Category: Vertebrates

Posted on in Birding Trips, Birds, Hotspots

See Mountain Plovers in Karval, Colorado

Like most people, I used to associate our state with mountains, skiing, and aspen. But now, mention Colorado and I think of prairies, cowboys, and most of all, hospitality.

karval-2007apr29-lah-075My focus changed because of the town of Karval. With Pikes Peak barely visible on the horizon, this tiny town in Lincoln County, an hour east of Colorado Springs, doesn’t fit the typical person’s image of a vacation destination. Yet, I had a wonderful time there.

You have to have a reason to search out Karval. In my case, I was eager to attend their Mountain Plover Festival, held yearly at the end of April.

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Posted on in Bird Profiles, Birds, Nature

The Bluebirds are Coming

Western Bluebird @home 2008jun03 LAH 015rrWhile we’re still shoveling snow and scraping windshields, bluebirds are thinking about spring. Colorado has three species of bluebirds, Eastern, Western (seen here) and Mountain, and all of them are what birders call “early nesters.”

Why do they arrive here so early in the year? Maybe it’s because they don’t travel very far for the winter. While other kinds of thrushes migrate to central America, bluebirds tend to stick closer to home.

Bluebirds living in the southern parts of the United States stay there year-round. Western Bluebirds from harsher climates winter along the Pacific coast or in the dry scrubland of the Southwest and Mexico. A few stay in Colorado.

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Posted on in Birding Trips, Birds, Hotspots

Birding the Colorado Tropics

Lady Ross' Turaco_DenverZoo_20091007_LAH_3617x-1
Lady Ross’ Turaco

It’s the middle of winter. We could go birding, but it’s hard to juggle binoculars when one has on several layers of insulation, hat, scarf, and wool mittens. Cold weather has us huddled indoors, wishing we could migrate to someplace delightfully tropical. Well, we can. I recently visited a place that’s always nice and toasty, filled with moist air, green plants, and exotic species, and is only an hour or so from my home—the Denver Zoo.

Bird World consists of a series of three large, sky-lit rooms, each with its own assortment of brightly colored birds from around the world. The rooms are sized so that you don’t need binoculars to get a good look. Natural surroundings encourage natural behaviors, even courting, nesting and raising young. Because the birds aren’t in cages, there are no bars between you and your subjects, making this a great place to take pictures. Connecting these rooms are wide hallways where more birds live in glass-fronted enclosures.

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Posted on in Birds

Big, Hairy Spiders

My brave husband holding a Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula.

I confess—I am really afraid of spiders. While my rational side finds them fascinating, my emotions run screaming, and so do I.

In a determined effort to overcome what I see as a major stumbling block for a nature lover like myself, I decided to get better acquainted with arachnids. What better place to start than with tarantulas.

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Posted on in Bird Profiles, Birds

In Praise of Ducks

mallard-male_portlandor_20100208_lah_8917“Oh, it’s just another Mallard.”

How many times have I said that? As a birder, I’m always looking for the rare bird, the unusual find that will add to my life list. Last month’s Snowy Owl fit the bill—getting such a great view of that magnificent predator was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

I just got home from a week in northern Oregon and southern Washington. While I did pick up a couple of new species for my list, I mostly saw ducks. Lots of ducks. Hundreds of ducks. (Did I mention I was in Oregon?)

So—I looked at ducks. Really looked. And you know, ducks are pretty cool!

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Posted on in Bird Profiles, Birds

I Love Magpies

black-billed-magpie-blackforestco-2008oct08-lah-005r-1You can’t miss them. Black-billed Magpies are big, noisy, and distinctive in their black, navy, and white plumage. Their elegant long tails add to the tuxedo effect. They’re basically crows in formal attire.

In addition to the mixed scrub, woodlands, and fields of their native habitat, Magpies have adapted to life in urban areas. They’ve done well, and are common in most of the western U.S. Here in Colorado, they’re frequently considered “trash birds.”

Why do many people look at magpies with such disdain? Maybe it’s their tendency to dine on road kill and other carrion, or their occasional habit of killing and eating the eggs and nestlings of other birds, that draws so much criticism. But magpies have their endearing qualities as well. Maybe we don’t like them because we don’t know them well enough.

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Posted on in Birds

Seeing Butterflies in Winter

paper-kite_butterflypavco_20100123_lah_7745Here in Colorado, January is a time of muted shades—tan grasses, soft yellow willows, maroon sedges, gray seedheads—and erratic weather. Highs in the 50s are immediately followed by snow or a sub-zero wind-chill. I was craving green leaves, bright colors, tropical humidity against my chapped skin. In the midst of suspended existence, I needed a fix of fecundity. So last Saturday, my husband and I paid a visit to the tropics. We drove to Broomfield, just west of Denver, home of the Butterfly Pavilion.

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Posted on in Birds, Books, Media Reviews

Armchair Birding: “Brushed by Feathers,” by Frances L. Wood

brushed_feathers_book_better-229x345It’s 15 degrees outside, the snow is not so much falling as being hurled against the windowpane, and the highway patrol has just closed the interstate. You are itching to go birding. What’s a snowed-in birder to do? One solution is to grab a fuzzy blanket, a nice cup of  hot tea, and hunker down with a copy of Brushed by Feathers, by Frances L. Wood.

Starting in January, Wood chronicles a year of birdwatching from her perspective as a naturalist, artist, speaker and writer. While the material is factual and informative, the true worth of this book is the way in which it is presented. The author comes across as an old friend sharing her birding journal with you.

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Posted on in Birds, Nature

Winter Birding in Colorado

kettlecreeklakes_2008-11-22_lah_361rOur recent warm spell is lovely, but it’s still January. Temperatures swing back and forth between cool and freezing. Trails are icy, and sometimes blocked by snow. This is traditionally a time to hole up and hunker down. We are attracted to warm firesides, hot chocolate, and snugly quilts. But if you, like me, are passionate about nature, and birds in particular, can we be content to sit by the fire? Just because the temperature outside is in the single digits, are we to ignore our obsession and hibernate like bears?

Of course, some birds have opted for tropical vacations, and I’m sure we would love to do likewise. But if the schedule and budget don’t allow for a trip to Central America, be encouraged. There are plenty of birds to be enjoyed right here. A surprising number of species hang around for the season.

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Posted on in Birding Tips, Birds

Snowy Owl Sighting

snowy-owl_peytonco_20100110_lah_6250-1We got the call yesterday afternoon. “Come quick! I’m staring at a Snowy Owl!” Of course, we dropped everything, grabbed the scope and camera, and went running. Amazing—a Snowy Owl turning up just 20 minutes from our home near Colorado Springs. That doesn’t happen every day.

It’s a good thing Pete was driving—I probably would have had a hard time keeping to the speed limit. We pulled up behind the line of vehicles, and half a dozen people glanced up from their spotting scopes. I jumped out of the car while Pete helpfully assembled camera and scope. I had just gotten the adapter last week—a late birthday present—and barely knew how it all went together.

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