, and a nice assortment of other species there, as well.  In the sagebrush and grass adjoining the riparian zone, we kept hearing strange, unfamiliar calls.  When we tried to track down the sources of these sounds, the sources would move, on the ground and out of sight.  Persistence paid once more, though, and we finally got a look at one of our target birds for the area, a Gambel's Quail.  This was the first "topknot" quail I've ever seen, and it was quite a thrill.  Once we put the voice and the bird together, we were fairly surprised at how many quail we heard calling in the area, and we began to see more of them.  The best of the bunch was one that flew up from the ground to the top of a bush about 15 feet from me, and stayed there.  It was at just the right range for a spectacular view through my binocs, in perfect light, with no branches, leaves, or other obstructions between us.  I studied the bird until I felt like I knew every detail of its plumage, then awhile longer until it finally moved.  Now, if anyone mentions Gambel's Quail, the image of that individual leaps immediately to mind.  It's great to see illustrations and photographs of a beautiful bird, but there's nothing to equal the feeling I get when viewing it up close in the wild, when it still has a beating heart and life in its eyes and the freedom to fly away at any instant and deny me the privilege.

Colorado National Monument (2)

We were at one of the many overlooks on the scenic drive that runs along the rim of the canyon at the NM.  The scenery was surreal, with the erosion-sculpted red sandstone in the canyon below us and a thunderstorm drenching part of the irrigation-green valley beyond, many miles away.  I was engrossed in the view when Ann pointed out a dark shape approaching us from across the canyon.  The words flashed through my mind as I quickly narrowed down the possibilities.  Raptor.  Falcon!  Peregrine!!  Male.  He flew past us just slightly above eye level, at a range of about 40-50 yards, giving us great looks at the gray of his back, the fine barring on his undersides, and of course, his famously distinctive facial markings.  It was one of the best and easily the most dramatic viewing I've ever had for this species.

The Nighthawk

I think our campsite at Colorado NM must have been right in the middle of a Common Nighthawk's territory.  Our first night there, at dusk, right on schedule, we heard its familiar call overhead.  Looking up, we could easily see it flying against the backdrop of a still-bright evening sky.  We went about our business, and he continued to call.  Then we heard a different sound, one that I had somehow missed over all the years I've been looking at Nighthawks, but that I recognized from tapes and descriptions and have always wanted to hear.  Sure enough, the Nighthawk was in display mode, doing his deep, swooping dives with their "vrrooop!" sound almost directly over the tent.  He continued for some time, as we stood and watched and listened.  On one dive, he was not more than 20 feet from my head (probably closer), and the sound of it sent a chill up my spine.  It was a great way to end a long and productive day of birding.

The Pinyon Jays

Pinyon Jays were what you might call a "semi-target" species on this trip.  It would be a lifer for me, and was definitely something we hoped to see, but we weren't going to plan any activities around trying to find one.  On our last night at Colorado NM, our last camping night of the trip, we were still without one.  We had pretty well accepted that Pinyon Jay would be a "miss" on this trip, and something to hope for on another adventure.  It was well into dusk, with the sun well down and the last light fading fast.  The Nighthawk was back again, though not as active as the previous night.  Once again, an unfamiliar sound caught our attention.  This time it was a really weird sound, repeated over and over by what seemed to be several birds moving through the campground below us, coming upslope.  As it turned out, "several" didn't quite describe it.  About 40 Pinyon Jays came through, foraging non-stop and persistently giving out that strange, soft call of theirs.  They were much more concerned with finding food than with avoiding humans at that point, so we were able to get close enough to make positive identifications and get half-decent views despite the gathering darkness.  It was another of our several dinner-time delights on this trip, and another example of why being in a campground is frequently preferable to being in a hotel!
 

Some  of the birds we saw:

Accipiters: Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Northern Goshawk

Falcons: Peregrine, Prairie, American Kestrel

Eagles: Bald, Golden

Buteos: Red-tailed, Swainson's, Ferruginous Hawks

Northern Harrier

Grosbeaks: Pine, Evening, Black-headed, Rose-breasted

Warblers: Yellow-rumped (Audubon's), Virginia's, MacGillivray's, Yellow, Wilson's, and Common Yellowthroat

Vireos: Warbling, Gray, Warbling, Solitary, Warbling, Warbling, and Warbling

Sparrows: Grasshopper, Vesper, Lark, Chipping, White-crowned, Lincoln's, Song, Brewer's, and Black-throated

Special treats: White-tailed Ptarmigan, Band-tailed Pigeon, Olivaceous Cormorant, American Dipper

Zeiss Moments: Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Gambel's Quail, Mountain Bluebird, Violet-Green Swallow, Cordilleran Flycatcher, Clark's Nutcracker, American Dipper, Pine Siskin, Green-tailed Towhee, Grasshopper Sparrow, McCown's Longspur

Doug DeNeve
Winston-Salem, NC
deneved@rjrt.com