Finding a New Bird for The State: Crissal Thrasher
On November 30th, 2024, Luke Pheneger and Brian Genge were in southeast Colorado. They found and photographed a probable first state record of a Crissal Thrasher. This sighting will be reviewed by CFO’s Colorado Bird Records Committee for official listing. You can find out more about this process here.
We asked Luke to share their experience of this exciting sighting, and why he keeps coming back to Southeast Colorado. You can view the full eBird checklist, including images of the Crissal Thrasher.
Both Brian and I venture to the southeastern Colorado canyon country more than most Colorado birders. This region is a hidden gem, drawing us back each time due to its astonishing diversity of wildlife and great scenery. Its unique blend of habitats serves as a hotspot for rare and unique birds in the state. The area’s close proximity to locations with resident species yet to find their way into Colorado make it especially appealing.
On this particular trip, we didn’t have any target species in mind. Sean Huntley and I had a productive visit to the area a week prior and we were just hoping for an equally rewarding experience. Before finding the thrasher we had already encountered several special species. Hermit Thrushes, Golden Crowned Kinglets, Mountain Bluebirds, Rufous-crowned Sparrows as well as multiple Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers gave us hope that we’d find something particularly exciting.
While Brian and I were walking the road that leads through the canyon, he said that there was something moving in the bush to our left. Before I could get eyes on the bird he said “It’s a thrasher, let’s make sure it’s a Curve-billed”.
Long-billed Thrasher is one of the species we hope will show up in the southeastern Colorado canyon country, so we always make sure to check our thrashers closely. I snuck around the backside of the bush, but I could still only see part of the bird and could only make out a gray, non-streaked thrasher so I couldn’t be sure of its identity besides knowing it wasn’t a Sage, Bendire’s, Brown, or Long-billed. I then hear Brian rattling off photos and yell “Crissal!”. The thrasher then hopped into my view where I was able to see the prominent crimson undertail coverts, white throat, and white malar stripe of a Crissal Thrasher. These characteristics eliminated Curve-billed and the even rarer Leconte’s or California Thrashers.
Crissal Thrasher was one of the most anticipated additions to Colorado’s state list, however many expected it to show up in the San Luis Valley, not southeastern Colorado.
It’s hard to predict what Colorado’s next new species will be, but Cottonwood Canyon seems like a promising location to look for Black-crested Titmouse, Tufted Titmouse, Nutting’s Flycatcher, Black-capped Vireo or any other southern US specialty.