Peter James Fullagar: Colorado 2008

Boulder - Colorado - January 2008

Day 8 -Monday, January 21st

South Boulder Creek Trail from my GPS track displayed on Google Earth

Today my only outside activity was a brisk walk from the Sports Centre to the far southern end of the South Boulder Creek trail and then a walk from there back home. I had Alice the dog with me and the temperature was hovering at about minus (!) 12C but thankfully there was no wind. Some Canada Geese were seen on the way to the Sports Centre but the only other birds seen in the hour or so (mid morning) I was out walking was an American Crow that flew past and a few Mallard trying to find somewhere to settle and having to make do with a snowy bank on the side of a solidly frozen pond close to the bridge near the Sports Centre. I also heard a Northern Flicker but that was it! I set my GPS going for waypoint 21 at the southern end of the trail; waypoint 22 at the northern end and waypoint 23 for the front of the house. It took me 31 minutes, at a steady walk, to do the 2.4 km to the house. The elevation at the start was about 1638m and at the end about 1614m; giving a fall of about 24m along this stretch of the creek. The GPS plotting has a spurious short cut and dead end to the east of the trail that is not in the saved points but for some reason still comes across onto the Google Earth map.

Day 9 - Tuesday, January 22nd

A 'Dairy Prog' day amongst other things! Here are a few shots of an obliging Black-tailed Prairie Dog seen this morning in town on a small prairie dog town!

Black-tailed Prairie Dog in snow

Early today we visited a recycling yard at Boulder Junction, not far north of the Power Station. An amazing assortment of household and building supplies. Soon after we had left the yard to return to Boulder we found this Black-tailed Prairie Dog (see above) close to the road. This was at a small 'prairie dog town' opposite the enormous Power Station and on the inside of a bend in the road (63rd Street). Other Prairie Dogs were visible but they were all too far off for picture taking. Clouds of water vapour rising from the warm waters of the reservoir alongside the Power Station drifted off in the light breeze from the SE and had been freezing on the bushes and trees downwind. After morning coffee at the OZO cafe, Tracey and I call in to the Wild Bird Center of Boulder (http://shop.wbcboulder.com/main.sc). They had a remarkably good stock of books, mostly about birds but in particular the shop has a good supply of bird feed, bird feeders, nest-boxes and all sorts of other items useful for attracting birds to a suburban garden. Books covered birding in South America, NZ and Australia in addition to all the usual and some unexpected titles for the North American region. I thought the staff were very helpful. We were back home in time to collect James from pre-school at 11:30 and I stayed at home for the rest of the day. Today has been sunny and therefore most of the recent snowfalls have melted away.

Day 10 - Wednesday, January 23rd

Another day at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and after lunch a visit to the Denver Zoo. James is always fascinated by the Space science exhibits and today we concentrated on them and the Discovery centre where he was happily amused for an hour or so! I wandered through some of the same galleries that I had been to before and we all made a quick visit to the Egyptian mummy hall after lunch and before going across to the zoo.

The huge Tyranosaurus rex in the foyer of the Denver Museum

Belly of one of the two monster Plesiosaurs hanging from the ceiling
in the entrance hall at the Denver Museum - An Elasmosaurus

Space Odyssey hall

Me thermal imaged

More examples of the dioramas from the Denver museum.
From the top: Grizzly Bear; North American Bison;
Pronghorn and Montague Island, Alaska

