COLORADO & WYOMING 
^ A A gull well into its pre-formative molt that matched most features of Slaty-backed Gul! visited Sixmile Res. and Mdn- 
3#ltosh Res., Boulder 27-30 Nov (ph. CN, ph. TL, ph. BS); there is only one previous state and Regional record of the 
species. As expected, due to the difficulty of separating Slaty-backed Gulls of that age from various hybrid gulls (particularly 
Herring x Glaucous-winged), the identification of the bird was extensively discussed by local and national experts ,with no 
clear consensus. The same bird was photographed at Cherry Creel 13 Dec (GW) and was probably seen at Pueblo Res., Puebh 
on one or two occasions in mid-Dec The bird's sizable bill, pale head, Thayer's-iike wingtip and tertiai tip patterns, and ex- 
tensively white-tipped inner greater coverts all suggest Slaty-backed Gull, but the C.S.R.C. will probably not accept the 
record. We maintain that definitive identification of first-cyde Slaly-backed Gull away from e, Asia could be possible and hope 
that closer scrutiny of such birds on both sides of the Pacific will resolve this still open question. Additional pictures of the bird 
can be found at: <www.flickr.com/photos/christiaii_iiunes/sets/721 5760338S936136/?page=3brdpia.blogspotcom/ 
search?updated-max=2OO9-O1-24T13%3AO3%3AOO-O7%3AO0>aEKl <www.pbase.c 0 m/gwalbek/interesting_gulL>- 
r A Birders conducting a Big Day on 12 Sep encountered the best bird of the season (and year!) when they noted an ad. 
3/1 So 0 ^ Tern at L. Holbrook, Otem (tBKP, MP, BdS, BnS). The bird was seen to fly off to the nw., and later searching of 
L Meredith, frow/ej enabled subsequent birders to tally this first state record on the 12th (tJK, tBM, tAS, tGW) and the 13th 
(tBS). It seems likely that the bird was initially displaced by Hurricane Gustav and eventually found its way to Colorado. 
West Slope of Colorado at Fruitgrowers Res., 
Delta 4 Sep (LA). A Pectoral Sandpiper at 
Highline Res., Mesa was not only fairly rare 
for the West Slope but record late 13 Nov 
(LA). Also somewhat rare on the West Slope, 
the 6 Stilt Sandpipers that visited Fruitgrow- 
ers Res. 6-7 Sep (CD) also made for a high 
count. The latest of the eight Regional Short- 
billed Dowitcher reports was of 2 at Yants 
Puddle on the late date of 20 Oct (CM), three 
weeks after the last Colorado report. After the 
incredible spring showing, we received only a 
single fall report of Red-necked Phalarope — 
thus the species was outnumbered by Red 
Phalarope this season! The two documented 
occurrences of the latter were of singles at De- 
Weese Res. 22 Sep (molting ad.; RM) and 
Walden Ponds, Boulder 5-7 Oct (basic 
plumage; CN). 
GULLS THROUGH ALCIDS 
Two Laughing Gulls were found at Barr L. 18 
Oct, an ad. (AS) and a juv. (|D). A molting ad. 
Mew Gull first found at Cherry Creek 10 Sep 
(quite early) was present through the season 
(LK, ph. TRL). Another ad. was nicely pho- 
tographed at the same location 29 Nov (GW). 
An incredible report of 9 Mew Gulls there on 
30 Nov was not documented, nor was a 25 
Sep (early) report from Yant’s Puddle. The 
first fall reports of Thayer’s and Lesser Black- 
backed Gulls came 28 Oct and 14 Sep, re- 
spectively. A first-cycle Glaucous-winged Gull 
was present at Antero Res. 30 Oct-15 Nov 
(GW, LK), the site of Colorado’s first record of 
the species. Only 15 reports of 37 Sabine’s 
Gulls (4 from Wyoming), spanning 4 Sep-20 
Oct, made for a sub-par season. 
Least Terns were a bit out of place at L. 
Meredith 12-13 Sep (AS) and way out of place 
at Ish Res., Boulder 12 Aug (TF). The most in- 
teresting of five reports of Caspian Tern were 
of one at DeWeese Res. 5 Aug (DS) and sin- 
gles at Fruitgrowers Res. 12 Oct (AR) and 
Grand Junction, Mesa 13 Oct (LSt). Single 
juv. Pomarine Jaegers were documented from 
Jackson Res. 5-6 Oct (BK, TCN) and Barr L. 
18 Oct QBn). A juv. Long-tailed Jaeger was, as 
is typical in the Region, seen eating a 
grasshopper at McIntosh Res. 7 Sep (S. Sev- 
ers, W. Szeliga), and other singles graced 
Cherry Creek 11-25 Sep (GW) and Chatfield 
Res., Douglas 11 Oct QK, AS). An Ancient 
Murrelet was well photographed at Pueblo 
Res. 16 Nov (T. Ivahnenko, ph. R. Clawges) 
and, with acceptance, would provide the 7th 
state record. 
