Wow! I can't believe that I've not blogged since August. Obviously autumn wasn't all that good!
Anyway, I've had a great weekend in the Rockies before attending the Black-footed Ferret Genetics Symposium in Ft. Collins, Colorado. ABA Birding editor and good friend, Ted Floyd was kind enough to put me up on the Friday night and then take be birding on the Saturday. We started up in the Rocky Mountain National Park at The Fawnbrook Inn, Allenspark where Grey-crowned, 'Hepburns' and Brown-capped Rosy-Finches came and went a few times. Other birds there or nearby included Red Crossbill, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Mountain and Black-capped Chickadee, Pine and Evening Grosbeaks. We then headed off to 'Lower' Ward, where we had all three species (four taxa) of rosy-finches and Pine Grosbeak. White-breasted and Pygmy Nuthatches were also added to the list in the mountains. At lower elevations, Ted took me to a staked-out Long-eared Owl and then we searched a few rivers and ponds for waterfowl. Common and Hooded Merganser, Green-winged Teal, Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, American Wigeon and Gadwall were all had. In the afternoon I headed off for Steamboat Springs, managing to see 22 Barrow's Goldeneye, Lesser Scaup and 30+ Ring-necked Ducks at the Blue River Treatment Plant, 2.7 miles north of Silverthorne.
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| There's 4 taxa of Rosy-Finches in there! |
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| White-breasted Nuthatch |
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| Evening Grosbeak |
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| Evening Grosbeaks |
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| White-breasted Nuthatch |
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| Pygmy Nuthatch |
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| Pygmy Nuthatch |
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| More rosy-finches |
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| Barrow's Goldeneye and Ring-necked Ducks |
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| Barrow's Goldeneye |
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| Barrow's Goldeneye |
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