Is this real? Head of Trumpeter Swan - a very fine example of taxidermy

View of Denver CBD looking across the park from the museum

Modern example of painted mummy

Denver Zoo is well set up and has a number of good displays with an excellent Tropical Discovery hall with a wide range of reptiles, fish and some mammals on show, including some bats! These bats included a fruit-bat and a colony of Vampire bats. Bird World was another interesting hall with some unexpected species viewable in walk-through aviaries maintained at tropical temperatures. A surprise was to see some Micronesian Kingfisher Todiramphus c. cinnamominus, the subspecies from Guam now extinct in the wild. Many other interesting species were noted, included Chilean Tinamou Nothoprocta perdicaria, a Quetzel that I think was a Golden-headed Pharomachus auriceps, some Oropendola but I am not sure which species and there was a considerable size difference between at least two of them; Blue-crowned Motmot Momotus momota, Egyptian Plover Pluvianus aegyptius, Nicobar Pigeon Caloenas nicobarica, Inca Tern Larosterna inca, Lady Ross's Turaco Musophaga rossae, Hottentot Teal Anas hottentota, Baikal Teal Anas formosa, Ringed Teal Callonetta leucophrys and a presumed pair of Steller's Sea Eagle Haliaeetus pelagicus calling loudly at one time from within a reasonably large outside flight aviary. I have added a few images of some of these species and various others seen during our strolls around the zoo. I noted amongst some wild Canada Geese one bird with a green numbered neck collar identical to the type seen on Canada Geese a few days ago near Walden Pond. Amongst the masses of Mallard on the small ponds outside the Tropical Discovery Centre there was a male of each of the following: Redhead, Barrow's Goldeneye and Smew. Several big cats were active and included, other than those I was able to photograph, Jaguar, Asian Leopard, Snow Leopard and Serval. Large flocks of Canada Geese kept wheeling across the Zoo and I saw a flock of Red-winged Blackbirds.

Lioness

Banded Mongoose

Some Canada Goose studies

Drake American Wigeon

Massed Mallards.
Note that no ducks have marked tertials at this time.
Will they moult them before laying?

Emperor Goose

Polar Bear in profile and head-on

Arctic Fox

Snow Geese

Komodo Dragon/Monitor Varanus komodoensis

Siberian Tiger

Dall or White Sheep Ovis dalli

Indian Elephant

Steller's Sea-eagle

Jackass or Cape Penguins

Micronesian Kingfisher

Egyptian Plovers

Golden-headed Quetzel

White-eared Catbird

One of the Euphonia, probably Finsch's, E. finschi

Chilean Tinamou

Painted Stork

Another highlight for me was to find some wild rabbits in the zoo grounds. They were obviously Sylvilagus but whether they were Desert Cottontail S. auduboni or another species I am not absolutely sure. The ears seemed rather short and they were smallish animals and therefore, perhaps, Mountain Cottontail S. nuttalli but I doubt it. After all that species, as its name implies, should be back in the mountains not down here on the plains, even if it is the zoo! Perhaps the Desert Cottontail is smaller and shorter eared in Colorado.

Denver Zoo wild Cottontails; presumed to be Sylvilagus auduboni.

Day 11 - Thursday, January 24th

Walked the Dry Creek Trail this morning. Tracey dropped me off at the trail-head and I walked the full track then headed west on Baseline road passing alongside the Baseline Reservoir (Lake) and crossing Cherryvale into Dummit Drive and onto the continuation of Boulder Creek Trail. I walked north to the T junction at Old Tale road turning west to follow the outer perimeter of the golf course until I came to 55th street where I turned, retraced my route back to Dummit Drive and then headed home via Gapter road.

Start of Dry Creek trail

Prairie Dogs and their town

Panorama from the eastern shore of Baseline Lake

Along the south-eastern shoreline of Baseline lake

Returning up the eastern side of Dry Creek trail

Immediately south of the car park of Dry Creek Trail there is a substantial Prairie Dog 'town'. The 'Dairy Progs' are so accustomed to people and dogs that a reasonably close approach can be made. There is a multi-strand fence surrounding their territory so most dogs are kept out and most dog walkers behave responsibly. I took some more shots of the DPs then moved on past a fine American Kestrel. The major area of the Dry Creek reserve is for Prairie Dog and Prairie grassland conservation. The paths lead up to the eastern banks of the reservoir and from there excellent views of the Lake can be had along at least half of this shoreline. This means the Lake can be scanned from the SW off Cherryvale Road, from the north off Baseline road and also from the east from the Dry Creek Trail. The latter is best for morning and for being within 20 m of the water's edge.

Prairie Dogs again

American Kestrel

Red-winged Blackbird

More Prairie Dogs

Today there was not much on the Lake because it was solid frozen. It 'sang' to me. The sounds suggested there was water or gasses bubbling up under the ice. I don't know if water is entering the lake at his time of year or how it gets into this lake. Alternatively, it might have been rotting vegetation producing gases or possibly ice stresses being released. Flocks of Canada Geese were moving about in the area but none were coming onto the ice.

North-west corner of Baseline Lake from the roadside

On the return walk down the eastern side and along the course of a ditch I came upon a small flock of about 20-30 Red-winged Blackbird. One Red-tailed Hawk circled to the north. On the cycle path alongside the Golf Course I saw a fine Downy Woodpecker, easily identified by its short stubby bill despite not having any spots in its white outer tail feathers. There as also a Norther Flicker hereabouts at the same time. A small group of Black-capped Chickadee were detected by call and then seen well in Gapter Road almost at the end of the walk.

