Morning Birding at Hallam Lake 8/24/21

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Thursday, August 24, 2021, 7:30am-10:30am
Weather: Sunny
Location: Hallam Lake

As we walked into the parking lot to follow up on a flock of crows that we heard, a Cooper’s hawk flew over our group to start off the morning with a “wow!” moment. We learned about mobbing behaviors and observed the Cooper’s hawk in excellent light as it preened and appeared relaxed while a few crows stayed around, occasionally flying by the hawk. Meanwhile, an adult osprey flew circles over us and cordilleran flycatchers hawked insects in the cottonwood canopy. We went on to bird in the Hallam Lake Preserve where we enjoyed lots of activity by warbling vireos, more cordilleran flycatchers, ruby-crowned kinglets, cedar waxwings, belted kingfishers, hummingbirds, and a few warblers. To finish the morning, we watched a dipper on the Roaring Fork River as it foraged and then preened on a river rock surrounded by the swirling streamflow. It was an excellent outing filled with great moments for learning and practicing field craft and identification skills.  Join us on Friday to bird in the rugged and scenic gorge of the Roaring Fork!

Species List: 

Mallard
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Broad-tailed Hummingbird
Hummingbird sp.
Osprey
Cooper’s Hawk
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Flicker
Cordilleran Flycatcher
Warbling Vireo
Steller’s Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Common Raven
Swallow sp.
Black-capped Chickadee
Mountain Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
American Dipper
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
American Robin
Cedar Waxwing
House Finch
Song Sparrow
Orange-crowned Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Wilson’s Warbler

~ Rebecca Weiss, ACES Bird Guide

Photo: Photo by Patrice Bouchard