Driving Field Trip

My friend Paul and I led a group of 7 students and 2 parents in three cars to tour Eastern Boulder County and more on the morning of Saturday, April 5.  We specifically scoped out seven different nesting sites, saw a few more along the way, and observed at least a dozen Red-tailed Hawks, two Great-horned Owls, five (and maybe a few others) Bald Eagles, a bunch of kestrels and another 10 or so unidentified birds that were probably mostly Red-tails (with maybe a couple more Baldies flying far and high).  The highlight of the day was seeing the two Ospreys preening their platform nest on West St. Vrain Road, one of which took a few sorties around the area for us to observe.

We got on the road a little before 9:00 AM and headed east from Escuela Bilingüe Pioneer, then North on County Line Road to the Red-tail nest at Evans.  We set up the scopes and the kids were able to kick off the day with a bang and nice view of a Hawk mama’s head poking out of its nest.  We then went a little further and turned left/west on Kenosha up to the Great Blue Heron Rookery at the curve before it connects with Lookout Rd.  There were four or five herons on the top nests and another flew in and landed for us.  Across the road to the north is a Great-horned Owl nest with a proud mama sitting on it. Even though we were pretty far away looking at her through scopes, she still seemed aware of us, though not bothered, seemingly looking right back at us.  This was a first sighting of an owl for many of the kiddos.

Next it was back to County Line and north, a few Red-tails along the way, including a huge nest right above a farmhouse just south of Highway 52.  We went all the way to the washout and just west of there is another well-known Bald Eagle nest.  As we approached I am pretty sure we saw one of the adults flying away, while one was on the nest.  We were able to get scopes on the white head for everyone to see.

After a pit stop at a nearby shopping center, we went by the Boulder County Fairgrounds, and although it has been noted that both of the pair of Osprey have been back and working on the nest, neither was around for us, so we headed west out to the Hygiene Bald Eagle nest.  When we got there, we were met by two surprises, first that no one else was there watching, and we didn’t see anything on the nest. I hope that means that the eggs have hatched, not that something has happened to the eggs.  However, as I scanned the area I was able to spot four more eagles in the distance: a juvenile fairly close that we all got good looks at through both binocs and scope, then a pair of adults perched together on a great branch to the northeast whose white head were quite visible once we were able to get a scope on them, and lastly, another adult went flying by even farther away just below ridgeline (I think I was the only one to eye that one).

Next we head back to 59^th and south to St. Vrain Rd. and west only a few hundred yards to where a platform is built maybe 30 yards south of the road, giving a spectacular view of the two would be parents and their black eye stripe, especially with the scopes, as they were preening and preparing their nest.  It is not the greatest parking area along the side of the road, but no one yelled at us this time.  When one of the gorgeous birds gave its third flight overhead, we decided to move on and leave them in peace.

On the way home we went back to 75^th and into the parking lot of the office building a block before Nelson Road where there are two nests, one fairly close to 75^th, and the other maybe 120 yards east.  These two sites have been inhabited by a pair of Red-tails and a pair of Great-horned Owls for the last few years.  The GHOs are back on the eastern nest again and Paul has seen the Hawks on the western one recently, although only one soaring Red-tail was nearby today.

From there we headed home via 75^th (given more time we would have stopped in at Lagerman Reservoir to see what was lurking about), through Niwot to Lookout Road where saw one RT on the high power poles (couldn’t stop to scan for Burrowing Owls), and home to Lafayette on US 287 past the Red-tail nest at Jasper (still not sure if there is a GHO again in the huge nest across the highway and closer to the creek).

All in all a very successful day of raptoring, with many participants notching a couple of “lifers” with the Opsreys and Owls.

Happy Raptoring!

Spring Raptoring and sweet new GHO nest

The Spring Raptors are coming back and the first sightings are being reported.  While Red-tailed Hawks, Bald Eagles and Great-horned Owls are sitting on eggs in nests, other, more migratory birds, are headed either back to or through Colorado.  Here are some of the raptor “events” around the county and state:

Last week, while being detoured behind the Jiffy Lube/Black Diamond car wash in Lafyette, my dad Doug “discovered” (new to us anyway) an incredibly visible nest with fluffy owlets.  At first, as you pull behind the car service areas off S. Boulder Rd., you will see a big nest at the top of a tall tree-that is NOT it; look down below it, on the southeastern side of the tree, close to the loud construction site, and you will be surprised when you see the small nest on a small branch “table” that is chock full of owl-a mama and three white puffballs that are approaching their mom’s size and starting to overflow the nest.  They should be fledging soon and very easy to observe.

