05-06-2008, 11:10 AM
Birdwatchers, or "birders" as they prefer to be called these days, are heading outdoors in droves to celebrate spring and the return of migratory birds to the Centennial State.
According to the Association of Colorado Field Ornithologists, 487 species of birds have been documented in Colorado. That puts the state seventh on the list of which states have the most bird species. California (637) and Texas (632) are the top two. What makes Colorado unique is that it does not have an ocean coast line that harbors shore birds.
Bird watching is one of the fastest growing segments of wildlife viewing recreation with nearly 70 million participants, nationwide. Each year, Colorado birders join thousands of others on the second Saturday in May to celebrate International Migratory Bird Day. This year's date is May 10. Wildlife enthusiasts use the date to recognize the winged wonders that travel the globe each spring and fall, migrating thousands of miles from their wintering to nesting grounds and back again.
International Migratory Bird Day was created specifically to highlight the migration of nearly 350 species of migratory birds that move between nesting grounds in North America and non-breeding areas in South and Central America, and the Caribbean.
"This is the time that just about everything that comes through the state comes through," says John Koshak, a watchable wildlife expert with the Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW). "Birds are looking for places to hang out, for any kind of water and any kind of trees or bushes that provide cover, shelter and food sources."
Birds tend to stop where they can find food and water. Koshak says that means wet spots are the good places to watch birds. That can vary from small urban ponds, streams, marshes, ditches, rivers or reservoirs.
Koshak says that people can look for birds in the other places, too. Like your backyard or wide-open spaces on the plains where you might see lark buntings, western meadow larks, scaled quail, sparrows, mountain plovers and burrowing owls.
Migratory birds are defined as those that spend part of their time in one habitat, and move to another to breed and winter. In Colorado, some species "migrate" in elevation by moving between the plains and the mountains. In contrast, the White-rumped Sandpiper spends the winter on beaches in Argentina, hop-scotches from wetland to wetland across the Americas, and nests on the tundra of the high Arctic.
The longest non-stop flight ever recorded was reported last year by National Geographic. According to a New Zealand researcher, a female bar-tailed godwit flew 7,145 miles from Alaska to New Zealand. The bird flew for nine days straight without stopping for food or water.
*_UPCOMING BIRDING FESTIVALS:_*
The 15th Annual Hummingbird Festival, May 10 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Free. Starsmore Discovery Center in Cheyenne Canyon, Colorado Springs. Children's activities, craft projects, native plant sale, hummingbird viewing bus tour. Call 719-385-6086 for more information.
Ute Mountain Mesa Verde Birding Festival, Cortez, May 8-11. For more information, visit
<a href=http://www.utemountainmesaverdebirdingfestival.com/> their web site</a> or write to <a href=mailto:cultural@fone.net>cultural@fone.net</a>
Field Trip to Lamar and Two Buttes private ranches. May 9-11. Cost is $145 for single person and $240 per couple which includes two nights lodging and four meals. For more details please contact Judi Ogle at <a href=mailto:wypafl@centurytel.net>wypafl@centurytel.net</a>
Fourth Annual Bent on Birding Festival, Las Animas, May 17. Festival activities include petroglyph tour, Least Tern and Piping Plover viewing, and a Chuckwagon Dinner at Boggsville National Historic Site. Full day, $35 per person. Registrations due by May 12. Contact: Las Animas/Bent County Chamber of Commerce at (719) 456-0453 or <a href=http://www.bentcounty.org/>Click Here.</a>
Field Trip to Kim Area Ranches for Hepatic Tanagers, May 31-June 1. Limited to 12 participants. $90 per person includes one night lodging and dinner. This trip will visit area private ranches to search for nesting Hepatic Tanagers and other breeding species near the New Mexico and Oklahoma borders. Contact: Nathan Pieplow at <a href=mailto:npieplow@indra.com>npieplow@indra.com</a>.
For more information about International Migratory Bird Day <a href=http://www.birdday.org/>Click Here.</a>
More information about upcoming wildlife viewing events and field trips in Colorado at the <a href=http://www.coloradobirdingtrail.com/>Colorado Birding trail website</a> or the <a href=http://wildlife.state.co.us/Viewing/EventsFestivals/>Colorado Division of Wildlife web site </a>.
The Colorado Division of Wildlife is the state agency responsible for managing wildlife and wildlife habitat, as well as providing wildlife related recreation and maintaining a balance between human activities and wildlife. Funding for the Division of Wildlife comes from the sale of hunting and fishing licenses and the habitat fees collected in conjunction with those sales. The Division does not receive tax dollars from the Colorado general fund.
