Tag: bird watching
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Sassy meowing signals catbirds near the cattails | Words on Birds
My favorite local birding spot is Manitou Lake. Many unique birds can be seen around the lake and if you hear meows coming from the wetland, it is surely a catbird and not a feline. I have seen the gray catbird a few times here and there around Teller County, even a migrant in the…
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Whooshing song of Lincoln’s sparrow emanates near running water
Songs are very helpful when identifying birds. The Lincoln’s sparrow song is a series of short notes that quickly rise and fall in pitch, with a whooshing quality that resembles the noise of rushing water. This sound quality relates to their typical habitat during the breeding season, when they are more likely to be found…
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Bird Call: And then there were eggs
It started with half of a sky-blue American robin’s egg. I imagined Mother Nature smiling down on me as she placed the cracked piece of manna a few feet from my front door earlier this spring. My first bird egg. What a gift. Craning my neck, I searched the two 9-foot-tall shrubs and huge box…
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Bird Call: Bye-bye social media, hello eBird
I’ve recently embarked on Operation: Regrow My Attention Span. My protocol includes eschewing all Meta-owned social media for an undetermined length of time. Fare thee well, book of face and the other one where we once scrolled through pretty photos, but now only see the filtered faces of influencers hawking Amazon junk. Exit social media,…
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Cinnamon teal a showstopper among ducks | Words on Birds
Many of the male ducks have extremely attractive plumage, but the cinnamon teal steals the show. His body is encompassed with a bold rusty color that stands out among the flock. While they are most likely during spring and fall migration, cinnamon teal pass through in small numbers so they are seldom seen. Shallow ponds…
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Fossil Beds host Bird Count Feb. 14
Friends of the Fossil Beds sponsors The International Great Backyard Bird Count from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 14 at the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. The event includes a bird scavenger hunt, bird charades and bingo and beak matching. In addition to making pinecone bird feeders, participants are invited to do bird walks…
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Colorado Mountain Birds – February PPHS Chautauqua
Pikes Peak Historical Society invites everyone to come to Lake George Charter School on Feb. 21 at 2 p.m. for a presentation on birds and bird watching throughout the Colorado mountains. This presentation is being sponsored by Pikes Peak Historical Society as part of their Chautauqua programs. These presentations are free and open to the…
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Zebra head sparrow eases the ID difficulty
Sparrows are difficult to identify, but the black and white zebra-stripe pattern on the head of the white-crowned sparrow eases the difficulty. White-crowned sparrows like to breed near treeline in areas with willows and stunted spruce trees, so they are often seen while hiking up to the alpine in the summer. Locally at lower elevations…
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Black Forest carver uses recycled wood to create life-like birds
You’d swear these carved birds are about to take off. But no, the mountain bluebird, cedar waxwings, red-winged blackbird and hooded merganser are firmly mounted to their wood bases as they perch atop a few display tables and shelves at Wild Birds Unlimited. Standing nearby is Tom Mizik, the man responsible for the brilliantly painted,…
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Bird Call: Colorado carver uses recycled wood to create life-like birds
You’d swear these carved birds are about to take off. But no, the mountain bluebird, cedar waxwings, red-winged blackbird and hooded merganser are firmly mounted to their wood bases as they perch atop a few display tables and shelves at Wild Birds Unlimited. Standing nearby is Tom Mizik, the man responsible for the brilliantly painted,…