Wyoming Birds

Lions Park Thursday

Fri, 25 May 2012 08:16:42 -0500

Highlights of a brief walk included two male Western Tanagers and a Swainson's Thrush.

Chuck Seniawski
Cheyenne

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May 15 Bird-a-thon

Thu, 24 May 2012 15:23:09 -0500

On May 15, Chris Michelson led Ann Hines, Sophie Bogart, and me
(Stacey Scott) on a Bird-a-thon to support the Audubon Center at
Garden Creek. When we first set the date, we had visions of lots of
migrants and a really good total. Unfortunately, many species hadn't
shown up yet.

Cheyenne Lion's Park Today

Wed, 23 May 2012 18:19:51 -0500

One Cheyenne observer reported a Wild Turkey at Lion's Park yesterday and this morning. I went to see if I could find the bird; no luck with that, but nice Yellow Warbler, Song Sparrow and Hammond's Flycatcher sightings, along with the usual suspects.

Chuck Seniawski
Cheyenne

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North of Cheyenne

Wed, 23 May 2012 18:15:32 -0500

Checked out route for the "Cheyenne" Breeding Bird Survey on Tuesday. Good selection of prairie birds in this predominately rolling short grass habitat which is intersected by two small creeks along the course of the route.

Common Raven
Robin
Horned Lark
Lark Bunting
Starling
Western Meadowlark
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Chestnut-collared Longspur
Prairie Falcon
Swainson's Hawk
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Kingbird
Western Kingbird
Mourning Dove
Hosue Sparrow
Vesper

Cat Creek

Wed, 23 May 2012 17:37:06 -0500

Results from a bird trip to Cat Creek, Sheridan, Wyo.

from Jackie Canterbury

Mallard1

Ring-necked Pheasant2

Walked along a grouse lek

Wild Turkey2

Bald Eagle2

Red-tailed Hawk1

Killdeer1

Eastern Screech-Owl1

Northern Flicker2

Say's Phoebe4

Western Kingbird4

Eastern Kingbird4

Warbling Vireo2

Black-billed Magpie6

Cliff Swallow2

Black-capped Chickadee2

Rock Wren1

American Robin1

Brown Thrasher2

European Starling6

Yellow Warbler5

Yellow-breasted Chat1

Spotted Towhee6

Chipping Sparrow3

Vesper Sparrow2

Lark Sparrow4

Lark Bunting1

Black-headed Grosbeak2

Lazuli Bunting2

Red-winged Blackbird10

Western Meadowlark8

Brown-headed Cowbird4

Bullock's Oriole2

American Goldfinch4

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Black-headed Grosbeak

Wed, 23 May 2012 17:29:35 -0500

Male Black-headed Grosbeak, first seen on Monday, has been around the yard
more often today. Still no sign of any orioles; a year ago, we had 6
Bullocks and one Baltimore.

Also, last evening, I noticed an adult Black-crowned Night-Heron around the
pond in LaBonte Park.

Don Jones
Laramie

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FOY birds Green River backyard

Wed, 23 May 2012 17:10:28 -0500

Yesterday:
1 male Lazuli Bunting, only 1 at a time, but we saw at least two
different individuals

1 male Western Tanager (in his full Cleveland!) later had a visit from a
different paler male.

This afternoon two Black-headed Grosbeak males visited at the same time.
paula

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Casper area

Wed, 23 May 2012 16:01:56 -0500

Greetings birders
The overnight rain did produce a few new birds in the Casper area. At
EKW this morning the highlight of the morning was an eastern phoebe. For
the first time this year all 6 species of swallow were over the river at

FW: 2012 Cheyenne Big Day Bird Count Results

Tue, 22 May 2012 17:44:29 -0500

Wyobirders,

Nine people from Casper and 11 from Cheyenne braved the chilly, wet weather
to conduct the 2012 version of the Cheyenne-High Plains Audubon Society Big
Day Count on May 19. 104 species were observed. Even given the weather,
the number of species seemed low. Based on my experience there

Snowy owl Keyhole, and mush creek rd Upton.Wy.

