Grosbeak Archives - Birds on the Wing

Every year as the days grow longer and the temperature increases a wide variety of birds migrate through Colorado. Although many migrating birds regularly travel through Colorado, the birds in this post are all rarely seen in the state. These rare birds, or rarities as birders call them, are often a cause for excitement for anyone attempting to grow their Colorado list.

As it turned out this spring an exceptional number of rare birds were reported in Colorado. Most of them were from the Eastern United States or birds from Southern States that overshot their breeding grounds. These birds are unpredictable, only showing up in Colorado a few times a year. Several of the birds were even more rare!

Thanks to the many Colorado birders who found and reported these rarities!

April Rarities

Neotropic Cormorants like this one are identified by their equally proportioned neck and tail. The common cormorant in Colorado, the Double-crested Cormorant, has a much shorter tail.

Glossy Ibis can be differentiated from the much more common White-faced Ibis by their purple facial skin and red knees.

Easily the rarest bird I saw this spring was this Louisiana Waterthrush. It was just the seventh ever reported in the state and a lifer for me.

In this flock of Franklin’s Gulls is a Caspian Tern. It is slightly larger with a long orange bill.

American Golden-Plover in non-breeding plumage.

This Yellow-throated Warbler sang loudly the entire time we observed it making him easy to locate.

White-eyed Vireo with its white eye clearly visible.

Three Dunlin in breeding plumage, part of a small flock of six. Their red backs, black bellies and long down-curved bill are key field marks.

Whimbrel. These incredible shorebirds migrate mostly along the coast, although very small numbers move through Colorado every year. They spend summer in northern Alaska and winter along the coast of the southern United States and Central America.

Hooded Warber — Male Hooded Warbler hopping along the ground.

*Black-and-white Warbler* is the only warbler in North America that behaves like a nuthatch, climbing up tree trunks in search of food.

May Rarities

Palm Warblers like this one can be identified by their tail pumping behavior.

A Chestnut-sided Warbler showing its namesake chestnut side.

A Black-throated Blue Warbler. This small eastern warbler is rare in Colorado and was a lifer for me this spring.

A Broad-winged Hawk flying over. These raptors migrate though Colorado every spring and are almost always seen in flight.

Male Summer Tanager. They are one of the only all red birds in Colorado.

A Gray-cheeked Thrush. Although this species is very similar to Swainson’s Thrush it lacks the clear eye ring and other subtle details of the face pattern. It was confirmed by its distinctive song. This bird was special because it is one of the best rarities I have found.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak foraging in the top of some tall trees.

A female Northern Parula. Although this warbler is normally a regular eastern migrant in Colorado, this was the only one I saw this spring.

Female Cape May Warbler moving up the tree. They can be identified by the dense gray streaking on their sides and their gray cheek patch.

A female Golden-winged Warbler foraging just feet away from me. Another lifer!

A roosting Yellow-crowned Night-Heron. This bird would hunt and roost on the shores of this small lake every morning but would disappear, presumably to nearby bushes during the day.

May Continued

One of the most common eastern warblers in Colorado is the Blackpoll Warbler, one of many I saw this spring.

One of the rarest eastern warblers I have seen this year is the Worm-eating Warbler.

A female Painted Bunting, identified by its overall greenish color.

A male Pine Warbler. These birds often forage and sing from the tops of trees, but this one landed on the ground providing excellent views.

A male Kentucky Warbler, another lifer. This skulky warbler never got more then three feet off the ground. It was only visible for several seconds while hopping between bushes.

A Blue-winged Warbler hopping around in some dense bushes.

This bright golden warbler is a Prothonotary Warbler. It is identified by its long bill and blue gray back.

Female Blackburnian Warbler sitting in a tree close to me. It was by far the most cooperative Blackburnian I have ever seen.

No, your eyes are not deceiving you, this bird’s tail is longer than its body! The clear pink sides and fully gray head confirm this bird is a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher.

A Magnolia Warbler, probably a young male, hopping around in a distant tree.

My lifer Scarlet Tanager. This bird was still transitioning into breeding plumage. This is evident because of the green patch on the back.

Eastern Wood-Pewee. Western and Eastern Wood-Pewees look so similar that they can only be confidently identified by hearing their song. Thankfully, this bird was singing continually from a tree right above us.

Camera: Nikon COOLPIX P1000

Optics: Celestron TrailSeeker Scope and Nikon Monarch 7 ATB 8×42 Binoculars

While driving from Denver to Story, Wyoming, which takes about 6.5 hours, we spotted many raptors. The highlights were 14 Bald Eagles and 1 Golden Eagle, all between Casper and Story! Story is just outside of Sheridan, which is in North Central Wyoming. This area is bordered on the west by the Bighorn Mountains with rolling plains to the east.

I was excited about the possibility of 3 lifers on this trip: Bohemian Waxwing, Gray Partridge and Snow Bunting. These birds had all been reported on eBird within the last month so there was a good possibility of seeing all of them.

November 28^th, Lake De Smet, WY. Target bird: Gray Partridge

Thanksgiving Day. Partly sunny, 10°-25°. We headed out early and arrived just after sunrise. Lake De Smet is one of the largest bodies of water in Northern Wyoming surrounded by rolling hills and agricultural fields. Our first stop was the campground. The willow bushes around the camp sites draw in many wintering game birds including Sharp-tailed Grouse and Gray Partridge. We easily found flocks of both birds and enjoyed close views from the warmth of the car!

On our drive out we passed through excellent raptor habitat.

Not a raptor, but always cool to see a Common Raven.

November 29^th, Story, WY.

Feeder watching at my grandparents’ property. I enjoyed many common feeder birds in the pristine Ponderosa Pine forest in Story.

Bird Feeders — Very active bird feeders.

Mountain Chickadee, very similar to Black-capped Chickadee.

Bighorn Mountains — Fog moving down the valley into Story.

November 30^th, Bighorn, WY. Target bird: Bohemian Waxwing.

We only had 45 minutes to search for the flock of Waxwings which had been reported to eBird the day before. Birding on a tight schedule is always challenging and today was no exception! We birded along the Brinton Museum entrance road looking for Waxwings in the tall Cottonwood trees. None were present. However, there was a nice flock of Pine Grosbeak foraging near the road. As our time ran out we headed towards Sheridan along Little Goose Creek. As I leaned out of the car to look at a hawk I saw and heard a large flock of Waxwings flying overhead. I was fairly confident they were Bohemians, but not 100% sure. We’d have to continue our search another day…

Not a Waxwing, but a female Pine Grosbeak.

December 1^st, Bighorn, WY. Target bird: Bohemian Waxwing.

On our drive to the Brinton Museum we spotted a flock of Sharp-tailed Grouse. They were completely unconcerned with us and continued feeding as we watched from just feet away.

After viewing the Sharp-tails we headed towards the Brinton Museum. Driving along Little Goose Creek we finally found the Waxwings. There was a flock of Bohemian Waxwings numbering over 100 birds. Mixed in were a few Cedar Waxwings and Robins. The birds were feasting on berries. While watching the Waxwings my dad spotted a Harris’s Sparrow, which is a rare bird in Wyoming. Nice job, dad!