Post by ed on Aug 26, 2010 22:54:35 GMT -8
Hey all,
I spent 3.5 weeks camping in SW States. Birding was not the primary activity, but of course my binocs were used afew times. My stats are not nearly as impressive as Dave's trip(good going Dave...wow), however still an enjoyable excursion! I was fortunate to get several life birds, 5 to be exact, including Brown-capped Rosy- Finch. We hiked up, to climb several high peaks in the Colorado Rockies and got great looks at these beautiful alpine birds. Now I've seen all 3 species, the Black Rosy-Finch in the Ruby Mountains, Nevada(on another trip with John Vooys), and of course the Grey-crowned Rosy-Finch all over our local peaks. Nice to see them all in their summer habitat.
I was hoping for Blue Grosbeak, which I saw in Utah and Nevada. Gray Vireo, common in arid Junipered areas , Virginia's Warbler and Sage Sparrow which has eluded me for awhile, to round out the five!
I was surprised not to see several species I had hoped for, like Grace's warbler, and Plumbeous Vireo. It is all a matter of finding the right micro niche the birds dwell in or getting lucky with migrants! We went south as far as Albuquerque New Mexico....found some great food, will that be with red or green salsa, make it Christmas!
Ed
I spent 3.5 weeks camping in SW States. Birding was not the primary activity, but of course my binocs were used afew times. My stats are not nearly as impressive as Dave's trip(good going Dave...wow), however still an enjoyable excursion! I was fortunate to get several life birds, 5 to be exact, including Brown-capped Rosy- Finch. We hiked up, to climb several high peaks in the Colorado Rockies and got great looks at these beautiful alpine birds. Now I've seen all 3 species, the Black Rosy-Finch in the Ruby Mountains, Nevada(on another trip with John Vooys), and of course the Grey-crowned Rosy-Finch all over our local peaks. Nice to see them all in their summer habitat.
I was hoping for Blue Grosbeak, which I saw in Utah and Nevada. Gray Vireo, common in arid Junipered areas , Virginia's Warbler and Sage Sparrow which has eluded me for awhile, to round out the five!
I was surprised not to see several species I had hoped for, like Grace's warbler, and Plumbeous Vireo. It is all a matter of finding the right micro niche the birds dwell in or getting lucky with migrants! We went south as far as Albuquerque New Mexico....found some great food, will that be with red or green salsa, make it Christmas!
Ed
. I have only seen Grey-crowned.