Evening Birding Species List | July 24, 2017

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Monday, July 24, 2017, 6:00PM – 8:00PM
Weather: mostly cloudy
Location: Hallam Lake

Species Identified
Canada Goose Mallard Great Blue Heron Spotted Sandpiper (pictured above) Broad-tailed Hummingbird Cordilleran Flycatcher Black-billed Magpie American Crow Violet-green Swallow American Robin Cedar Waxwing Yellow Warbler Song Sparrow Red-winged Blackbird

Comments:

This evening session was an excellent experience for focusing in just a few species that showed interesting plumages and behaviors. We saw adult and juvenile robins perched in a small family flock, a juvenile great blue heron learning the ropes of fishing on the shore of Hallam Lake, and a newly independent juvenile spotted sandpiper. We also saw mallard ducks in various stages of molting into eclipse plumage. Violet-green swallows were flying at eye-level, giving us excellent looks at their white-rump patches that can be tricky to see when they are flying high in the sky. This session is designed to introduce people to birding at a great time of day that does not involve the potential hurdle of an early morning start, and offers a chance to see some interesting birds without the overwhelm of diversity that we typically see in the morning. We covered basic binoculars use, field craft, and natural history that helps get birders off to a great start with some local habitat knowledge and the know-how to start finding and observing birds with the enhanced awareness of a birder. 

~ Rebecca Weiss, ACES Bird Guide 

 

Photo by Dale Armstrong