Tue, 22 May 2012 17:29:02 -0500

On Sunday we went to Mush Creek Rd out of Upton to look for the Mt.
Povera nd McCrown's Longspurs which we did not find. there is a lot of
construction at the Mt. Plover site. We did find a Burrowing Owl a the
large Prairie Dog town

Fremont County "Birdathon"

Mon, 21 May 2012 13:54:15 -0500

On Saturday (5/19/12), we set out from Riverton at 4:45 in the morning for
our annual fundraiser benefitting Audubon Wyoming.

Out at the campground in the head of Wind River Canyon, the day dawned
cold, windy, and foggy. Nevertheless, we spotted a Peregrine Falcon and
watched it fly to a nest on the west

Summer tanager

Sun, 20 May 2012 07:49:22 -0500

A immature sumer tanager was in my neighbor's yard on Saturday. A
beauty!
Shay Howlin
Laramie

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Gillette birds, and Keyhole Reservor

Sat, 19 May 2012 16:28:12 -0500

Thursday was a great day for Keyhole, not too hot and no wind. We saw
39 species. New was Crackling goose, Clark's Grebes, Black-Bellied
Plover, Long-billed Dowitcher,Red-necked Phalarope, Black Tern,. Then
we went to Gillette and at Burlington we saw with in 15 min. Hermit
Thrush, N.

Eurasian Collared Doves

Sat, 19 May 2012 11:19:19 -0500

We have our first pair of Eurasian Collared Doves on Copper Mountain.
A Broad-tailed hummingbird graced our feeders for 3 days but we didn't see any yesterday or today. Must have migrated, or headed to a warmer place.
Brown-headed Cowbirds are here in great numbers.

Elaine Baumann
Copper Mountain - Fremont County, Wyoming

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Snowy Owl' Keyhole, Wy.

Fri, 18 May 2012 20:48:09 -0500

Today we again found the Snowy Owl found Tues at Keyhole. This time it
was in the same area we found a Snowy Owl this winter. Jean, Sundance,
Wy.

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Thermopolis this week

Thu, 17 May 2012 17:11:54 -0500

T2JzZXJ2ZWQgYSBCbGFjay1jcm93bmVkIE5pZ2h0LUhlcm9uLCBFYXN0ZXJuIEtpbmdiaXJkLCBZ
ZWxsb3cgV2FyYmxlciwgR3JheSBDYXRiaXJkLCBhbmQgQnVsbG9jaydzIE9yaW9sZSBhbG9uZyB0
aGUgQmlnaG9ybiBSaXZlci4gCgpTZXRoIENoYW1iZXJsYWluLCBUaGVybW9wb2xpcwoKCgoNCg0K
LSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gLSAt
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ZiB5b3UgaGF2ZSBhbnkgcHJvYmxlbXMsIHF1ZXN0aW9ucywgZXRjLi4uICBlLW1haWwgd2lsbGNv
cm5lbGxAb25ld2VzdC5uZXQNCg0K

Cheyenne Back Yard

Thu, 17 May 2012 12:17:29 -0500

Male Rose-breasted Grosbeak in the back yard this morning.

Chuck Seniawski
Cheyenne

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Re: Brown Thrasher

Thu, 17 May 2012 06:46:51 -0500

Correction, EASTERN Washakie County. West slope of the Bighorns.

CJ

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Brown Thrasher

Wed, 16 May 2012 18:17:17 -0500

Got looks at a silent Brown Thrasher today along Canyon Creek in western Washakie County. Also heard in the area: Virginia's Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Gray Flycatcher, Lazuli Bunting, House Wren.

