Laramie had a successful Christmas Bird Count on Saturday, with a record number of birders braving the wind and cold or loyally watching their feeders. Lists were compiled by our organizer, Shay Howlin, during a Zoom meeting, which, although fun, was no match for the potluck held during previous years.
 |
| Pine Grosbeaks (photo courtesy of Chris Dewey) |
American Kestrel
Merlin
Great Horned Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Shrike
Steller's Jay
Clark's Nutcracker
Horned Lark
 |
| Female Red-flanked Bluetail, Laramie, November 2019 (photo courtesy of Laurel Armstrong) |
The weather forecast for Saturday (Halloween!) looks good and the City has plowed the Greenbelt, where the Laramie Audubon Society will hold our final Fall field trip of 2020. We will start from the Optimist Park parking lot (West Garfield Street) at 8 a.m. If you are late, head south on the path, as we will probably start out in that direction.
The Greenbelt is a flat, paved, accessible pathway and therefore should be suitable for all birders, including families with young children and those who prefer walking on relatively uniform surfaces.
Numerous species of ducks have been sighted along the Greenbelt in the past few days, including Common Merganser, Hooded Merganser, Green-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, Gadwall, and American Widgeon. Other reported species include Greater Yellowlegs, Wilson's Snipe, Pied-billed Grebe, various sparrows (Lincoln's, White-crowned, White-throated, and Song), and many others.
We expect to spend several hours birding, but attendees are free to leave at any time. Please remember to bring plenty of warm clothing, binoculars/scope (if available), sun protection, water, snacks, etc. And your friends are always welcome, too!
Covid-19 Considerations: Attendees at events (including field trips) are required to wear masks and to remain mindful of social distancing. We will not be organizing carpools for the foreseeable future. PLEASE REGISTER BY EMAILING US AT Laramie.Audubon@gmail.com (this is to allow for contact tracing if necessary and to provide us with time to plan in the case of a potential huge turnout)!
Membership Reminder: LAS memberships expired on September 30th. If you haven't already, please take a moment to renew your membership either via the link to the right or via U.S. Mail (or, if you are receiving this post via email, using this link: http://laramieaudubon.blogspot.com/p/membership.html). Thank you for your ongoing support!
Saturday afternoon, we will host our October "Evening Program" featuring Martin Grenier (Ducks Unlimited Manager of Conservation Programs in Wyoming and Colorado). Martin will fill us in on the wetlands enhancement project completed at Laramie's Monolith Ranch. We will meet at the ranch and walk in approximately one-quarter mile along a fairly flat two-track road to the restored site. After Martin's presentation there will be the option to spend a little time birding along the edge of the wetlands, so bring binoculars if you have them! Please note that this area is closed to public access - the Laramie Audubon Society and Ducks Unlimited received permission to visit for this event only. Directions will be emailed to those who register for the event.
If you plan to attend either event, please register by sending an email to laramie.audubon@gmail.com and indicating which event(s) you plan to attend.
COVID-19 Considerations: Attendees are required to wear masks for the duration of each trip/event and to practice social distancing. We are not arranging carpools for the foreseeable future.
Directions to Hutton Lake NWR: Head south from Laramie on 3rd Street/ US-287, turn right onto County Road 22 (as if entering the cement plant), then turn left onto Sand Creek Road (parallel to railroad tracks - many people have missed this turn and mistakenly entered the cement plant parking lot). Stay on Sand Creek Road for about 8 miles, then turn right at the National Wildlife Refuge sign. Meet at the parking area just inside the fence, adjacent to the Refuge's information board. If you are early or late, look for us near the observation deck at the far end of the Refuge.
Please pre-register by emailing us at laramie.audubon@gmail.com and bring/wear your mask as well as the usual water, sun protection, snacks, and birding supplies. New policy: LAS will only share spotting scopes that are equipped with camera viewers; we are currently uncertain whether we will have any such scopes at this field trip.
Directions to Hutton Lake National Wildlife Refuge: If coming from Laramie, head south on 3rd Street/ US-287, turn right onto County Road 22 (toward the cement plant), then turn left onto Sand Creek Road (parallel to railroad tracks - many people have missed this turn and mistakenly entered the cement plant parking lot). Stay on Sand Creek Road for about 8 miles, then turn right at the National Wildlife Refuge sign. Meet at the parking area just inside the fence, adjacent to the Refuge's information board.
(Photo of American Avocets courtesy of LAS member Liz Young)
Please see the Events page of this blog for Laramie Audubon's Fall 2020 schedule. In consideration of Covid-19, we've made some changes to our typical protocols. Please be sure to wear a mask and be mindful regarding social distancing at all LAS events. Due to potential risks associated with carpools, our Fall schedule focuses on birding spots within or close to Laramie. In addition, we are REQUIRING people to pre-register for field trips by emailing us at laramie.audubon@gmail.com so that we can plan for the anticipated group size. Depending on the group sizes at our initial trips, we may set size limits for the later trips.
The Fall field trip schedule kicks off at 8 a.m. on Saturday morning (September 5th) at Greenhill Cemetery's south gate near the corner of Willet and 19th Streets.
