On this cool, sunny morning along the Colorado Front Range, I visited South Platte Park. There I encountered a good variety of waterfowl, including the first common goldeneye of the season; the attractive male was fishing by himself on the clear waters of Eaglewatch Lake. I was also fortunate to observe a lone osprey, perhaps the last one I will see at the Park this year.
Common goldeneyes breed across Alaska and Canada and winter primarily in coastal areas of the Pacific Northwest, the Canadian Maritimes, New England and the mid Atlantic Region. Though less common, others winter on lakes across most of the U.S. and at least a few dozen spend the colder months at South Platte Park, feasting on a wide variety of aquatic creatures, from invertebrates to crustaceans and small fish.
Ospreys, on the other hand, are summer residents here and a pair have been nesting at the Park in recent years. More common along the North American coasts, in the Pacific Northwest and in the Great Lakes Region, these "fish hawks" head for southern shores during the colder months and I suspect that this morning's visitor was on his way.
Common goldeneyes breed across Alaska and Canada and winter primarily in coastal areas of the Pacific Northwest, the Canadian Maritimes, New England and the mid Atlantic Region. Though less common, others winter on lakes across most of the U.S. and at least a few dozen spend the colder months at South Platte Park, feasting on a wide variety of aquatic creatures, from invertebrates to crustaceans and small fish.
Ospreys, on the other hand, are summer residents here and a pair have been nesting at the Park in recent years. More common along the North American coasts, in the Pacific Northwest and in the Great Lakes Region, these "fish hawks" head for southern shores during the colder months and I suspect that this morning's visitor was on his way.
