7 November 2026

Posts Tagged ‘Cassin’s vireo’

Shade and Sun

Friday, October 1st, 2021
Lesser Goldfinch in the sunflowers, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 01 October 2021.
Lesser Goldfinch in the sunflowers.

Another nippy morning with plenty of yellow-rumps moving through. But not just ’rumps—also flying south were a bunch of robins and a Cassin’s Vireo. Not much to show in the way of photo, though, because of the shade vs sun situation.

At this time of year, when sunrise has moved south far enough to be lined up with a tall ridge hill, the early part of my hike with dog occurs in a deep blue shade. More shade every day, it seems—and not only because we’re speeding toward an equinox.

My return trip with dog involves a good sun-soaking (at least on a cloudless morning like this one), and occasionally a bird will pop up and pose.

Today, the only bird that posed was a goldfinch, in the garden, at home.

Grandeur Peak Area List
At 7:32 a.m. (8:32 MDT), I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.

1. Northern Flicker
2. House Finch
3. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay
4. Black-billed Magpie
5. Rock Pigeon*
6. American Robin
7. Yellow-rumped Warbler**
8. Spotted Towhee
9. Black-capped Chickadee (v)
10. Downy Woodpecker
11. Cassin’s Vireo

Elsewhere

12. House Sparrow (v)
13. Lesser Goldfinch

Mammals

Red Squirrel

(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere

Many Kinglets

Monday, September 28th, 2020
Ruby-crowned Kinglet, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 28 September 2020.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

A lot of migration going on this clear, chilly (40s (F)) morning. Clear—but dog and I still spent much of the beginning of the hike in mountain shade.

Cassin’s Vireo, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 28 September 2020.
Cassin’s Vireo?

But birds were moving through even in the shade. Many Yellow-rumped Warblers, many American Robins. A couple of gnatcatchers, a pack of six Mountain Chickadees, and a whole bunch of Ruby-crowned Kinglets.

I heard the slight, abrupt chatter a kinglet down in Coyote Canyon, but it had headed up the leafy slope and was out of photo range, so we continued down a ways before turning back up—and I heard it again, same spot. It occurred to me that the switchback for the high ridge hike was uphill of the bird, so we crept up that steep trail…

…and right into a flock of between sixteen and twenty kinglets. They were everywhere, but always in low tangles of foliage. I bet I stood there ten minutes before I finally got one of those quick-moving critters to stop long enough for a half-way decent portrait.

[Elsewhere, I snagged a pic of what I’m pretty sure was a migrating a Cassin’s Vireo—a lifer for me, if so.]

Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 8:21 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up a mountain.

1. House Finch**
2. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay
3. American Robin**
4. Black-capped Chickadee
5. Yellow-rumped Warbler
6. Spotted Towhee
7. Northern Flicker
8. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
9. Cassin’s Vireo‡
10. Hummingbird (sp)
11. Pine Siskin (v)
12. Lesser Goldfinch** (v)
13. Downy Woodpecker
14. Black-billed Magpie*
15. Mountain Chickadee
16. Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Elsewhere

17. Eurasian Collared Dove
18. Rock Pigeon

Mammals

Red Squirrel (v)

(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere
‡Lifer

 
Bird Report is a (sometimes intermittent) record of the birds I encounter while hiking, see while driving, or spy outside my window. —Brian Willson



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