*Additional Information: *International Migratory Bird Day is May 10 For more information about Division of Wildlife <a href=http://wildlife.state.co.us/>Click Here.</a>
According to the Association of Colorado Field Ornithologists, 487 species of birds have been documented in Colorado. That puts the state seventh on the list of which states have the most bird species. California (637) and Texas (632) are the top two. What makes Colorado unique is that it does not have an ocean coast line that harbors shore birds.
Bird watching is one of the fastest growing segments of wildlife viewing recreation with nearly 70 million participants, nationwide. Each year, Colorado birders join thousands of others on the second Saturday in May to celebrate International Migratory Bird Day. This year's date is May 10. Wildlife enthusiasts use the date to recognize the winged wonders that travel the globe each spring and fall, migrating thousands of miles from their wintering to nesting grounds and back again.
International Migratory Bird Day was created specifically to highlight the migration of nearly 350 species of migratory birds that move between nesting grounds in North America and non-breeding areas in South and Central America, and the Caribbean.
"This is the time that just about everything that comes through the state comes through," says John Koshak, a watchable wildlife expert with the Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW). "Birds are looking for places to hang out, for any kind of water and any kind of trees or bushes that provide cover, shelter and food sources."
Birds tend to stop where they can find food and water. Koshak says that means wet spots are the good places to watch birds. That can vary from small urban ponds, streams, marshes, ditches, rivers or reservoirs.
Koshak says that people can look for birds in the other places, too. Like your backyard or wide-open spaces on the plains where you might see lark buntings, western meadow larks, scaled quail, sparrows, mountain plovers and burrowing owls.
Migratory birds are defined as those that spend part of their time in one habitat, and move to another to breed and winter. In Colorado, some species "migrate" in elevation by moving between the plains and the mountains. In contrast, the White-rumped Sandpiper spends the winter on beaches in Argentina, hop-scotches from wetland to wetland across the Americas, and nests on the tundra of the high Arctic.
The longest non-stop flight ever recorded was reported last year by National Geographic. According to a New Zealand researcher, a female bar-tailed godwit flew 7,145 miles from Alaska to New Zealand. The bird flew for nine days straight without stopping for food or water.
*_UPCOMING BIRDING FESTIVALS:_*
The 15th Annual Hummingbird Festival, May 10 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Free. Starsmore Discovery Center in Cheyenne Canyon, Colorado Springs. Children's activities, craft projects, native plant sale, hummingbird viewing bus tour. Call 719-385-6086 for more information.
Ute Mountain Mesa Verde Birding Festival, Cortez, May 8-11. For more information, visit
<a href=http://www.utemountainmesaverdebirdingfestival.com/> their web site</a> or write to <a href=mailto:cultural@fone.net>cultural@fone.net</a>
Field Trip to Lamar and Two Buttes private ranches. May 9-11. Cost is $145 for single person and $240 per couple which includes two nights lodging and four meals. For more details please contact Judi Ogle at <a href=mailto:wypafl@centurytel.net>wypafl@centurytel.net</a>
Fourth Annual Bent on Birding Festival, Las Animas, May 17. Festival activities include petroglyph tour, Least Tern and Piping Plover viewing, and a Chuckwagon Dinner at Boggsville National Historic Site. Full day, $35 per person. Registrations due by May 12. Contact: Las Animas/Bent County Chamber of Commerce at (719) 456-0453 or <a href=http://www.bentcounty.org/>Click Here.</a>
Field Trip to Kim Area Ranches for Hepatic Tanagers, May 31-June 1. Limited to 12 participants. $90 per person includes one night lodging and dinner. This trip will visit area private ranches to search for nesting Hepatic Tanagers and other breeding species near the New Mexico and Oklahoma borders. Contact: Nathan Pieplow at <a href=mailto:npieplow@indra.com>npieplow@indra.com</a>.
For more information about International Migratory Bird Day <a href=http://www.birdday.org/>Click Here.</a>
More information about upcoming wildlife viewing events and field trips in Colorado at the <a href=http://www.coloradobirdingtrail.com/>Colorado Birding trail website</a> or the <a href=http://wildlife.state.co.us/Viewing/EventsFestivals/>Colorado Division of Wildlife web site </a>.
The Colorado Division of Wildlife is the state agency responsible for managing wildlife and wildlife habitat, as well as providing wildlife related recreation and maintaining a balance between human activities and wildlife. Funding for the Division of Wildlife comes from the sale of hunting and fishing licenses and the habitat fees collected in conjunction with those sales. The Division does not receive tax dollars from the Colorado general fund.
*Additional Information: *International Migratory Bird Day is May 10 For more information about Division of Wildlife <a href=http://wildlife.state.co.us/>Click Here.</a>