Morning Birding Species List | November 7, 2017

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Tuesday, November 7, 2017, 8:00AM – 11:00AM
Weather: mostly sunny
Location: Hallam Lake, Ute Cemetery, and Wheeler Ditch Trail

Species Identified
Mallard Red-tailed Hawk Belted Kingfisher Steller’s Jay Black-billed Magpie American Crow Black-capped Chickadee White-breasted Nuthatch Golden-crowned Kinglet Gray Catbird

Comments: 

This morning’s rather short species list reflects the quiet morning, but true to our birding mantra, ‘nature always delivers,’ we had some most excellent moments! At Hallam Lake, a female Belted Kingfisher caught and swallowed a small fish in great morning light. Our view was so detailed that we could see the wriggling fish and its shiny scales reflecting the sun as the kingfisher manipulated it in its bill in order to swallow it head-first. We also heard the song of a Gray Catbird in the tangled, shrubby hillside above the lake, later identified by audio recording. Along the Wheeler Ditch Trail, a couple of Golden-crowned Kinglets were foraging in the top of a spruce. Their very high-pitched contact calls alerted us to their presence, and fortunately we caught a couple of good looks that clinched the ID of this choice bird. Join us for Morning Birding at Hallam Lake on December 5th at 8:30am and for the Aspen Christmas Bird Count on Sunday, December 17th.

~ Rebecca Weiss, ACES Bird Guide 

 Photo by Dale Armstrong