Loons at Valmont Reservoir

[Jeff Parks]

Hey-o

I went to Valmont Reservoir (outside of Boulder) this morning to see what was hiding back there.  I was hoping to see the Common Loon which has been hanging out there recently.  I set up the scope, and started scanning the water, and there were three Loons hanging out in close proximity in the middle of the reservoir.  See attached picture. Then, while looking through the flock of  Western Grebes (85 or so), there were two more Loons!  I managed to see all five at once, or nearly at once, since they were in different parts of the reservoir.  Other birds of interest were three Bald Eagles, one adult and two juveniles.  One of the juveniles decided to try it's luck buzzing a small flock of Coots, hoping to get one to fly high enough that it could snag it for lunch, I guess.  It soon learned that Coots don't fly much, and tend to dive underwater all at once when an eagle gets too close.  It was great entertainment watching it buzz those Coots for a few minutes before moving on to other pursuits.

Good Birding -
Jeff Parks
Boulder, CO