It appears that three owlets at the Twin Lakes GHO nest have hatched and are peeking out of their nest.  I don’t think “my” owls are nearly as far along. 

I have not figured out where “my” displaced Red-tail pair is nesting, but I have still seen them, (or at least a pair of RTs) flying together quite a bit in the area recently.

The Hygiene Bald Eagles appear to be incubating eggs.  There is a nest in Longmont near the detour of County Line Rd, another off of Dillon Road (visible from 95^th) and another visible from C-470 near exit 34.

I have scanned the fields east of 75^th and Lookout for Burrowing Owls but have not seen any yet, even though sightings are being reported around the state.

My first Osprey (probably) was flying over my house on a windy afternoon March 23 and Boulder County Fairgrounds reported the first Osprey at the nest platform on March 30.

The first lone Turkey Vulture was sighted at Dinosaur Ridge on March 27 and now many other single sightings are being documented around the state, including a group of 20 or so in Adams County.  They are certainly on their way as the Bentsen State Park Hawkwatch site in Texas (it’s got a great platform) has been reporting hundreds of TVs each day heading north.  ]I am pretty sure I saw my first TV of the year floating in the late afternoon wind on April 3, but I have yet to see a Swainson’s Hawk.

Accipiters are active and migrating or setting up nests and many Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks are being seen almost daily at Dinosaur Ridge Hawkwatch, and the first Northern Goshawk of the year was observed there yesterday, April 4.

I am heading out today (Saturday, April 5) with my student group to make up our snowed out raptoring field trip.  We are hoping to hit a couple Bald Eagle nests, a couple of GHOs, a few Red-tails, a couple of Osprey platforms, maybe see an incoming TV or Swainson's and whatever else we see.

Dinosaur Ridge Hawkwatch Day

My Dad and I went to the Dinosaur Ridge Hawkwatch near Morrison, Colorado yesterday, Wednesday, March 26. I had been a couple of times in the past, but many years ago, including once with a full class of kids, and I don’t remember much except that one guy up there was arrogant and would just call out the birds with very little information on where he was seeing them or how he was identifying them. It was a gorgeous day and much more-low key than my past experience/memory. There were four guys there at 9:30, with only 5 birds counted so far. There was sporadic activity, usually over the west ridge, but we really only saw a Red-tail and a Bald Eagle that were deemed migrants (based on flight style and direction) and not just residents, of which we saw numerous RTs, a couple of eagles and a falcon harassing one of the eagles high in the sky. Dad and I thought we saw more raptors (mostly RTs and some Kestrels) on the way down and again on the way home than we did at the site.
Here is the link to the daily Dinosaur Ridge report from the lead volunteer on hand (includes season total also):  https://groups.google.com/forum/#!msg/cobirds/J9Nqr4vsaEM/_vos3kiv8pkJ

Our best sighting of the day was probably the falcon we I spied cruising the ridge right outside of Morrison. It perched on a snag at the top of the ridge, but the light was behind it so we could not get an ID, even with the scope; both Prairie and Peregrine are residents of the area, and my gut was Prairie as it had fairly thin-looking wings and just didn’t appear that dark.

 On our way home we searched for a supposed Bald Eagle nest somewhere near 168th and York (according to one of the guys on the Ridge), but we never saw it. We did find two RT nests near Holly, one east on North side of 168th, and another west of Holly on the south side. We also checked out the RT nest in Erie just west of County Line Road at Evans in Erie and then my GHO nest off Rothman Open Space (I will update notes on this nest in the box at left). As I left my parents’ house there was a probable eagle soaring high above Waneka Lake.

Then, when I set out for my afternoon walk with the dogs, I saw two raptors flying in the wind at a distance that kind of looked like Swainson’s (thinner wings, flight style and glimpse of possible two-tone underwings), but it was difficult to see with naked eye and they were gone fast.

