Morning Birding Species List | August 22, 2013

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Throughout the summer months ACES offers weekly Morning Birding classes at their Hallam Lake site in Aspen and Rock Bottom Ranch site in Basalt. Class outings venture to local birding hotspots and the birds never fail to impress. Take a look at the below species list and notes from one of the recent classes in Basalt and register today for upcoming birding classes, which run through September!

Tuesday, August 22, 2013, 7 am – 10 am
Weather:  sunny, clear sky
Locations:  Rock Bottom Ranch

Species Identified
Canada Goose Mallard Red-tailed Hawk Virginia Rail Spotted Sandpiper Eurasian Collared-dove Mourning Dove Lewis’ Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Northern Flicker Western Wood-peewee Western Kingbird Warbling Vireo		Steller’s Jay Western Scrub-jay Black-billed Magpie American Crow Black-capped Chickadee White-breasted Nuthatch American Robin Cedar Waxwing Yellow Warbler (pictured above) Song Sparrow Western Tanager Red-winged Blackbird House Finch

Comments:  Birding is noticeably quieter these days, with a distinct drop in singing as fall approaches.  Fall activities are on the rise:  overall, behaviors are more dedicated to feeding and flocking, and plumages are changing.  Now is also a great time to learn juvenile identification, as most have fledged and are active on the wing.  We observed juvenile Lewis’ woodpeckers as well as cedar waxwings in flocks with adults.  Waxwings are an irruptive species, capitalizing on food resources where ever they find them; with our excellent wild berry resources this year, we’re seeing waxwings everywhere we look!

~Rebecca Weiss, ACES Naturalist