if you are still at all curious about my Boulder phoebe saga...

[Linda Andes-Georges]

Hello, all:

We returned from a scorching stay with friends & family in France only to discover that Colorado is finally (it was cold when we left) almost as hot. And when I last wrote about my house-nesting Say's Phoebe pair--maybe two months ago?--the male had returned promptly as always in mid-March, and waited for two months for his love to reappear, suffering two rejections from other women as time went by. 

When I left the state, I was mourning for him, and for our long (9 years) acquaintance. He was hanging around, but appeared disconsolate.

Well, what a difference a month makes.

The first thing I noticed when I got home was that the phoebe's activity in the yard had picked up again. And a week later, he appeared with a wife and four kids.  I rejoiced for him, but he raised the brood somewhere else, and my next thought was, Where did that happen?

When I paid a call to my next door neighbor this week, Mr. B called my attention to a "little flycatcher" that had nested under his porch awning, and lo and behold, it was Phil the Phoebe.

All's well that ends well, and I know some of you share my interest in these sweet birds, so now you have the happy ending for this year...

Linda

Linda Andes-Georges
Boulder County (W of Lagerman, N of Haystack, E of Table Mtn)
[Jean-Pierre says: W of Paris, S of Quebec, E of Tahiti]
8417 Stirrup Ln

Longmont CO 80503

Tel. 720 668 5214

[Sandra Laursen]

Linda,

I too had the experience this year of late-arriving Say's Phoebes in a Boulder County spot where I regularly see them.

They are a usual species seen at my Burrowing Owl monitoring site for Boulder County Parks & Open Space (BCPOS), a prairie dog colony and former pasture in SE Boulder County.  One year I watched a parent bringing a steady supply of food to a gang of fledged youngsters arranged on a rocky outcrop - which I now think of as the 'picnic table' outcrop.

This year I did not see a Say's Phoebe until my last visit of the summer study, July 25.  I think they must nest in an unused shed structure on the property next door, but that's not on County property so I can't get over there to inspect more closely. 

Aside: there have been no Burrowing Owls at this site in my several years of monitoring, just the hope they might show up.  Data from BCPOS' monitoring work the last couple of years suggest a promising uptick in BUOW breeding success in Boulder County, but I haven't heard how things stand for this year.  Meanwhile, I faithfully document zeroes in the name of science and enjoy the other species I see on the prairie.

- Sandra Laursen