Date: 9/7/26 9:54 am From: Ryan Dibala <ryan...> Subject: [cobirds] Baca to the Future’s 2026 COBC Report
Baca to the Future, our team of 6, was greeted by a scintillant rainbow
cresting over the namesake buttes of Two Buttes State Widlife Area on
Friday night. We found an inviting place to camp, tucked away out of the
wind in a copse of one-seed junipers on the north side of the bone dry
reservoir. We cumbaya-ed around Daniel’s lantern, discussing our plan of
attack for the following day’s Colorado Birding Challenge bust across Baca
County.
About a half hour before first light, we set out upon the cottonwoods and
riparian tangles below the Two Buttes dam, trying our luck for western
screech, barn, and great horned owls. Well, we had no such luck. Instead, a
growing kettle of turkey vultures soared in and out of the lightening sky
above the thick canopy. Out over the water in the grotto we caught several
glimpses of an acrobatic common nighthawk and as the day broke we began to
hear bits and pieces of bird song.
The next hour we birded the edge of the riparian woods, the open grassland
and rocky cliff ledges. It was a flycatcher bonanza: eastern and Say’s
phoebes, western wood-pewee, olive-sided flycatcher, willow flycatcher, and
eastern and western kingbirds all graced us with their presence. Other
highlights here included several rock wrens, a pair of red-headed
woodpeckers, a western tanager, and a juvenile Mississippi kite.
Returning to our camp, Bart counted 35 individual American kestrels out
among the yucca scrub, a record number for us all - migration in full
swing. Alighting on the fencelines were plentiful sparrows, including
Brewer’s, clay-colored, vesper, chipping, and lark. Of course, the Cassin’s
and black-throated sparrows that greeted us the night before eluded us and
didn’t make it onto the day’s list. Such is the challenge!
We set south in caravan fashion, stopping to observe a hunting prairie
falcon, several northern harriers, hundreds of horned larks and lark
buntings, and as many as 7 burrowing owls spread randomly across the
prairie dog colonies. Oh, and I can’t forget to mention a couple of butcher
birds and a lone grasshopper sparrow perched on a barbed wire fence.
Our next stop was Turk’s Pond, where we hoped the only body of water in
many many miles would turn up some waterbirds. Unfortunately, there
appeared to be a nasty toxic algae bloom in full effect, with many dead
fish lining the shore and the numbers we had hoped for simply weren’t
there. We did find a small flock of Baird’s, a few least, a couple of
spotties, and a lone western sandpiper. Blue and green-winged teal were
present along the shore, posing some ID challenges loafing in their rather
drab eclipse plumages. Along the shore, migration brought us another willow
flycatcher, blue-gray gnatcatcher, Wilson’s and yellow-rumpled warblers,
and a distant orchard oriole.
Travis spotted a tiny horned lizard on the shore. Can we add that to the
list?
And here we confirmed what was a lifer Chihuahuan Raven for Ryan G., as it
soared out above us, looking only slightly larger than a crow, with a flat
head and higher pitched croak.
We stopped for lunch in Springfield, where we picked up great-tailed
grackle, rock pigeon, house sparrow, and starlings. Oh, the joy to see a
bird when it is so badly needed to pad your big day list!
Our final stop of the day was undoubtedly our most exciting: the wild open
spaces of Comanche Grasslands and the riparian traps of Carrizo Canyon. The
birding here was magnificent, starting off with close up views of two
gorgeous pale morph ferruginous hawks perched on the roadside utility
poles, with rust-stained pantaloons pulled up to their haunches.
Once in the canyon, we were wowed by a beautiful male summer tanager and a
nearby ladder-backed woodpecker in the tall cottonwoods of the canyon
bottom. Lesser goldfinches cruised along the treetops, canyon and
green-tailed towhees popped in and out of the rocks, a canyon wren called
out from the cliff. Lazuli bunting, Cassin’s kingbird, orange-crowned
warbler, Lincoln’s sparrow, and yellow-breasted chat were other notable
pickups over the next hour.
Just as the birding was getting really good and we failed to identify a
fleeting vireo, thunder clacked and a downpour had us retreating for cover.
The next half hour had us anxiously waiting for a break in the weather so
we could get back to birding and hopefully break the 83 par.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough for that. We ended up with a total of
80 species, but our 80th was mighty fine and a cause for much celebration.
An extended sighting of two rufous-crowned sparrows - a lifer bird for all
of us - had us high-fiving like the birder dweebs we are.
We finished our Baca County big day by enjoying Nadiyah’s delicious lemon
pound cake under yet another full spectrum rainbow. What a wonderful day of
friendship, firsts, and feathers.
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