It was cool and sunny along the South Platte River this afternoon, marred only by a moderate, upslope haze. The annual waterfowl surge is well underway with a wide variety of ducks on the river and floodplain lakes; buffleheads and green-winged teal were especially common today. Other water birds included pied-billed grebes, American coot, ring-billed gulls, great blue herons and a few killdeer; double crested cormorants, common here during the warmer months, have apparently departed for the south.
Though I didn't spot any bald eagles today, several red-tailed hawks and American kestrels represented the raptors. Flocks of Canada geese, entering their peak season along the Front Range, provided a background chorus while belted kingfishers chattered along the river. As one might expect on a mid day visit, mammals were seldom encountered, represented only by the fox squirrels and a lone muskrat.
Woodland birds were active on this cool afternoon; magpies, northern flickers, downy woodpeckers, blue jays, chickadees and song sparrows were most common. But the highlight of this visit was a Harris' sparrow, feeding in thickets at the edge of a lake. Though not rare along the Front Range, their presence is erratic and we naturalists always welcome the unexpected. After all, it's the unpredictability of nature that keeps most of us engaged.
