Had the day off yesterday-- my admin team decided at some point that having students the day after Halloween wasn't terribly productive, or fun perhaps. Good for them; good for me.
A friend stopped by to plan out a lighting project with us; we lingered in the driveway talking partners and kids and challenges at work and the nastiness of people at times and... good to catch up but i was also itchy to get out birding.
Kept it close: Janx (the cattle dog) and I drove a few miles east to the boat launch of Bear Creek Lake. Yeah, Bear Creek Lake. Who decided to put two general names for different bodies of water into one name? But yes-- there's a park and a lake that get that name...
Same group of sparrows darting around just south of the boat launch-- American Tree Sparrow. Always near that one spot. A couple of Canadian Geese, and a big flock of gulls. I walked around to have a closer look where the creek comes into the lake: yup, Ring Billed Gulls.
But otherwise... the place was kinda empty. In the spring/summer there are plenty of songbirds in the cottonwoods on the west 1/4 mile I'd just walked, and usually at least one Great Blue, a kingfisher, some Cormorants out in the water, an occasional Pelican. But close to nothing happening now.
Two miles away to the southeast Harriman Lake has probably 8-12 different species of ducks and waterfowl that have come in for the winter, or at least for a stopover. What's the difference in preference? Bear Creek Lake has the creek emptying into it, as well as more riparian area to the west. Would almost seem the better choice.
I walked back an along the north shore. There'd been a hawk in one of the dead trees on the shore, but a group of kids coming around had sent him off. Couldn't find him.
One group of kids regarded me from the picnic tables as I passed-- I was friendly and upbeat with them, so there was a subtle change from general suspicion of old guys with binoculars to friendly: "Enjoy your walk, mister" one of them called after we as I continued.
I passed the teacher and three more of the kids, then five minutes later ran into another three. They seemed unsure. "Yeah, we're looking for our group," one told me. I sent them onwards, after the others, then called back to them when I heard a coyote start up across the water on the south shore. They stopped short, unsure if I was joking, then a little nervous. Coyote won't do nothing, I said, he's just talking. Don't worry bout him. They continued on.
I turned left near the dam and headed up towards the road. The park was empty and I could just walk back that way instead of back through the mud. There's a rocket launch area there where the rocket nerds congregate on Sundays and blast off their creations. Nobody there today, but some movement between the three pines on an otherwise treeless hill.
First, a Say's Phoebe, alone in the winter light, top of one pine. Nice-- haven't seen one of them in awhile, and I wasn't sure they stuck around this late either. Yeah, just check the map-- this guy is probably headed to Mexico in the next week, if not today...
Then behind me a pair circled-- interrupted by my movement but not going too far away: Mountain Bluebirds! Map says they are year-rounders, though I haven't seen 'em all summer, and I haven't seen them in the deep winter, either. Nice catch, I think. They could be headed to points a bit further south.
Walked back to the car, drove to the nature center, checked out the feeders. Chatted up the naturalist there that knew her birds pretty well. Told be about a mountain lion car-kill a few weeks back on Morrison Road. Bummer.
Back to the house for lunch...
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