citizen science project - Brewer's Sparrows in alpine willow/krummholz

[Walker - DNR, Brett]

Dear CO birders,

I'm looking for help documenting the breeding distribution of Brewer's Sparrows in Colorado's high country again this summer. As you probably know, the "sagebrush" subspecies of the Brewer's Sparrows (Spizella breweri breweri) breeds in greatest abundance in sagebrush (below 10,000 ft). But in Colorado, the "sagebrush" subspecies is also found in alpine willow patches with sparse conifer krummholz at treeline (mostly 11,300-12,500 ft elevation) in mid-June through early August.

The next two summers, I'm looking for alpine records of Brewer's Sparrows from additional mountain ranges in Colorado to help develop a statewide predicted habitat map to guide future surveys. I've identified ~30 potential breeding sites as "high priority", meaning sites where they've never been reported before, but likely occur based on habitat. Some are even on mountain passes that are relatively easy to access! It would also be helpful to confirm nesting at additional sites (they've only been confirmed nesting so far at 4 sites). We know of almost 70 other sites where they occur at which breeding has not yet been confirmed, so breeding confirmation from known sites would also be welcome!

Records are submitted as eBird checklists, so it's easy! Birders that contributed eBird observations (including those over the past two summers) were included in our recent publication in Avian Conservation and Ecology (https://ace-eco.org/vol19/iss1/art10/).

If you're interested in surveying a specific site, please feel free to contact me for more detailed maps or information. Otherwise, refer to the attached project overview and instructions.

Thanks in advance, I appreciate that we have so many talented and dedicated birders in Colorado willing to contribute to our understanding of bird distribution, habitat, and ecology!

Best,

Brett Walker

Brett Walker

Wildlife Researcher

P 970.255.6125  |  C 970.787.0519

711 Independent Ave.

Grand Junction, CO 81505

brett....@state.co.us  |  cpw.state.co.us