Eastern Meadowlark - Weld, Mew Gull - Larimer

[Steven Mlodinow]

Greetings All

I started the morning at CROW VALLEY. The campground was about as dead as could be except for a slew of BROAD-WINGED HAWKS - 5

1 adult light morph

3 imm light morph, 1 heavily marked, 2 lightly marked

1 dark morph, imm

There was also a sapsucker along the west fence-line that is a juv, and has YB SAPSUCKER in it, I am just not sure that it does not have some RN Sap (a bit of red in throat, supercilium narrow, back markings perhaps a bit linear, perhaps not). Still working on that one. Will post photos

So, most of the birds were in the open areas north of the campground. And most of those birds skeedaddled within a couple hours.

The highlight was an EASTERN MEADOWLARK. The field below the old ranger's station, that field that was wet in spring and had ibis and bittern, is now tall grass -- looks good for Sprague's Pipit (none of those, however). The field was full of meadowlarks and flickers. There was one tree with a dozen or more meadowlarks and 16 flickers (and a couple sparrows). In that tree was a calling Eastern Meadowlark (both bzzzrt and rattle calls). Still of interest, but of lesser note, there was a HARRIS'S SPARROW in the tree as well.

Finally, at the north edge of the campground, there was a WHITE-THROATED SPARROW

The other major highlights were at TIMNATH RESERVOIR, Larimer.

1 juv MEW GULL

1 basic COMMON TERN

1 juv SABINE'S GULL

Good Birding

Steven Mlodinow

Longmont CO