Forgot to mention in my last post, also heard Black-headed Grosbeak and Gray Catbird along the

Re: Summer Tanager

Wed, 16 May 2012 15:49:04 -0500

Hi Barb I read with interest of your sighting of the summer tanager. I had one in my yard in 2010. It stayed for about one week and gave me many photos. It too was a mottled colored bird. The first photos are dated May 19th and the last one

Birding events in Laramie/Cheyenne this weekend, May 19 and 20

Wed, 16 May 2012 10:14:44 -0500

SATURDAY, May 19 -- Celebrate International Migratory Bird Day at Optimist Park with Laramie Audubon and Laramie Raptor Refuge. Optimist Park is located on the south side of Garfield Street across from C&A Feed Store, between Cedar and Snowy Range Road. Bird Walks will be led by Julie Hart at

Keyhole, Snowy Owl

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:29:00 -0500

Keyhole birds for today were White Pelicans, N. Harrier, L. Yellowlegs,
Wilson's Phalarope. C. Tern 2, Forsters tern 4, SNOWY OWL. Same one seen
in the winter? What a surprise! 1.3 miles from the beginning of the
bridge over Bell fourche River on Hwy 14 going N.

Bird Banter for May 2012: Peregrines

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:54:00 -0500

This edition of Bird Banter, about the Peregrine Falcon, was published May
13, 2012, in the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. Please give notice to the author,
(email address filtered), before reproducing it in virtual or hard copy format.
Thanks.

Published headline: Peregrines back with a little help from friends

Peregrine falcon flies again, right over

SE Bighorn Basin

Mon, 14 May 2012 21:25:21 -0500

After a 10 day vacation in the midwest and trying to remember 7 warbler songs at once, it was nice to return home and see what birds arrived in our absence: On the Bighorn River between Worland and Thermop, Bullock's Oriole, Western Kingbird, Yellow Warbler and Lark Sparrow. Near Ten

May 14, part II: FE Warren Air Force Base

Mon, 14 May 2012 20:47:19 -0500

Wyoming Hereford Ranch in the morning, the Air Force base in the afternoon. At the base:

Canada Goose
Spotted Sandpiper
Cinnamon Teal
Green-winged Teal
Rock Pigeon
Red-winged Blackbird
Swainson's Hawk
Killdeer
Mallard
House Finch
Mourning Dove
European Starling
American Robin
Yellow Warbler
Western Meadowlark
Brown-headed Cowbird
Black-billed Magpie
American Goldfinch
Common Grackle
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Red-tailed Hawk
Northern Shoveller
Gadwall
Wilson's Phalarope
Belted Kingfisher
Barn Swallow
House Sparrow
Great-tailed Grackle
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Turkey Vulture
Avocet
Kestrel
Cedar Waxwing
Eurasian Collared Dove

Chuck Seniawski
Cheyenne

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May 14, part I: Wyoming Hereford Ranch

Mon, 14 May 2012 20:39:28 -0500

Beautiful day for a drive, and birding.

At WHR Reservoir #1:

Canada Goose
Mallard
Gadwall
Northern Shoveller
Northern Pintail
Ruddy Duck
Bufflehead
Blue-winged Teal
American Wigeon
Western Grebe (many)
Eared Grebe
Great Blue Heron
Avocet
Spotted Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Killdeer
Wilson's Phalarope
Coot
White Pelican
Swainson's Hawk
Mourning Dove
Barn Swallow
Western Meadowlark
Red-winged Blackbird

Between the WHR #1 and the ranch housing area:

Eastern Kingbird
Western Kingbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Red-winged Blackbird
Yellow Warbler
Wilson's Snipe
Cinnamon Teal
Lincoln's Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Clay-colored Sparrow
Chipping

Re: FOY Green River

Mon, 14 May 2012 14:44:06 -0500

Paula, we have an adult male Rose-breasted Grosbeak on our feeders. He is accompanied by a male Black-headed Grosbeak; several Cassin's Finches, Red-winged Blackbirds, Brown-headed Cowbirds; plus hoards of House Finches and House Sparrows.

Dave Mead
Green River

Date: Sun, 13 May 2012 11:22:09 -0600
From: sol <(email address filtered)>
Subject: FOY Green

Cody lakes

Sun, 13 May 2012 23:37:50 -0500

The lakes on the edge of Cody had a wide variety of species:
Northern Shoveler, Mallard, Blue-winged Teal, Green-winged Teal, Lesser
Scaup, Gadwall, American Coot, Red-necked Phalarope, Wilson's Phalarope,
Marbled Godwit, American Avocet, Yellow-headed Blackbird, and Caspian Tern.

