Cool in the morning, warm in the afternoon. We hiked in morning under a cloudless sky, dog and I, and the sun warmed us up nicely. Few other humans or dogs, but quite a few good birds—e.g., a female Western Tanager.
But most noteworthy might’ve been three raptors: one of the resident Cooper’s Hawks, a pair of Golden Eagles perched high on the ridge (first eagles in a while), and, on our return, a lone soaring Red-Tailed Hawk.
(Lots of little hummingbirds, too.)
Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 7:28 a.m. (8:28 MDT), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Black-headed Grosbeak (v)
2. Lazuli Bunting
3. Black-capped Chickadee
4. Spotted Towhee
5. Black-chinned Hummingbird
6. Pine Siskin (v)
7. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
8. House Finch*
9. Western Tanager
10. Chipping Sparrow
11. Black-billed Magpie*
12. Downy Woodpecker
13. Orange-crowned Warbler (v)
14. Mourning Dove
15. Turkey Vulture
16. Warbling Vireo
17. California Quail* (v)
18. Virginia’s Warbler (v)
19. Black-throated Gray Warbler (v)
20. Cooper’s Hawk
21. Golden Eagle
22. Song Sparrow**
23. Red-tailed Hawk
Elsewhere
24. House Sparrow
25. European Starling
26. Eurasian Collared-dove
Mammals
Rock Squirrel
Mountain Cottontail
(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
Tags: black-blled magpie, black-capped chickadee, black-chinned hummingbird, black-headed grosbeak, black-throated gray warbler, blue-gray gnatcatcher, California quail, chipping sparrow, Cooper’s hawk, downy woodpecker, Eurasian collared-dove, European starling, golden eagle, house finch, house sparrow, lazuli bunting, mountain cottontail, mourning dove, Orange-crowned Warbler, pine siskin, red-tailed hawk, rock squirrel, song sparow, spotted towhee, turkey vulture, Virginia’s warbler, warbling vireo, western tanager
