Tag: betasso preserve

Western Wood-Pewee. Photo by Jamie Simo.

We started our walk at Betasso Preserve under cloudy skies, which fortunately kept things a little cooler for our 3 mile trek along the Canyon Loop than they otherwise could’ve been this time of year. Betasso Preserve is ideal for hiking and birding on Wednesdays and Saturdays when the trail is closed to mountain bikers. The rest of the week, it’s strongly advised that you walk or jog the opposite direction from bikers so that you’re able to see each other coming. Right now, road work is progressing on Boulder Canyon Drive Monday through Thursday with delays and a full closure of the road between 10am and 2pm those days, so plan accordingly.

It being nearly mid-August and with migration ramping up, things were quieter than they’d been just two weeks earlier, but we were immediately greeted by Violet-green Swallows chattering and soaring over the parking lot. These swallows are ubiquitous in the foothills in spring and summer where they nest in old woodpecker holes in open forest. Western Wood-Pewees were everywhere as we walked, filling the hush with their querulous “pee-r” calls. This unassuming flycatcher is a greyish-brown with a slight peaked crown that tends to perch out in the open on the tops of conifers or on dead branches.

Male Red Crossbill. Photo by Ashley Wahlberg (Tubbs). https://flic.kr/p/qB8fhe

Particularly exciting were the small, roving flocks of Red Crossbills that seemed to follow us around the loop. These large finches are named for their distinctive crossed bills that help them easily lever open pine, fir, and spruce cones to get to the seeds inside. Males are a rosy red like a more decorative House Finch, while females are a greenish-yellow. While we at first were only able to hear the crossbills’ chirping, we finally got some great looks at a cooperative male perched atop a Ponderosa pine near the trail.

Townsend’s Solitaire. Photo by Jamie Simo.

In one small hollow a male Broad-tailed Hummingbird treated us to his his mating display. To impress females, male Broad-tails will climb high into the air and then dive, pulling up abruptly to form a rough J shape. No female was visible so perhaps he was just practicing for next year. Other highlights of the walk were a couple of Warbling Vireos and two silent Plumbeous Vireos (plumbeous referring to the lead grey color of the bird). Close to the end of the trail we also ran across a seemingly-young Townsend’s Solitaire, a member of the thrush family and cousin of the American Robin that can often be found defending territories rich in juniper berries in the winter.

In all, we heard or saw 26 taxa; pretty good for this time of year in the foothills!