Hi there and welcome back. Hope you are well and staying sane during these very different days. All my 2020 trips have been canceled which has lead to reimagining life with the coronavirus and reflecting on what is truly important. Are you having similar thoughts?
For the last years I’ve been sharing the “big stuff”. Bison, wolves, Pronghorn antelope, Bighorn sheep, Sandhill Cranes, Harlequin Ducks, Yellowstone, Glacier, and amazing landscapes in the East, West, and all along the way. Slide down the right column to view past adventures–relax, smile, and enjoy.
For now, however, it is time to explore the close by. Beautiful county park’s trails, although closed visitor centers. Amazing city parks and open spaces plus close-by state parks. Taking the time to enjoy the often-overlooked close-by places and abundant small wonders they hold.
Come along and enjoy our amazing natural world as we explore Fountain Creek Nature Center and surrounds late winter into early spring this year. Many birds migrate through, some stay to have young, others make it their year-round home along with many plants and small mammals. Remember my friend, to really enjoy the great outdoors you MUST slow down and look around. Never know, you may find “friends” in other forms along the way.
This little guy/gal couldn’t be more than six inches long with the cutest ears ever. Smallest cottontail rabbit I’ve EVER seen. As I stopped so did she. I started talking to him. At first she pretended to pay little attention but did not seem scared. Finally looked at me with nose moving like crazy–sniffing me out? I moved on, but this little one still seemed interested. Wouldn’t you just love to offer hugs!
The main attraction in this 460-acre park and park-like surrounds is the birds. What I kept hearing is, “Did you see the owl?” Apparently Great Horned Owls live here, nest here, and last year’s young are still here in supposedly easy places to see them. That means they are in trees not too far from the trail, but good luck pinpointing their location! Let’s head down the trail along the canal and take a look!
There it is! Wow, does he/she blend or what!! And now you know why even though they are common across the USA and Canada, you rarely see them as they sleep all day. Looking closely you can see their feather markings mimic the tree bark designs, not to mention the similar colors.
Easier to see about a week later, as long as you know where to look in the first place.
Ducks and waterfowl are in every pond and lake. Aside from the usual Mallards and Canada Geese, we have many others. The Cinnamon Teals in their beautiful mating attire. Although the females are brown as you see here, with so many males not attempting to claim them, they are likely juvenile males. Since they won’t breed this year, they retain their brown appearance of youth.
Teals are 11-12 inches long, about half the size of Mallards as you see. This park also hosts Green-winged and Blue-winged teals, but I could not get pictures.
I’ve been wanting to see Wood Ducks for year. They are beautiful! They are on the other side of the lake so a poor picture, but surprised to see them. They are not common in Colorado, being more an eastern duck, but are all over Montana where I never saw them. What a treat!
Northern Shoveler’s unique long, spatulate bill is a key identifier. The female is brown as are most female ducks, but the bill is always a sure sign you are seeing a Shoveler. They are about the same size as Mallards.
The ducks we have seen so far are dabblers. Their tails tilt up as they push their heads underwater to secure food, as with Mallards. However, there are also many diving birds here such as these Pied-billed Grebes. They are only about a foot long, are so cute, and are one of seven types of Grebes in North America. We had a wonderful encounter with Eared Grebes a few years ago with their button-red eyes.
We don’t only have ducks and grebes in the ponds, Painted Turtles showed up too.
On the far west side of the park is Fountain Creek and one of its many small waterfalls. From here Fountain Creek travels about 35 miles south to join the Arkansas River in Pueblo, CO. The Arkansas River is the sixth longest river in the country traveling 1,469 miles to the Mississippi River in Napoleon, Arkansas.
No matter where you go, Pikes Peak is our sentinel. We are looking northwest.
Along the water’s edge we often see Belted Kingfishers. They dive head first into the water catching small fish. Now soaking wet, this fella has returned here to scout and try, try again.
The cool thing about the female Kingfisher is she has the pretty rust-colored band across her breast. Finally, a female bird prettier than her mate. OK, I’m prejudiced.
Also along the water’s edge we find a Black-crowned Nigh Heron. They typically feed at dusk and night roosting during the day near the wetlands where they forage.
Common and abundant across most of the USA, Red-winged Blackbirds nest in the reeds and cattails near ponds and marshes. The female looks very different from her mate, yet most have a red dot of varying size on the upper part of their wing. See it?
What a surprise! In the reeds before spring’s new dense growth a Virginia Rail. A first for me! You may hear them in the marshes, but it is a treat and not usual to see them. They are only between 9-11 inches long and hide and blend in so well.
What a racket, and another first for these eyes. Two male Canada Geese fighting over the female. It went on intensely for about two minutes. Winner take all!
With all the birds and small mammals in the area, it stands to reason there will be raptors. A Cooper’s Hawk.
Of course a Red-tailed Hawk, considered the “default” hawk in the USA. This is a juvenile looking for breakfast.
This fella is trying to blend. I had to do a double-take.
Here is another surprise, a White-tailed Jackrabbit also trying to blend standing dead still. See the unique face shape and markings, the longer ears with black tips? Otherwise just looks like a large cottontail rabbit. Ah, the joy of slowing down and carefully looking.
Into the woods near the stream and marshes we are in warbler country. These tiny birds flit about so fast and tend to stay in deep foliage. However, it is spring and leaves are yet to appear making easier our chances of catching them in a quieter moment. The Yellow-rumped Warbler is one of the most common warblers in North America. In many states it is the only warbler likely to be seen in winter. Here he is in his springtime mating attire.
Also common and abundant, the Yellow Warbler. There are very few here yet, but the first few are a delight to see.
Norther Flickers are also common across the country. The red-shafted Norther Flicker is our western bird, showing red on their underwing as they fly. However in the east, the Northern Flicker is yellow-shafted. These two are doing a mating dance, a type of hide and seek. Such fun to watch.
House Wrens are common across the country, but can be hard to find in the dense or overgrown hedges, gardens, and brush where they live. This wren’s loud and interesting song is the best identifier to it being close by.
As we head to the parking area, there is lots of Teasel. Considered an invasive species, it nevertheless provides seed for birds all summer long. The plant can grow to eight feet tall and these heads are unique. It is said the design of velcro originated by closely observing the hooked pines on these flowerheads. Nature is amazing.
It is still early spring with only a hint of wildflowers, but oh the birds! I hope you explore the “wild” places near you for new and interesting discoveries always found when slowing down!
Be well my friend . . .
