January always brings out birders beginning a new year’s list, and January 2011 was no exception. The most exciting bird was a Tufted Duck seen at Golden Ponds in Longmont on the 17th. This is only the second sighting of Tufted Duck reported since the wildlife inventory began in 1979. The last sighting was at Walden Ponds in 1997. Thanks to modern technology several observers managed to add this unusual species to their county lists although it was only seen for the one day. Valmont Reservoir, being one of the few open reservoirs due to the heated water from the Valmont cooling plant, is always one of the more rewarding areas to bird in January. The annual January field trip there had well over two hundred participants and fifty eight bird species. The Tundra Swan continued to linger at the reservoir all month. A Black Scoter was seen at Valmont on the 1st. and a Ruddy Duck on the field trip. All five of our commonest grebe species were reported: Pied-billed, Horned, Eared, Western and Clark’s Grebes. By far the most prevalent of these were the Pied-billed Grebes. Gulls numbering in the thousands left the reservoir each morning and came back in the evening rewarding the patient observer; Mew Gull and Great Black-backed Gull were some of the more unusual gulls.

A Golden-crowned Sparrow continued at the Teller Lakes Farm trailhead, and a Varied Thrush was reported in Longmont. An Orange-crowned Warbler was seen several times over the first half of the month at our South Boulder feeder; this is the first report that we have had of this species in the middle of winter. It is to be hoped that the poor bird did not expire from the cold. A Harris’ Sparrow was also a regular visitor throughout the month at the same feeder. American Pipit was one of the more unusual land birds reported on the Valmont field trip. Four Eastern Bluebirds and a Hermit Thrush were reported in the White Rocks area. A Lesser Goldfinch was reported in the foothills, and both Gray Catbird and Swamp Sparrow at Waneka Lake in Lafayette. Altogether 103 bird species were reported for January which is a very respectable total. TOP
Birds