Birds of the Rocky Mountains

Last summer, Eric and I spent a couple of weeks exploring the Rocky Mountains, from Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park, north into Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.  While we dealt with quite a bit of rain and cold weather during our mid-June visit, the birds were abundant and beautiful!  

Below are a few of my favorite bird photos from the trip.

Mountain Bluebird, male, looking his best in the morning sunlight. (West Thumb, Yellowstone NP)


The same Mountain Bluebird, fending off a Tree Swallow who was competing with him for a nest cavity!



The offending Tree Swallow, looking rather sure of himself, don't you think?


Lincoln's Sparrow, singing away.  One of my favorite sparrows!  (Sprague Lake, Rocky Mountain NP) 


American Robin, carrying food to its young.  Check out the prettily-patterned undertail coverts on this bird! (Cub Lake trail, Rocky Mountain NP)


Green-tailed Towhee, looking dapper. (Glacier Basin campground, Rocky Mountain NP)


Sweet-looking female Cassin's Finch. (Trail from Glacier Basin to Sprague Lake, Rocky Mountain NP)


Dark-eyed Junco, Pink-sided race.  Juncos' coloration varies over their range; in California, we have the black-headed Oregon race, while in Rocky Mountain NP, we saw the "Gray Headed" race.  (Le Hardy Rapids trail, Yellowstone NP)



Harlequin Duck. (Le Hardy Rapids, Yellowstone NP)
Easily the coolest ducks in North America.  These guys nap on wave-washed rocks in the middle of raging white-water rivers and dive for their food in the rapids.  The original white-water rafters.


Seriously cool ducks!  I just love them.



A rather confiding male Western Tanager.  (Signal Mountain, Grand Teton NP)



Same guy, obligingly turned for a better angle.



Yellow-rumped Warbler, male in fresh breeding plumage! (Heron Pond trail, Grand Teton NP)



Red Crossbill, female.  Check out that crazy bill, exquisitely designed to pry seeds from pine cones.  (Colter Bay, Grand Teton NP)


My favorite way to get to know the birds in an area is to tent camp, listening for owls and nightjars at dusk, falling asleep to the weird and wonderful nighttime sounds, and waking in the early, pre-dawn hours to the most breathtaking of all symphonies, the dawn chorus.  Campgrounds are also usually excellent places to find a long list of birds, attracted to the artificially-created edge habitat and (unfortunately) crumbs and garbage humans leave behind.

While we camped our way up through the Rockies, the best birding spots I found in each park were...

In Rocky Mountain National Park: Sprague Lake (including the trail from the lake to Glacier Basin campground) and the Cub Lake trailhead area and trail.  

In Yellowstone National Park: The Pelican Creek nature trail (a short drive from the Bridge Bay campground), as well as the LeHardy Rapids area.

In Grand Teton National Park: The Moose Lake trail (near the Jenny Lake campground), Heron Pond trail (not far from the Colter Bay campground), the Oxbow Bend area, and the Gros Ventre campground.

And in case you missed it, be sure to check out this post on birding the alpine tundra in Rocky Mountain National Park!

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