Mid-week Bird walk with the 'Roadrunners'

Walked to the recreation Centre at 07:00 this morning to join today's outing with the Roadrunners - the Wednesday morning group of the Boulder Bird Club. We headed out to the Eldorado Canyon and then took a leisurely walk up the Towhee trail to the junction with the Mesa trail down which we returned to the car park. In all we were out for about 3 hours. A good turn up for the first Wednesday walk of the year with more than 20 participants. We saw something like 35-40 species depending on where you where in the pack at the time! I think I saw most of what was spotted. I enjoyed the Black-headed Grosbeak, several Orange-crowned Warbler (what a misnomer!), hearing and seeing a Vesper Sparrow, a Lazuli Bunting and finally a gorgeous Baltimore Oriole singing and blossom searching in the tall trees of the car park area. I walked back from the Centre using the same South Boulder Creek trail - The Bobolink Trail - that I had used earlier in the day, but no Bobolink yet reported. Earlier in the day I had the unusual experience of hearing a cock Ring-necked Pheasant call from the rough pasture to the east of the trail, however, I did not see it.

More pictures at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kelsham/sets/72157617740022091/

Returning down the Mesa trail

The Bobolink Trail along South Boulder Creek

Dandelion Taraxacum officinale