Black Canyon Field Club - June 26 and 27 2015

Birding Hotchkiss Wetlands with Black Canyon Audubon Society

Time and place: Friday June 26th and Saturday June 27th - 8:30 am. Kevin & Jackie Parks Conservation Easement - Near Campbell Rd - Hotchkiss, CO 81419.

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BCRLT and the BC Audubon are teaming up once again for back-to-back days of birding the Parks conservation wetlands outside Hotchkiss. If you're new to birding, seasoned birders from the Audubon will lead us in spotting and identifying the species we come across. Staff from the Black Canyon Regional Land Trust will talk about the history of the property - which has been in the Parks family for a century - and about the unique role this conservation property plays for the area's local ecology. Birders of all ages and experience levels welcome!

Bring your usual walking supplies, binoculars if you have them, snacks, water and sunscreen. Directions and parking info will be emailed to those who sign up. This field trip will be capped at 12 people per day, so sign up quickly!

 Parks Conservation Easement in Fall

Here are a few paragraphs from the property's conservation assessment that detail the birds we just might encounter on our field trip, courtesy of Rare Earth Science, LLC:

Migratory songbirds find good breeding habitat in the property’s riparian woodlands, shrub wetlands, and emergent wetlands, including red-winged blackbird, a variety of swallows, bullock’s oriole, yellow warbler, northern flicker, Lewis’ woodpecker, house wren, western kingbird, western wood-pewee, song sparrow, broad-tailed hummingbird, warbling vireo, and blue grosbeak.

Several species of waterbirds find ideal nesting and migratory habitat in the property’s wetlands and around the ponds, including mallard, green-winged teal, cinnamon teal, blue-winged teal, common merganser, northern pintail, gadwall, American coot, Canada goose,common snipe, sora, American bittern, and belted kingfisher. A small great blue heron rookery is active on the property.

Raptors such as golden eagle, red-tailed hawk, northern harrier, American kestrel, great-horned owl, northern pygmy owl, long-eared owl, and western screech-owl may find suitable nesting habitat on the property and are expected to be fairly common to uncommon (year-round or seasonally) in the area and across the property as they hunt for abundant small prey.