Ten raptors in five minutes and other early Spring notes

Ten raptors, five species in less than five minutes: Sunday, March 23 was a little breezy and when we went outside to walk the dogs, I immediately spied a soaring raptor that didn’t appear to be an RT; upon closer look (of course no binocs, otherwise it wouldn’t have been there) I am pretty sure from the winds and flight that it was my first osprey of the year (if it was for a “lifer”, I am not sure I could count it).  Seconds after the probable Osprey cruised away toward Waneka (another clue leaning to the fisherbird) a RT seemingly followed him with the wind.  As we walked down the trail an accipiter, most likely one of the local Cooper’s Hawks, whizzed overhead going from south to north. As that disappeared into the trees of my development, I looked back south to see the resident male Kestrel hovering over the field.  Above and beyond him were three raptors soaring high in the sky and then a fourth, much closer and lower flew into the view.  As I scanned the high skies there was an eagle soaring way above it all.  We continued east towards another RT.  As that one flew off on the wind, it calmed a bit and the sky was clear except for a few crows and LBJs; I didn’t see another raptor the rest of walk.

The next morning, the first official day of Spring Break, I took the dogs on an extra-long walk out to check out how the Red-tailed nest was doing.  I had definitely seen them working on it a few weeks ago and it was quite built up and visible, although I hadn’t specifically noticed one near it since.  As I approached, there appeared to be a head sticking out of the nest, but it was still obscured with branches.  So I kept going to get a better view.  When I got a little closer and focused the binoculars I chuckled out loud at the sight of two pointy ears and a Great Horned Owl sitting on the nest instead of the smaller Red-tailed Hawk head I was expecting.  This solved one mystery, as I had been wondering where the GHOs were nesting, since many of us had seen and heard them frequently in the area; however, now I have no idea where that RT pair has chosen to nest.  There are a few nests I am aware of closer to Erie and one off 95^th and Baseline, but I believe there has to be one closer to Rothman and home.

The first spring sightings are coming in.  In addition to my probable first Osprey of the season, the first report of a Colorado Turkey Vulture I am aware of was posted on Cobirders on March 23, flying over Colorado Springs. Burrowing Owls are starting to pop up on the Eastern prairie dog fields where they have been spotted in the past.  I also read that the open spaces northeast 75^th and Lookout have been closed, and I am assuming it is because of the possibility that the owls will return there as I know they were present three years ago (but I am not sure about the last two years). Next, it will be the Swainson’s Hawks returning.

My Dad and I are headed to the Dinosaur Ridge Hawkwatch tomorrow (Wednesday, March 26).  On decent weather days they had been getting over 20 migrating birds a day, plus around 10 local birds, including a Prairie Falcon that shows up daily.  However, poor weather days have only resulted in single digit birds.  As of now the unpredictable, ever-changing Colorado March weather is forecast to be cloudy but nice Wednesday (I have seen everything predicted from sunny and 70 to snowing).  Maybe I can spy that Ferruginous that has been eluding me this year, but my greatest hope would be get a lifer in a Broad-winged Hawk or a Northern Goshawk.

Late Winter Notes

Well, it appears that the Winter Raptoring period is drawing to a close and I was never able to positively identify a Ferruginous Hawk this Winter, although one was spotted and photographed within Lafayette only a few blocks from where I live.  I did see the greatest number of Rough-legged Hawks I have witnessed in my lifetime.  Both of these species should be heading North as the temperatures rise here.  Nor have I seen a Prairie Falcon or Merlin, nor a Northern Harrier since the turn of the year, all usually more common in Winter. I did hear tales of Snowy Owls and even a Gyrfalcon over the winter, but nothing so extravagant for me.  There did seem to be a lot of Short and Long-eared sightings East, that I will have to follow-up on sometime.

Another sign of spring, the first Burrowing Owls, and even a Broad-winged Hawk, have been spotted on the Eastern Plains.  I did get the first sighting of my neighborhood Cooper's a few mornings ago, putting my 2014 Raptor count at 6 (RT, BE, RL, AK, GHO). Also, "my" Red Tails appear to have taken their nest back, just a little later this year.  Bald Eagles have also been abundant and the Hygiene and many other nests in the area are active.

Unfortunately, my student group's Saturday trip got snowed out March 1.  However, soon the Osprey, Swainson's Hawks and Turkey Vultures will be back so we hope to see all of those on our reschedule in April.

I have really enjoyed watching the local Red Tails fly in and with the wind lately.  I have witnessed a lot of a technique or style lately that is neither hovering nor kiting, but just sitting flat staring right into the wind and staying almost still in mid-air.