Seth Chamberlain (Thermopolis)

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Southeastern Wyoming Birds

Sun, 13 May 2012 21:55:24 -0500

Dad and I took a trip around southeastern Wyo today, hoping for some good
spring migrants.

In the fog at the Hereford Ranch in Cheyenne, there were many FOY migrants,
most of which have already been reported in the last week. Highlights were
at least two Least Flycatchers calling, more than 20 Swainson's Thrushes,

Cheyenne Back Yard

Sun, 13 May 2012 21:38:39 -0500

In addition to an influx of American Goldfinches over the past few days, today we had a First-of-year Olive-sided Flycatcher and a flyover just a few mintues ago by a Long-billed Curlew.

Chuck Seniawski
Cheyenne

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FOY Green River

Sun, 13 May 2012 12:22:09 -0500

Male Black-headed Grosbeak

Also seeing full adult plumage male Bullock's Orioles more often, never
more than two at one time though, and have not seen a female or a
juvenile male yet.

And of concern (to me anyway) we have only seen ONE female Cassin's
finch 2-3 weeks ago. None since. By

New Birds from the south

Sun, 13 May 2012 08:54:02 -0500

Yesterday west of Riverton were
Townsends solitaires
Black-headed Grosbeak male 4:10 pm
No. Waterthrush
Lazuli Buntings.. 2:49 pm

Bob Hargis
Riverton

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Sat, 12 May 2012 19:30:25 -0500

FOY male Lazuli Bunting in the yard this evening.

Don Jones
Laramie

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Fw: Torrington backyard

Fri, 11 May 2012 18:05:21 -0500

From: Jeanna Fitz
Sent: Friday, May 11, 2012 1:36 PM
To: (email address filtered)
Subject: Torrington backyard

Hello Birders,

Just this morning I saw my FOY female Bullocks Oriole feeding from my Hummingbird feeder. They seem to be about 5 days ahead of schedule compared to 2011 and 2010.

Happy Birding!

Claylene Fitz
Torrington,

the strangest bird ...

Fri, 11 May 2012 15:14:49 -0500

Barb (and all the rest of you who seem actually to be getting outside):

Most excellent bird. I have seen one (two?) over the years in Laramie, and
it is one of the relatively few birds that I can identify for non-birders,
over the phone, before they finish their sentence: "I saw the

Torrington backyard

Fri, 11 May 2012 14:36:53 -0500

Hello Birders,

Just this morning I saw my FOY female Bullocks Oriole feeding from my Hummingbird feeder. They seem to be about 5 days ahead of schedule compared to 2011 and 2010.

Happy Birding!

Claylene Fitz
Torrington, WY

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Summer Tanager

Fri, 11 May 2012 13:11:34 -0500

Dear Wyobirders,

I just saw the strangest bird in our backyard. For size and
shape, I thought it might be a Western Tanager. The body was yellow-green
with red-orange markings. The red-orange markings seemed a bit random,
forehead,

Seagulls

Thu, 10 May 2012 21:01:00 -0500

What is going on with all the seagulls?
I look out my window and that's all I see. Dozens of them, daily.
I feel like I'm at the beach.

--
Harry Martin
14 miles west of Casper, WY

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Regarding Blue-gray gnatcatchers and brown thrashers in Laramie

Thu, 10 May 2012 19:30:08 -0500

I was interested in hearing about the blue-gray gnatcatcher and brown thrasher in Laramie and the paucity of observations in the area. Thought it was worth noting that I saw a bluegray gnatcatcher in fall of 1999 on Second Street in north Laramie. I also saw a brown thrasher in my

West of Riverton

Thu, 10 May 2012 15:52:59 -0500

Of note today between Riverton house and Ocean Lake

No. Waterthrushes.. several below the house bobbing along the Wind River
Lazuli bunting at seed (2:49 pm today)
Macgillivray's warb.. along river

At Ocean Lake area
Wilson's warbler
Many Yellow rumped warbs ( Myrtle and Audubon's form)
Cinnamon teal among other ducks
Least and Semi-plamated sandpipers
Clark's Grebe

Sage thrashers, Vesper

Daniel WY

Wed, 09 May 2012 20:58:16 -0500

On May 8, I observed a western kingbird (FOY) in some cottonwoods near Cottonwood Creek south of Daniel, WY.

