This morning was sunny and quite windy-exactly the opposite of what is needed for floral pictures. I toured Lathrop's roads and found the birds sitting tight. The only bird I could scrounge up was a Bushtit. These little feathered dyanamos are small, drab, and in constant motion and seldom get any "oohs and aahs" like more colorful birds. They often look a bit disheveled as if they had used a blow dryer at too high a setting.
While checking out Colorado Birds on the web I found a posting by Beverly Jensen of LaVeta, Colorado who described the feeder activity in her back yard and invited birders to come and enjoy the spectacle. I called her up and she graciously allowed me access to her backyard while she was at work. Her only caveat was to not let Zeus, the friendly guard dog, slip out through the entry gate. When I arrived Zeus eyed me from where he lay near the gate. No matter what owners tell me about their dogs, when they are very big and named Zeus a certain level of caution is in order. Zeus, however, was quite gentle and his only concern seemed to be finding a shady spot to nap. The backyard activity was spectacular-a constant parade of grosbeaks, tanagers, siskins, orioles, and hummingbirds. During one interval I saw 6 Bullock's Orioles fighting over one feeder with two Western Tanagers trying to grab a mouthful during the squabbling. The lighting was very contrasty so I just watched the feeders until lunch. Thanks Beverly! Beverly has a blog (http://www.ruralchatter.blogspot.com/) that would be interesting to anybody who loves and feeds birds.
After lunch I traveled into the mountains on Highway 160 to a campsite at Pagosa Springs. After eating I went looking for Lewis's Woodpeckers which are suppose to inhabit the cottonwoods along the riverwalk in the middle of town. I drew a blank on the woodpeckers but admit to being distracted by the spectacular scenery of the area. In addition kayakers were putting on a good show with a backdrop of the "Springs" complex(http://www.pagosahotsprings.com/). Despite the cool mountain evening air guests were marching in and out of a variety of hot springs in their look-a-like robes. As they marched up and down steps they resembled some religious clan going about their nightly activities.
In how many cities can you kayak rough water in the middle of town?
Guests have a variety of places to soak in the hot mineral springs.
Wolf Creek Pass-This ones for you Troy!
Hey John, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. I agree...this yard has turned out to be quite spectacular for numbers of birds. And I'm up to 80+ species!
ReplyDeleteHad I known you were especially after the Lewis's, I'd have told you about the ones at the edge of town here...or the one that spent the winter in my yard and moved to my friend's yard! They are said not to frequent feeders, but this male is a regular at outs.
Next time you come, know you have a choice of cheap but clean-and-functional or a couple of la-de-da bed and breakfast places in which to stay.
Good Birding!
Nice Photos!! Looks like you are having fun out there. That last photo reminds me that I NEED to get a motorcycle trip scheduled for this summer =)
ReplyDeleteTVO