View west at the resumption of Bobolink trail from the end of Dummit Drive

Heading towards Old Tale road

Cycle path up the south side of the Golf Course

Flatirons Golf Course

Ditch alongside this cycle path draining to South Boulder Creek

Splendid Cottonwood tree on Golf Course

The ditch again

Downy Woodpecker - stubby bill is diagnostic

Black-billed Magpie were seen as singles several times and I noted the feeble call they give - so unlike the explosive chatter of the Eurasian Magpie. At the junction of Boulder Trail where it follows into Old Tale road, I came onto a House Finch or two, one of which was trying out some song, and a small flock of American Goldfinch; all of the latter still in winter plumage, which of course slightly confused me at first. Altogether a good walk but further emphasising the low numbers of individuals to be seen at this time of the year. Old Tale Road was a relative hot spot!

Dushanbe Tea House in Boulder

High tea this afternoon at Dushenbe Tea House. This time I had the camera with me and took some shots of this extraordinary building and its interior decor.

Some of the ceiling decorations in the Dushanbe tea house

James at high tea - more accurately, playing with his fleet of airplanes

Day 12 - Friday, January 25th

A day off. I didn't leave the house today!

Antics of Eastern Fox Squirrel raiding the bird feeder

James in harsh light

Day 13 - Saturday, January 26th

Another walk to Baseline Lake or Reservoir, but this time with David, James and Alice the dog. We set off in the early afternoon from home and walked there and back more or less following the same track that I had done two days ago.

Eastern shore of Baseline Lake

Looking across Baseline Lake from the east side today

Canada Geese flighting in to Baseline Lake - another Peter Scott image!

Canada Geese on the melting Lake ice

Canada Geese flighting out to feeding grounds from Baseline lake

Ring-billed Gull

Dairy Progs as usual were very entertaining and some more pictures resulted! The ice on the lake was melting with pools of water forming on the surface in depressions that were deep enough for the loafing Canada Geese to swim in if they wished. Little else about except a few gulls out in the middle of the lake loafing. They were mostly Ring-billed Gull but a few Herring Gull were also present alongside them. Canada Geese coming and going on the lake. Towards late afternoon some were drifting off from the lake in small flocks to graze in paddocks to the south. This gave me a chance for some flight shots in good sunlight. Red-winged Blackbird seemed a little more obvious with several flocks seen including some later in the afternoon in a small patch of Bulrush (Typha or Great Reeedmace; or in American usage, Cattail) near the baseline road at the start of the trail. A distant Bald Eagle circling high to the north. A couple of thoughtless dog owners had let their small dog get through the wire fence near the trail head and it was madly running around the Prairie Dog town with little success as might be expected. However, it was stupid behaviour to let a dog loose in this manner and I am sure it must have constituted a state or federal offence! On the way back along Baseline road I could hear some House Finch but precious little else to note for today. It was sunny, calm and decidedly warm by comparison with days of last week.

Day 14 - Sunday, January 27th

I walked the dog, Alice, along the Bobolink trail alias South Boulder Creek Trail that I have written about already. I did its full length from the Boundary Road Trail head to South Boulder Road. Again, I GPS'ed this walk.

Signs on the Bobolink trail

View towards the Flatirons

Along the trail

East Boulder Community Center and Park

Angus cattle in the fields to the east of the trail at the southern end

Another good looking ditch

Southern end of the Bobolink trail at Table Mesa Drive

Heading back northwards along the trail with views towards the Flatirons

An attractive section of South Boulder Creek close to the trail

Much has changed in the landscape with the rapid melt of the past few days. By late afternoon today the temperature was 17C! Most of the day it has been sunny with occasionally light wind.
About all I scored the whole walk was a small party of Black-capped Chickadee, a Northern Flicker heard a few times and looking across to the Baseline Lake I could see Canada Geese on the ice and a few gulls, mostly Ring-Billed Gull I assumed. Canada Geese were not flying about as much as I have been seeing of late and they may now be using more frequently the fast thawing bodies of water for any daytime loafing. There was a Dark-eyed Junco along the ditch at the southern end of the trail and a few Mallard were seen in flight near the Sports Centre. That's it! A pretty miserable list of species and a low overall abundance of birds.