This day dawned warm (mid- to upper-30s (F)) and mostly overcast. My morning hike brought not many species, but pretty good numbers.
Birds were hopping back at home, though: I had as many species within ear- and eyeshot of my door. Sparrows, robin, chickadee (a species I did not have up the mountain trails)—and, last bird of the day, an American Kestrel, perched on a street light post overlooking the highway, with the city view behind him.
Thanks, kestrel.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 9:05 a.m. (MST), I hiked several hundred feet up a mountain.
8. Song Sparrow (v) 9. House Sparrow (v 10. American Robin 11. Eurasian Collared-dove 12. European Starling 13. Black-capped Chickadee 14. American Kestrel
Mammals
Rock Squirrel Red Squirrel
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
A calm, nearly cloudless morning with chillier temps (20s (F)) than yesterday—and a bunch of nice surprises to discover. The first being a Canyon Wren in the rocky cavity up near the bluff. I heard it first, remembered the call from early spring, and managed even to spy the little energetic bird.
Soon after that sighting, I decided we should climb up to the ridge where the cairn stands—where I’d seen (from a distance) that it’d partly fallen in on account of (I assume) a few very windy days. It’d been a couple-three months, at least. Past time.
And it was a grand climb, a lovely view. I repaired the cairn (more or less), and dog and I ascended a couple hundred feet above it, sat a spell, then came back down (during which descent I heard—then spotted—a couple Chukars) and finally hiked a stretch of our usual trail, for good measure.
Good measure turned out to be a Sharp-shinned Hawk, perched low in the scrub not far away, casting about for voles or juncos until a trail runner jogged by.
All in all a very fine day.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 8:20 a.m. (MST), I hiked some 1,200 feet up a mountain.
Just as dog and I began our morning hike, I spied an American Kestrel zipping over to a utility line just above the trail ahead of us. While I was angling for a photo, a Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay showed up, alighting just beyond the kestrel. Just as I began to snap some pics, and the jay lunged at the little falcon, which popped up and veered away.
Otherwise the usual suspects (including a Mountain Chickadee). Will be interesting to see how the wildlife activity changes after our forecast rain and snow and cold arrives this weekend sometime.
Grandeur Peak Area List Beginning at 8:15 a.m. (MST), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay 2. Northern Flicker 3. House Finch* 4. American Kestrel 5. Spotted Towhee 6. Black-billed Magpie** 7. Dark-eyed Junco 8. Mountain Chickadee 9. Pine Siskin (v) 10. American Robin 11. Black-capped Chickadee 12. Lesser Goldfinch 13. Song Sparrow (v)
Elsewhere
14. Rock Pigeon
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
