Natural History Journal

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!   Be sure to check out these posts about Colorado's Pawnee National Grassland and Montana's prairies as well! 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...

Picking a favorite spot in breathtaking Rocky Mountain National Park is incredibly difficult.  From alpine lakes surrounded by rugged peaks, to lush green mountain meadows dotted with wildflowers, beauty met us at every turn.  But one of our best birding experiences during our four days in the park last June took place way up on the alpine tundra, nearly 12,000 feet above sea level.   Alpine Tundra in Rocky Mountain National Park From a trailhead along famous Trail Ridge Road, we set out early one frigid morning across the tundra in search of two very special birds: White-tailed Ptarmigan and Brown-capped Rosy-finch.  Happily, we successfully found both species (though photos were only possible of the ptarmigan.) White-tailed Ptarmigan, round, chicken-sized birds of the tundra, are exquisitely designed for life in this harsh habitat.  Pure snowy white in the winter, save two shiny black eyes and small pointed bill, ptarmigan disappear into a desolate landsc...

This summer's birding adventures once again took us east ( though not nearly as far as last year! ), into the wide open spaces of Colorado, Wyoming and the southern fringe of Montana.  After several rather wet days in the Rocky Mountains back in mid-June, we dropped down into the rolling green grasslands of Weld County.  Storm across the Grasslands... During our summer visit, we were delighted to find an abundance of prairie wildflowers in full bloom across Pawnee National Grassland.   While we came for the birds, the real breath-taking experience turned out to be the incredible wildflower show! Signature bird species of Pawnee National Grassland include Lark Bunting, both Chestnut-collared and Thick-billed Longspurs, Burrowing Owl and Mountain Plover.  Some species were abundant... while others eluded us altogether.  Male Lark Bunting Lark Buntings were one of the most abundant species we encountered across the grasslands.  Their jumbled song filled t...