D0¥ES THROUGH JAYS 
Two of six Colorado White-winged Dove re- 
ports came from the West Slope, where some- 
what rarer. A Monk Parakeet visited Love- 
land, Larimer feeders 2-10 Aug (E. Coley). A 
Yellow-billed Cuckoo was a bit out of the or- 
dinary at Cherry Creek 17 Sep (fide GW), as 
was a Burrowing Owl in Broomfield 6 Aug 
(TD). A Whip-poor-will provided a first 
Pueblo and 2nd Chico record 5 Sep (BG). 
Black Swifts were at low elevation at Nucia 1 
Aug (CD, BW); at Union Res., Weld 17 Aug 
(BK); and at Paonia, Delta 26 Sep (JBn). An 
imm. male Anna’s Hummingbird near Horse- 
tooth Res. was appreciated 5 Nov (D. Stein- 
graber, ph. NK); if accepted, the record would 
be the first for Larimer, though the bird’s 
hosts have apparently had two previous indi- 
viduals of the species in their yard in the past 
17 years. A male Broad-tailed Hummingbird 
10 Oct-1 Nov at Estes Park, Larimer (S. 
Ward) was quite late; a Rufous Hummingbird 
in Boulder 1-10 Oct (D. Waltman) was only 
somewhat late. Juv. Red-headed Woodpeckers 
were w. of normal at Cheyenne, Laramie, WY 
7 Sep (G. Pike), Rocky Mountain N.P., 
Larimer 9 Sep (G. Matthews), Belmar Park, 
Jefferson 10 Sep (I. Sanders), and Fountain 
Creek Regional Park, El Paso 13 Sep (B. Goy- 
coolea). Another was near Fort Collins, | 
Larimer 18 Sep (NK). Also w. of normal was a i; 
male Red-bellied Woodpecker at Chico, El , 
Paso 23 Aug-9 Sep (BM). Yellow-bellied Sap- j 
suckers were reported from Prowers (2), 
Pueblo, Fremont, and Jefferson. S 
An Alder Flycatcher was banded at Chico 3 ] 
Sep (BG). A Gray Flycatcher at Edness K. ) 
Wilkins S.E in Natrona 17 Aug (CM) was well jn 
n. in Wyoming. A Pacific-slope/Cordilleran 
Flycatcher banded and measured at Barr L., L 
Adams 1 Sep fell into the mensural range of j; 
Pacific-slope Flycatcher (S. Nicely); there are Iji 
no accepted records of the species in Col- ij; 
orado, though two records are currently cir- 1 
culating in the C.B.R.C. Westerly were 2 
Great Crested Flycatchers at Chico, one each | 
in Pueblo and El Paso, 12 Sep (both BG). A | 
White-eyed Vireo at Prewitt Res. 23 Aug was 
a nice find (BK), although the one at Holyoke, ! 
Phillips on the very late date of 16 Nov (AS, j 
NK) was unprecedented. A Bell’s ’Vireo far w. Ijj 
at L. DeWeese Res. 27 Sep (MP) represents a | 
Custer first. A Blue-headed Vireo was at Cher- | 
ry Creek 4 Sep (ph. GW). Wyoming’s 3th | 
record (p.a.) of Philadelphia Vireo visited 
Casper, Natrona 8 Sep (JL). Single Philadel- ' 
phia Vireos were in Colorado at Westminster, 
Jefferson 14 Sep (LSS) and in rural Weld 19 
Sep (A. Hilf et al). Rare for w. Wyoming, a .• 
Blue Jay was in Riverton 21 Nov (B. Hargis), j! 
Pinyon Jays rarely grace the Colorado plains; j 
thus the flock of 21 at Crow Valley 17 Sep j 
(DAL) was interesting. j 
SWALLOWS THROUGH WARBLERS 
A Tree Swallow at Rocky Ford S.W.A., Otero 4 I 
Nov was late (SO); Barn Swallows are usually ;; 
the last swallow species to leave the state in 
fall. Mountain Chickadees bailed from the 
mts. and spread across the plains during win- 
ter 2007-2008; only one report of a wayward j 
bird came in this fall, one in Cheyenne, i 
Laramie 1 Oct (C. Seniawski). North of nor- ; 
mal was the Juniper Titmouse at a feeder in 
Casper 30 Nov (S. Bogart), although one (the ' 
same bird?) was at that location during win- 
ter 2007-2008. A small flock of Bushtits was I 
also far n. in Wyoming in rural Natrona 8 Oct 1 
(G&JL). As with Mountain Chickadees, ' 
Pygmy Nuthatches irrupted onto the plains ! 
during winter 2007-2008. Another spill-over, 
of lower magnitude, occurred during fall 
2008, with reports of birds from Aug-Oct in 
Weld and Larimer in Colorado and Crook and | 
Campbell in Wyoming. 5 
124 
NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 
