Morning Birding at Rock Bottom Ranch Species List

---

Tuesday, July 7, 2020 7AM – 10AM
Weather: Sunny and warm
Location: Rock Bottom Ranch

Species Identified:

Canada Goose
Mallard
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Black-chinned Hummingbird
Broad-tailed Hummingbird
Great Blue Heron
Cooper’s Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Belted Kingfisher
Lewis’s Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
American Kestrel
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Western Wood-Pewee
Cordilleran Flycatcher
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
House Wren
Townsend’s Solitaire
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Cedar Waxwing
Spotted Towhee
Song Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Virginia’s Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Black-headed Grosbeak

 

Comments:

 

Mid-summer bird activity is peaking with overall abundance bolstered by the many young birds that have fledged so far this season.  Today’s outing provided many opportunities to observe fascinating behaviors, plumages, and activities.  Highlights included seeing the greatest number of catbirds ever during a morning birding outing, and those catbirds happened to also be very visible and for long periods of time.  We had plenty of chances to see their small black caps and rufous under tail coverts, and we were able to note their body proportions and typical movements.  Two of them appeared to be tending a nest site, as they gave call notes and stayed in one small area.  More highlights:  molting mallards, many yellow warblers, and a recently fledged Cooper’s hawk that was begging and flying between tall cottonwood trees as it awaited a parent delivering food.  When we walked up the Buckhorn Trail, we tuned in to a single note repeated at regular intervals: classic Townsend’s solitaire vocals.  We walked into the pinyon-juniper habitat and worked hard to catch sight of the bird, and ultimately one person in our group caught a quick glimpse and saw the field marks to confirm the ID.  While there, we also saw black-headed grosbeaks, cedar waxwings, black-chinned hummingbirds, black-capped chickadees, and Virginia’s warblers.  Join us tomorrow for a birding hike through the burn on Basalt Mountains and next week for Morning Birding at Hallam Lake with a special side trip to a private residence for a hummingbird study.

 

 

~ Rebecca Weiss, ACES Bird Guide

Photo by Dale Armstrong