I am planning a trip to Dinosaur Ridge with my dad to hang out during the Hawkwatch over my spring Break, so maybe we will notch something cool like a Northern Goshawk or Broad-winged Hawk, or at least a couple of birds I haven't seen yet this year.

President's Day Raptoring

Yesterday, I woke up and took the dogs on a normal "weekend" walk and as I turned north I spotted something soaring in the sky.  I actually, very intentionally this time, had my binoculars and quickly identified the flyer as an RT.  I scanned the trees farther to the north and did something else flying low, from the left, the direction of the nest site, that landed in a nearby tree.  It was impossible to get much in the sun's glare but I headed in that direction.  As I turned east and approached the tree, sighting the bird with my naked eye, I focused in and sure enough it appeared to be another RT. Right then, the other one (I can only assume it was the the same one I had seen soaring above) flew in and landed a few branches over.  I am pretty sure this is the same pair as last year and that they have re-claimed their nest, which appears well-fortified and groomed.  Hopefully they will be on it in a week and a half when I take the kids out there.

Anyway, I figured that was a good omen and when I got home I loaded the scope and the dogs into the car and headed out for an impromptu scouting trip. I started on my usual route by heading north behind Arapahoe Ridge where I saw the first of at least two dozen RTs, down Erie Parkway to County Line-there was a RT on the nest at the cross of Evans-to Kenosha and then west to Lookout Rd.  I saw a Baldie on one of the far off posts, but otherwise the usually very reliable run up Lookout was quiet.  I headed north through Niwot and then over to Lagerman, sighting a Roughie in the field just before the big bend, a few more RTs, then a couple of probable eagles soaring high above the reservoir. I went to Nelson and 75th and checked out the two two nests behind the office park but no activity on either. I then headed in the direction of the Hygiene eagles, seeing numerous RT pairs flying, plus other solos as well as a few Kestrel pairs.  As I neared the eagle nest I could see at least one white head from the distance.  I cruised by the line of scopes to see if anything was west and in the few minutes before I had returned, both eagles had flown away.  The spot at 59th and Hygiene was also unusually quiet but there were many more RTs as I wound around and back toward Longmont.  There are quite a few Osprey platforms out there and I can't wait to see them all filled later on this spring.  I then headed across I-25 all the way to Colorado before heading south.  Finally, I was able to find a few more Roughies east of I-25, plus a Juvie BE soaring and a bunch more RTs. Later, on the way in and out of Boulder I saw yet another four RTs.

To top it off, while I was grilling I heard some hooting so I hooted back and it sounded closer, then there was a return call, and it sounded real close.  I hooted back and the answer came from right out front.  I ran inside and through the house sparking off my dogs, and out the front door and sure enough, one was sitting on top of my front eave, while its partner was three doors down.

All in all a pretty good day with probably close to 40 raptors, with five species, although no new ones for the year.

Raptorology with kids!

For the last few Tuesdays I have run a "Birds of Prey" class/club after school and fourteen 2nd through 5th grade students, plus my friend and colleague Paul, have been having a blast learning about and sharing what we know about the different birds, as well as exploring adjacent Rothman Open Space here in Lafayette. The kiddos have been really excited to learn about specific (mostly locally found) birds ranging from the Red-tailed hawk, American Kestrel, both eagles, to Snowy and Barn owls, to the Harris Hawk and even two boys studying the Northern Goshawk, my personal nemesis bird-I have tasked them with learning everything about the species for my quest.

Depending on weather, we try to go outside each session.  The first two times we only had time for a short trip to the back of the playground for a view of the open space, but without any raptor sightings. Shortly after each one, while walking my dogs I saw a Red-tail and a Rough-legged.  The third session was during the sub-zero spell.  Finally, the fourth class, we went on a longer loop and were treated to both a Kestrel and a Red-tail flying around us for great views.  The girl studying the Kestrel ID'd it immediately and was flying herself.  This type of discovery is the most gratifying aspect of teaching.

The students keep asking when we are going to go further and see more, so we will be taking a longer hour long loop in the Open Space and are planning a Saturday drive through the county to cap off the class.

Roughie note:  Only one winter in the past ten have I seen a Rough-legged hawk in my backyard of Rothman, but this year I have seen three.  This not really irruption, but their prevalence this year anyway has really helped me identify them not just by markings, but also their different style of flying, although it is hard to specifically describe, just not like a Red-tail, nor Ferruginous or Harrier.  I have come to really appreciate them.