This just felt like a day when something interesting could show up around Pueblo. As it turned out, I saw several interesting things, but somehow the day wasn’t as satisfying as it should have been.
I was numb with cold in the morning as I scoped the gravel pit for the Surf Scoter that’s been seen there recently. I finally found it way on the other side, but at the cost of a lot of pain in the hand that was holding the scope when I warmed it up in the car later. The scoter dove frequently, and was rather hard to keep track of, but I got several decent views.
As I was warming up and about to leave, an old guy wandered up to my car window. He asked if I’d seen the roadrunner that ran up and down the path. I said no, and I must not have seemed duly impressed, because then he told me about a “really big coyote” that had been seen in the area too. He still hadn’t impressed me, I guess, because next he said there was a bear around “that they’ve been trying to catch.” And then, without stopping to breathe, he said, “and a mountain lion by that metal shed over there.” I told him what I always tell people who say things like this to me — “I’ll keep my eyes open.” I usually do when I’m out birding, and today was no exception. I didn’t see any of the creatures he’s mentioned.
When feeling returned to my hand, I walked my usual loop along the Arkansas River. Almost immediately, I found a Swamp Sparrow (my 306th Colorado bird) and a very tame Curve-billed thrasher.
I walked around the gravel pit looking for the scoter again. I thought I’d found it rather close to shore, but a closer look proved the duck I was looking at was a Long-tailed Duck. I’ve seen them in Colorado before, but this is the first time I’ve located one myself.
I also spotted a Savannah Sparrow, which my app says is rare for this time of year. On the day, I walked 8 miles and saw 41 species.