Was supposed to rain all day, so headed out prepared to get a little wet, dog and I. However—despite a dramatic looking sky—we encountered only sparse sprinkles. And I managed to spot a few birds.
A couple even posed (a couple of doves that we surprised in the little burnt patch).
Rained lightly for much of the rest of the day, and tomorrow’s looking rainier. We shall hike either way, Captain Jack and I.
Grandeur Peak Area List At 7:34 a.m. (8:34 MDT), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Song Sparrow** (v) 2. House Finch** 3. Northern Flicker 4. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay (v) 5. Rock Pigeon* 6. Spotted Towhee (v) 7. Yellow-rumped Warbler 8. Mourning Dove 9. Black-capped Chickadee (v) 10. American Robin (v) 11. White-crowned Sparrow
Elsewhere
12. House Sparrow (v) 13. Lesser Goldfinch (v) 14. California Quail
Mammals
Red Squirrel Rock Squirrel
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
Slept late this morning for a change. Nice to get eight hours, with a nice hike to look forward to. And it was a nice, cloudless morning.
Forty-two yellow-rumps moving through—the most I’ve counted in a day in Utah. Harder to photograph here (with the open spaces) than in Maine (with nice thick woods), but a couple actually posed.
Already wondering how many ’rumps will make my list tomorrow.
Grandeur Peak Area List At 7:39 a.m. (8:39 MDT), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. House Finch* 2. Black-billed Magpie* (v) 3. Spotted Towhee 4. Rock Pigeon* 5. American Robin 6. Yellow-rumped Warbler 7. Northern Flicker** 8. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay 9. Black-capped Chickadee 10. Ruby-crowned Kinglet (v) 11. Lesser Goldfinch (v) 12. Song Sparrow (v)
Elsewhere
13. California Quail 14. House Sparrow (v)
Mammals
Red Squirrel Rock Squirrel
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
A somewhat earlier hike this morning for dog and me, meaning most of it occurred in the mountain shade. No problem, though, since migration continues, and the migrants don’t seem to mind a little shade. Robins and yellow-rumps—even a gnatcatcher.
The air contained nippiness and a sense of urgency. Flickers cried, ’rumps chipped, chickadees chattered. A particularly genial chickadee, in fact, presented me with by far the best photo of the day, on our return.
It posed in a Russian Olive tree, in the warmth of the morning sun.
Grandeur Peak Area List At 7:11 a.m. (8:11 MDT), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.
1. Black-billed Magpie** 2. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay 3. House Finch** 4. Song Sparrow* (v) 5. Spotted Towhee (v) 6. Yellow-rumped Warbler 7. Rock Pigeon* 8. Black-capped Chickadee 9. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (v) 10. Pine Siskin (v) 11. Northern Flicker** 12. Lesser Goldfinch 13. American Robin 14. Mourning Dove 15. California Quail* (v)
Mammals
Red Squirrel
(v) Voice only *Also elsewhere **Voice only elsewhere
