Environment:
Start Time: 7:05 AM Temperature: 52 degrees Sky: Sunny and blue, light breeze
New Bird Identified and an Old Bird Correctly Identified
Spectacular light and just a hint of an Autumn chill made for another great walk at the park. There was quite a bit of feathered activity though the real action was occurring mostly in the shadows. Nevertheless I came out with a number of images worth sharing. Today’s featured image is of the Rabbitbrush that is starting to bloom and attract various insects as you can see. There should be more butterflies by this time of the year but so far they are a no-show. A number of birds made up for the lack of butterflies and I managed to expand my personal bird count in the process. First off, pictured below is what I yesterday would have called a Tern perched on a rock in the Arkansas River. I ran that image through Google Lens when I got home and it turns out it is a California Gull. So if you happen to be reading any of my previous posts and see the word “Tern” please mentally correct it to “California Gull.” Thanks. As for my new bird today, that too was a sort of a mistake. I arrived home thinking I had taken a picture of a Killdeer bouncing on some rocks in the river. Upon closer examination of the image I saw that it was not a Killdeer. After some more Google Lensing and some bird book paging I have decided that what I got (also poorly pictured below) is a juvenile Spotted Sandpiper. All in all I would classify today as a success.
Sightings:
Birds: Osprey, Starlings, Robins, Cormorant, Mallard Ducks, White-breasted Nuthatch, California Gull, Killdeer, Spotted Sandpiper, Great Blue Heron, Blue Jays, Flickers
Critters: Tree Squirrel, Mule Deer
Gear: Nikon D5100, 55-200mm lens
California Gull Studies the Arkansas River at Lake Pueblo State Park, Colorado 
Juvenile Spotted Sandpiper at Lake Pueblo State Park, Colorado 
Great Blue Heron perched along the Arkansas River at Lake Pueblo State Park, Colorado