Right at the beginning of my (truly active) birding hike with dog this morning, I heard the frantic, unmistakable voice of an American Kestrel and looked up to see two of the little falcons wheeling around in the sky above the trailhead. As I angled for an action shot I never got, one of the birds abruptly, veered rapidly away and down to a perch at the tip of a nearby conifer. Auspicious, that.
The next two hours were full of odd and surprising bird visitations. Most were species I’ve been seeing nearly every day, but one stood out: a lone Osprey—first I’ve seen in more year-plus here in Utah—circling high above us. Migrating, I suspect, because there’ll be cooler days ahead.
If the forecasters are typically accurate, in fact, tomorrow morning’s hike will be the nippiest of the season.
Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 8:45 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. House Finch*
2. American Kestrel
3. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay**
4. Spotted Towhee
5. Northern Flicker
6. Pine Siskin
7. Juniper Titmouse
8. White-crowned Sparrow
9. Black-capped Chickadee
10. Black-billed Magpie*
11. American Robin
12. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
13. Dark-eyed Junco
14. Osprey
15. Downy Woodpecker
16. Mourning Dove*
Elsewhere
17. Rock Pigeon
18. American crow
(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
Tags: American crow, American kestrel, American robin, black-billed magpie, black-capped chickadee, dark-eyed junco, downy woodpecker, house finch, juniper titmouse, mourning dove, northern flicker, osprey, pine siskin, rock pigeon, ruby-crowned kinglet, spotted towhee, white-crowned sparrow, Woodhouse’s scrub jay
