Peter James Fullagar: December 2008

Cherryvale in the snow

Three ducks

One of the backyard hens still laying despite the cold

FIRST TWO WEEKS

Back in Boulder for Christmas. I arrived on 5th December and Iain, Kate and Rohan joined us briefly for four days arriving on the 9th. They were passing through on their way to New York for a week and will return on 21st. Andrew and Lachlan arrived from Los Angeles on the 18th but their flight was much delayed and they only got in after midnight at Denver. David collected them on a very late run to the airport.

It has snowed twice in the two weeks that I have been here! In between it was very cold with temperatures down to -20C over several days and almost all ponds froze over. They will possibly not now thaw until well after Christmas. Much of the time has been spent in preparations for Christmas which will be spent in a lodge up at Winter Park in the rocky Mountains not far to the west of Boulder. Birding is hard at this time of year and walks often yield few birds actually seen! Tracey, James and I joined the Sunday monthly bird walk with the Boulder Bird Club on 7th at Walden Ponds. About 15 to 20 members turned up but we did not accompany them for more than the first half hour preferring to go at our own pace and let James do his own thing. Had a talk to several of the members all the same.

Canada Geese are back and the typical flocks are seen flying over or grazing alongside the roadways especially in Denver near the Zoo and alongside the Denver Museum.

Part of a flock of more than 1000 Canada Geese on the ovals

outside the Denver Museum on 18th December

In the garden there are several birds to see. A couple of Northern Flickers, maybe three birds in fact, visit often as does a Downy Woodpecker and less often a Hairy Woodpecker. Also seen occasionally is a White-breasted Nuthatch. American Robin is not often seen in the garden in fact rarely visible anywhere. A good number of House Finches visit daily - maybe up to 20 or more and so do House Sparrows in much the same numbers. Lesser Goldfinch come in most days in twos and threes and up to three Black-capped Chickadee visit the seed hoppers ever so briefly from time to time throughout the day. They always seem to dart in and stay at the food tray for no more than a few seconds and away.

Northern Flicker

Male Northern Flicker - note the red malar stripe

Downy Woodpecker

Hairy Woodpecker

Three male House Finches

A Lesser Goldfinch with two House Finches at the feeding tray

Male House Sparrow.

I have noticed some individuals with heavy mite infestations about the eyes (see next picture)

Male House Sparrow with heavy mite infestation round its eyes

Blue Jay. An occasional visitor to the yard. Rather nervous.

At least tow birds have been seen.

Black-capped Chickadee

White-breasted Nuthatch

Other species seen occasionally at Cherryvale are Starling (but very few), Black-billed Magpie, Blue Jay (two birds at least in the garden) and infrequently a Dark-eyed Junco.

Early on (7th) I saw a few ducks at Walden Ponds - Goldeneye, Ring-necked Duck, Bufflehead, Green-winged Teal, American Wigeon and Mallard but once the ponds froze they could no longer find anywhere to go. Also seen on the first visit to Walden was a Greater Yellowlegs. Both times I have been to Walden Ponds I have seen a Northern Shrike (7th and 17th). Very little else seen either visit and certainly almost nothing was found on the 17th.

Walden ponds on the 19th - all frozen over

Lots of Mallard at the Zoo on 11th and I noted that EVERY female had plain tertials. There were hundreds packed in on several of the ponds. Not a single barred or patterned tertial to be seen while all of the males were, as expected for the time of the year, in superb plumage. Females in Alternate plumage (?) at this time suggesting that they move towards BASIC plumage when on nests with a post BASIC full wing moult. Males are also in Alternate but change to a brief BASIC plumage during full wing moult AFTER breeding then quickly revert to Alternate. Seems perfectly reasonable to me (contra Peter Pyle, 2005, Waterbirds 28(2): 208-219).

Splendid drake Mallard

Duck Mallard with spectacular plain tertials!

[These females were inciting often or gag-gaging to stir up the drakes!]

An occasional Bald Eagle has been seen. An adult headfing slowly S over South Boulder Creek on the 13th was in splendid afternoon light. It had flushed all the Canada Geese off the Baseline reservoir before coming into sight. An immature was seen circling low over the Power Station reservoirs on the 19th. The Hillcrest reservoir on the 19th had a good number of Common Merganser (properly known as Gooseanders), some American Coot, Green-winged Teal and scattered Goldeneye and Ring-necked Ducks (at least I could pick out the males) and probably some other waterfowl not spotted at the range I was scanning from the hill. Strangely I saw no gulls. In fact gulls have not been abundant anywhere and only small numbers of Ring-billed Gull have been seen - often single birds flying over.

A Belted Kingfisher was seen during my first walk along South Boulder Creek trail on 6th and another at Walden Ponds on the 7th but none were seen after that date.

A Northern Harrier was seen on 12th and 13th quartering fields between Cherryvale road and the South Boulder Trail and American Kestrels have been seen here and there. One Kestrel took a large rat (Rattus norvegicus) from less than 20m in front of me as I was leaving South Boulder trail near Baseline road late in the afternoon of 15th. I heard the smack as the Kestrel, a female or first year bird, struck its victim on the ground in the open amongst snow and low vegetation and watched with amazement as it managed to lift the prey and head off towards some trees across the road. I caught up with it and watched as it steadily set about its capture head first. The hind legs of the rat were still kicking at first but soon it was dispatched. The body of the rat equalled that of the size of the Kestrel. The rat had only a short tail and this at first confused me in my identification of it but I am certain it was a Brown Rat. Several Red-tailed Hawk have been seen most days and on the 11th there was a Harlan's Hawk (subspecies of Red-tailed breeding in Alaska that is usually very dark and lacks rufous colour in tail) at Walden ponds but I did not see it.

Feral Pigeons are seen in Boulder and in Denver and it is while in town that I usually see American Crow and often a few Common Raven although Ravens are seen often elsewhere in small numbers and I have spotted small flocks of Crows along Cherryvale road opposite the Reservoir. A small flock of about 10-15 Red-winged Blackbird flying west across the fields near South Boulder Creek in the late afternoon on the 11th has been the only time I have seen this species during these first two weeks. I presume they were heading to a roost site somewhere near or beyond the Recreation center.

Tracey, Kate, Rohan, James and myself visited Denver Zoo on the 11th in cold but clear conditions. Some interesting animals to photograph as usual. I like this Zoo in winter when the crowds are not here and we can have the place more or less to ourselves.

Munching Giraffe!

African Crowned Crane

James (above) and Rohan at the Komodo Dragon exhibit

The Komodo Dragon

Cheetah

Kori Bustard in snow!

Arctic Fox in winter pelage

We have also been to the Denver Museum (18th) to view the special Dinosaur exhibit - unfortunately photography was not allowed so I have no images to post!

Lastly the numbers of Eastern Fox Squirrel coming into the garden to feed on the spillage below the bird feeders reached a maximum of 8 individuals on the 19th. Usually it seems that only two squirrels are commonly present in the backyard at Cherryvale.