My Local Patch

Many birders develop a home birding area where they really get to know the local birdlife. This home area is known in birding terms as a “local patch”. My patch is Larimer County, in north-central Colorado. This means that during most years I spend most of my birding time within Larimer County. It is a rather large local patch, almost the size of Rhode Island! A patch doesn’t need to be so large. It can be as small as your nearby birding hotspot or even your back yard.

Larimer County is a great place to live If you are a birder. The principal cities of the county are Fort Collins, Loveland, Estes Park and Berthoud and they all, along with the county itself, have done a great job in establishing parks and natural areas where birding is welcome. The county is also home to Roosevelt and Arapaho National Forests and Rocky Mountain National Park. The variety of habitats in these natural areas include mountain peaks, major rivers and prairie grasslands. The county hosts the largest number of bird species of all 64 Colorado counties. According to data in eBird.org 428 species have occurred in Larimer County. I typically find over 300 species in the county annually. 


Equally as important as the variety of bird species found in the county is the camaraderie of the birding community of Larimer County. Several birding clubs are active in the area, such as the Fort Collins Audubon Society and Foothills Audubon Bird Club and Colorado State University Field Ornithologists.  A county text chain was created several years ago to facilitate sharing of interesting sightings in real time. About 80 active birders participate in this effort. 


During most years you would find my name among the top three listers for the Larimer County top 100 list at eBird.org. However, in 2023 my priorities have taken me birding outside the county. Currently, Brendan Beers is atop the list. So it was no surprise that I received a Larimer county text chain alert about a rare bird from Brendan Beers on Saturday morning, April 22, 2023. He had discovered both Cassin’s and Yellow-throated Vireos along the Cache La Poudre River at Watson Lake State Wildlife Area in Bellvue, Colorado, just northwest of Fort Collins. I had seen Cassin’s Vireo already in Ramanote Canyon near Tucson, Arizona. The Yellow-throated would be new for my Big Year list. So off I went. Watson Lake is just 15 minutes from my home in west Fort Collins. 


When I arrived Brendon was still there. Several others had already arrived and Brendan informed me that Jay Breidt was currently watching the bird of interest in the cottonwoods along the river.  Once I found Jay, a few minutes later I had found the Yellow-throated Vireo (#547) which posed nicely for photographs. My photo and eBird checklist is available for public review here: https://ebird.org/checklist/S134688544.  


Jay and I will be birding again soon, as we are both members of the “White-bearded Helmetcrests”, a bike-riding birding team that raises money for bird conservation during the Colorado Field Ornithologists’ annual Colorado Birding Challenge birdathon. In 2023, the challenge will raise money for Pinyon Jay conservation. Please consider contributing to this effort. More information about the challenge can be found at Cobirds.org. In particular the Helmetcrests are seeking monetary pledges per species found to inspire us to find as many species as possible during our planned 50-mile downhill bike ride in Larimer County on May 20, 2023. Donate or pledge online here: https://charity.pledgeit.org/f/3o6MIYrjrU. THANK YOU!

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