a few more reports from northeast Colorado (Morgan, Yuma, Washington, Weld)

[David Dowell]

I visited several locations in northeast Colorado during the past 36 hours, and I found similar things to what has been reported -- migrants here and there but not in huge numbers.  Wind made birding challenging at times (particularly yesterday afternoon in Yuma County), but I applaud those who are still trying (see Glenn Walbek's reports of interesting findings).  A few birds of note are listed below.

Jackson Reservoir inlet canal (Morgan County, 5/20/13):  This area, which had been nearly birdless in other recent visits, was more active this time in the early morning.  The most interesting finds were Veery (2) and Cordilleran Flycatcher.

Brush SWA (Morgan County, 5/20/13):  Red-Bellied Woodpecker can usually be found here, and I found one yesterday.

Stalker Lake near Wray (Yuma County, 5/20/13):  Bird numbers were lower than usual, probably because the birds were hunkered down in hidden locations during winds up to 40 mph.  The first bird I saw was a Nashville Warbler in the lakeside trees near the parking area.  Some of the recently reported Northern Cardinals (2) and White-Rumped Sandpipers (3) were there, but I did *not* find the Golden-Winged Warbler.

Sandy Bluffs SWA (Yuma County, 5/20/13):  I had not visited this area north of Idalia before so wanted to see what it is like.  The sign says the area is open until June 15.  The area is open forest (cottonwoods and Russian olives mainly) along Arickaree Creek / River that is unlikely to attract large numbers of birds, but there is some interesting habitat here and there.  It appears that storms and beavers have downed some of the trees.  Where one of the trees had fallen into the marsh at the upper end of a beaver pond, I found a couple of Northern Waterthrushes.

Last Chance (Washington County, 5/20/13):  Indigo Bunting (male) and Rose-Breasted Grosbeak (female) were the most interesting finds.

Lower Latham Reservoir (Weld County, 5/21/13):  Red-Necked Phalaropes were congregated in large numbers (195 by my count) in the marshy shorebird spot south of the lake.  Otherwise, three kinds of terns can still be seen at the lake:  Forster's, Common, and Black.

Crow Valley (Weld County, 5/21/13):  The Black-Throated Gray Warbler continues.  This morning, it was spending most of the time in a juniper tree in the southwest part of the birding area.  Along the dry creekbed southeast of the campground, I found one Veery.

Norma's Grove (Weld County, 5/21/13) was quiet mid morning today.

David Dowell

Longmont, CO