Black Swifts, Woodpecker sp. La Plata/San Juan ctys, 9/1-3

[Thomas Heinrich]

I just returned from a week-long backpacking and 14er climbing trip to the Weminuche Wilderness.

At noon on 9/1 from the summit of Mt Eolus, I enjoyed watching a flock of 15 Black Swifts fly overhead. The next day (9/2), I found a family of 4 Three-toed Woodpeckers in the upper Chicago Basin. On 9/3, along the Vallecito Cr. trail about a mile north of Rock Cr. (San Juan cty), I came upon a remarkable woodpecker feeding frenzy with at least 15 individuals of 5 species:
Downy, at least 4
Hairy, 4 or 5
Am Three-toed, 3
N Flicker, 3
R-n Sapsucker, 1
Also on the hike were many mixed flocks of songbirds (Wilson's, Townsend's, Yellow-rumped Warblers) including scores of Golden-crowned Kinglets, some of which were still feeding young. On the morning of 9/4 we had a Northern Saw-whet Owl calling as we headed out from Nebo Creek just before dawn.

A beautiful hike through a magnificent part of the state.

Good birding,

Thomas Heinrich
Boulder, CO
Nyc...@aol.com