Last evening, a fire broke out below the trail dog and I hike each day. No word on the cause (I suspect human carelessness), but it spread over about four or five acres before a quick response by firefighters—helicopters dropping water and fire retardant—doused the flames. Crossed the trail at one spot and left a scar on the landscape. Nonetheless, birds aplenty this morning.
Quite a few more species than usual for summer, in fact. Notable was the first Black-throated Gray Warbler in a couple weeks, I’d guess (and my first female), along with a Western Tanager, a Cooper’s Hawk with prey, the young Red-tailed Hawk again—and the clear voice of a sapsucker that I never caught sight of. (I suspect a lifer Red-naped Sapsucker, but I can’t be sure.)
Got up into the 90s (F). Not a whole lot of wind. Draught conditions, or so it seems (no rain in the ten-day forecast). Still there’s that will to survive.
Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 8:45 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay
2. Rock Pigeon
3. Black-chinned Hummingbird
4. Black-capped Chickadee (v)
5. Black-headed Grosbeak (v)
6. Pine Siskin (v)
7. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
8. Mourning Dove*
9. House Sparrow* (v)
10. House Finch**
11. Lazuli Bunting
12. Spotted Towhee
13. Western Tanager
14. Lesser Goldfinch** (v)
15. Cooper’s Hawk
16. Black-throated Gray Warbler
17. Warbling Vireo (v)
18. Sapsucker (sp) (v)
19. Virginia’s Warbler (v)
20. American Robin*
21. Song Sparrow (v)
22. Red-tailed Hawk
Elsewhere
23. Eurasian collared Dove
24. European Starling
25. California Quail
26. Black-billed Magpie
Mammals
Rock Squirrel
(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
Tags: American robin, black-billed magpie, black-capped chickadee, black-chinned hummingbird, black-headed grosbeak, black-throated gray warbler, blue-gray gnatcatcher, California quail, cooper's hawk, Eurasian collared dove, European starling, house finch, house sparrow, lazuli bunting, lesser goldfinch, mourning dove, pine siskin, red-tailed hawk, rock pigeon, sapsucker (sp), song sparrow, spotted towhee, Virginia’s warbler, warbling vireo, western tanager, Woodhouse’s scrub jay
