Colorado Field Ornithologists

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CFO is a non-profit, volunteer organization devoted to the study, conservation, and enjoyment of Colorado's birds    Join/Renew    Gift Membership

News Articles

from the CFO Directors

Click on an article to read and be sure to page through for older articles.

ArticleID
Title
Author
Posted On
 
 
 
 
 
 
28
CFO Late Fall Field Trip
CFO Late Fall Field Trip
Bill Kaempfer
Bill Kaempfer
11/10/2014
11/10/2014 2:34:00 PM
27
CFO Spring Field Trip—SE Colorado Migrant Weekend
CFO Spring Field Trip—SE Colorado Migrant Weekend
Bill Kaempfer
Bill Kaempfer
4/17/2014
4/17/2014 12:26:00 PM
26
Flood Assistance: Help for Birders From CFO
Flood Assistance: Help for Birders From CFO
Bill Kaempfer
Bill Kaempfer
9/19/2013
9/19/2013 12:00:00 AM
25
The new Colorado Bird Records website will be live soon!
The new Colorado Bird Records website will be live soon!
Doug Faulkner
Doug Faulkner
8/15/2013
8/15/2013 12:00:00 AM
24
Last Chance - First the Fire and Then the Flood!
Last Chance - First the Fire and Then the Flood!
Joe Roller
Joe Roller
8/13/2013
8/13/2013 12:00:00 AM
 
 
 
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CFO Late Fall Field Trip

Bill Kaempfer
November 10, 2014

Well, if I were to say that the best bird on the CFO’s late fall trip to eastern Colorado on November 8th was Red-winged Blackbird what would you think? Probably, glad I missed that one.

You might be wrong. 15 birders joined CFO Vice President, Christian Nunes, and President Bill Kaempfer on this trip east from Denver on I-70 to Hale and than back on US 36. Frankly, things were slow. Perhaps birds that had been around enjoying our lingering warm fall took off in an innate avian anticipation of this upcoming cold slam that has just arrived. Maybe trips out that just aren't that exciting anymore since both Bonny Reservoir and Flagler Reservoir are not reservoirs any more. Or it might have been the presence of hunters just where we wanted to get out of the cars and explore. In any event we just didn't see all that many species. There were a few goodies here and there, albeit not seen by all: a Say’s Phoebe on the road around Limon, a White-throated Sparrow at Flagler SWA; a Rough-legged Hawk between Flagler and Seibert. Finally, at Seibert we all got terrific looks at a really dark, adult female taiga sub-species Merlin. It stared us down; sallied forth to pick off a grasshopper in mid-wing and gave icy, contemptuous looks to a couple of House Finches.

We failed to find any eponymous pipits on Pipit Hill near Hale, but we did have a couple of Red-bellied Woodpeckers at the old Foster Grove campground at Bonny. Then the real excitement began. As we crested a hill on Yuma County Road CC just south of YCR 3 we saw a Prairie Falcon zooming around. Over the next hill we found out why—Red-winged Blackbirds in a massive flock. The front car radioed out—“Redwings” and Christian in the rear car cutely asked, “Which side of the road?” It was a massive throng that alternated between settling on the ground and nervously jumping into the air in an elastic cloud of silvery wings. The Prairie Falcon was the reason why as we saw it slice through the flock at one point, but fail in picking off the one bird it singled out. I can almost feel that poor bird’s adrenalin. How many? Well here are my thoughts—the flock on the ground was about the size of a quarter of a football field. That is ¼ of 100X50X9 or 45,000 square feet. I would say that there were at least one bird per square foot, maybe 2, that puts the flock as between 12,000 and 25,000. You should have been there.

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Colorado Field Ornithologists
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Indian Hills, CO 80454

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Our Mission

Colorado Field Ornithologists (CFO) is a non-profit, volunteer organization devoted to the study, conservation, and enjoyment of Colorado's birds. We are looking for bird enthusiasts just like you!

We are a statewide organization open to anyone interested in birds, including recreational birders and professional ornithologists. The diversity of our members' interests creates a dynamic organization and offers learning opportunities for all.

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Many thanks to Tom Wilberding for the use of his photos!
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