On a pond near Pinedale, there was a good assortment of waterfowl and other birds:

Trumpeter Swan pair
Wilson's phalaropes 15
Eared grebe 3
Northern Shoveler 6
Ruddy Duck

Jackson South Park WMA

Wed, 09 May 2012 20:52:41 -0500

This morning we did a short survey in the WGFD South Park WMA along the road on the south end of the unit along the Snake River. We observed a number of yellow-rumped warblers (FOY for me) singing and foraging, many singing song sparrows, spotted sandpiper FOY, many American

Re: Laramie Area Birds

Wed, 09 May 2012 17:48:17 -0500

Don, I was in Laramie for a meeting this morning and took a bike ride along
the greenway about noon and saw a Kingfisher.

Pete Arnold
Cheyenne

On Wed, May 9, 2012 at 2:35 PM, Donald Jones <(email address filtered)>wrote:

> A lunchtime walk along the Laramie Greenbelt and River turned up virtually
> no migrants.

Cheyenne and North Crow Reservoir

Wed, 09 May 2012 17:07:47 -0500

Dear Wyobirds,

Up at North Crow Reservoir, west of Cheyenne, this morning
we saw two families of Canada geese, my FOY Broad-tailed Hummingbird and a
Golden Eagle close enough to see the head shining gold.

Laramie Area Birds

Wed, 09 May 2012 15:35:43 -0500

A lunchtime walk along the Laramie Greenbelt and River turned up virtually
no migrants. However, I was somewhat surprised to find a Brown Thrasher,
and very surprised to find a single Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. I believe that
this is the first time I have seen either of these species around Laramie,
and Gnatcatcher seems somewhat

palm warbler

Wed, 09 May 2012 15:04:19 -0500

Greetings birders
My walk at EKW this morning was mostly uneventful. There was one small
group of warblers which contained yellow warbler and yellow-rumped warbler
along with MacGillivray's warbler and two palm warblers of the western
subspecies. Good birding to all.
Chris Michelson
Casper, WY

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Re: hummers in Cheyenne or Casper?

Tue, 08 May 2012 16:39:21 -0500

Many thanks to those how have replied to my query on and off list. I had previously considered the eastern halves of Wyoming and Colorado to be a hummer desert, but this seems not to be the case at all! I am happy to hear that both cities have the

Re: hummers in Cheyenne or Casper?

Tue, 08 May 2012 12:29:44 -0500

Will,

I've heard one hummer so far here in Casper at the Wyoming Audubon
Center at Garden Creek. Didn't have to see it to know.

Also, Bluebirds have built a nest in one of our nesting boxes.

--
Harry Martin
Casper, WY
14 miles west of Casper

On 5/8/2012 1:05 AM, (email address filtered) wrote:
>

hummers in Cheyenne or Casper?

Tue, 08 May 2012 02:05:55 -0500

From the map i have it looks like Cheyenne and Casper might just be on the eastern edge of the summer range for the Broad-tailed Hummingbird. I've also been reading that the range of the Black-chinned may be getting close to these cities. So are either of these hummers summer

weekend trip to Jackson

Mon, 07 May 2012 23:12:38 -0500

On a weekend trip from Casper to snowy Jackson we saw: crow, raven, red
wing black bird, grackle, starling, bb magpie, red tailed hawk,
golden eagle, peregrine falcon, kestral, nesting ospreys, turkey vulture,
robin, brewers sparrow,meadow lark,