Subalpine Larkspur . The flowers are pretty, but the mass of flowers is the most impressive. We saw these along the trail as we first started out, it was very damp and humid, which felt strange for a hike in arid NM.
Posts
You can see the Shrubby Cinquefoil in the foreground of this shot of William's Lake. California Corn Lily, aka False Hellebore. These were growing next to the lake. I'm in the shot to show how tall they grow. These Mountain Bluebells threw me at first because of the pink color. They were all over the place. I found out when I came back that the pink color is quite common when the plant is immature. Other flowers seen on this hike: Colorado Columbines and Elephant's head.
+001.jpg)
Western Chorus Frog So this isn't exactly a bird, rather bird food. They make a great snack for the Great Blue Heron (see the previous post). We heard these while taking a walk, but it took us forever to actually see one. They are just over an inch long, but make a near deafening noise. I think we expected something larger. They were all in this little 5 by 10 ft swamp which was located about 200 yards from a large nesting colony of Blue Herons. I would have thought such a racket would attract the Herons, but apparently the frogs are alive and well.
Pied-Billed Grebe I'm trying to blog all the birds I take pics of this year (2007). So here's my first. Looks like a strange duck, but isn't. Its a grebe. Saw this on the South Platte while taking a walk with the family. Actually, I had taken what I thought was a short jaunt on another trail that ran nearer the river, expecting it to return to the main train where Colleen and the kids were. I was mistaken however and the trails didn't reunite for at least 3/4 of a mile. By the time I got back on the main trail and reunited with the family, it was time to return home. So much for the family outing!
American Goldfinch (male) Rather impressive looking bird. We used to get these all the time in Boston and now we see them pretty frequently at our neighbor's house. She has several feeders and atracts all sorts of birds. We finally put up some feeders as well and now we're starting to pull in a few birds as well.
And now for something completely different! American White Pelican. Having nearly exhausted my present supply of "blackbird" pics, I decided to go to the other side of the spectrum. I took these shots yesterday. I had seen some pelicans in a pond near Home Depot and went back to get some shots. As I approached the pelican flew to the other side of the lake. I meandered through residential streets trying to find a place where I could get a shot or two. Along the way I picked up several shots of other birds (including the yellow-headed blackbird posted yesterday). Finally I found a small trail down the center of an isthmus between Bowles reservoir and Marston Lake. Soon I found out that the isthmus was actually a small bird refuge. Birds were everywhere, (you'll see several over the coming days)! BUT they had the trail gated shut so as not to disturb nesting pelicans and herons. Well as I was cursing my luck to be so close yet so far away. This pelican flew across the lake...
Black with more Splash! Yellow-Headed Blackbird: Well as the name implies, the male (on top) is a very difficult bird to identify (if you can't recognize this one, just give up now.) I think it is a female below, though it could be an imature first year male as well, either way I know they are both yellow-headed blackbirds. The male is one of my favorite birds. I love the bright color.
Black with Splash! Red-Winged Blackbird: staying with the "blackbird" theme we have the red-winged blackbird (male on top, female on bottom) The male is obviously easy to recognize, though often when perching you can only see the yellow patch on the wing. The female looks somewhat like a meadowlark, I only identified it because it was "flirting" with the male redwing!
Common Raven. Rounding out the "black" bird theme, here's a raven. As in "quoth the raven, nevermore." Similar to crows, but I really have no idea how to tell the two apart, unless are standing next to each other which never happens. However, everywhere I have lived there really haven't been any crows, so the safer default around here is that its a raven
Common Grackle. I continue on with my "black" bird theme. You can distinguish the Grackel by its iridescent head (a rather blue to purple color) and the black-brown body along with the stout beak and the yellow eye. These photos show all of these features quite well. The grackle is slightly taller then a robin and has a relatively long tail as seen in both pics.
Double Crested Cormorant. I first saw one of these in Boston, but managed to get a shot of a couple here in Denver. Apparently they were migrating through so I got a little lucky. I almost got a shot of one that had just caught a fish and was preparing to eat it, but unfortunately my camera wasn't in focus and I missed the moment. Regardless, here are two great shots. Its sunning itself in the second shot! looks pretty cool to me!
Lesser Scaup... much like the Greater Scaup (which is why I misidentified it last time). The unique shape of the head (the sharper angle downward on the backside of the head) is what really sets the Lesser Scaup from the greater). Also the body is shorter and more compact as well. The female is shown here as well. Note the blue colored bill and the little black tip on the end. (I like the blue bill rather unique I think).
