Elbert County (mostly) 4/4

[David Suddjian]

Yesterday I made a foray into Elbert County, focusing on the forested area near Elizabeth, and the region generally between Kiowa and Ramah, with a side trip into El Paso for Ramah SWA. There were only 5 checklists previously entered in eBird for Elbert County in the 1st week of April, so it was fun to venture into eAves Incognito.

Red Crossbills (Type 2) were uncommon in areas of Ponderosa pine forest, encountered in small numbers moderately frequently, and extending out well southeast of Kiowa in areas where there were cones in the forest patches. Red-breasted Nuthatches seemed quite sparse. A flock of 18 Cedar Waxwings near Elizabeth was nice, as I have only crossed paths with that species a handful of times in Elbert, though it is not rare. I had pairs of Bushtits at three locations in or near pine forest near Elizabeth. Two Townsend's Solitaires in a pine area southeast of Kiowa seemed interesting for the date. Three pairs of Common Ravens near Elizabeth and Kiowa were in expected areas for that species.

The large pond along Hwy 86 east of Kiowa was a nice stop, hosting 17 species of ducks, plus other waterbirds. Among the more notable for the county were Wood Duck, Hooded Merganser, and Common Goldeneye. Shorebirds included American Avocet, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs,  and Killdeer. A Double-crested Cormorant was there. 

Stops in open country in Elbert Co to the northwest of Ramah produced 3 McCown's Longspurs, Ring-necked Pheasant (my 1st in Elbert), White-winged Dove, American Pipit, Loggerhead Shrikes, Ferruginous Hawk, and 9 Sandhill Cranes flying over. A Swainson's Hawk was at the Elbert / El Paso line at Big Sandy Creek beside the town of Ramah.

Ramah SWA had a good number of ducks and coots, with nice variety. Other than a Hooded Merganser, I don't think there were other species of special note. A Burrowing Owl was at a prairie dog town near the SWA.

I stopped at Walker Gravel Pit in Douglas on the way home. 2 male Great-tailed Grackles were along the road to the pond.

David Suddjian

Littleton, CO