An interesting array of species have been viewed in our region over the past months.  Members have seen unusual visitors (staying well into the cold months) in Cheyenne, at Lions Park, and at Curt Gowdy State Park.  At left is a Pine Warbler, seen visiting a north Cheyenne feeder throughout the latter part of November.  Bushtits have been observed by a number of Audubon members in Lions Park.  These rare visitors are primarily seen in Utah, Nevada, and Oregon; not in Wyoming.  This year, eBird data reports Bushtit sightings in Cheyenne and throughout the Front Range; from Colorado Springs to Wellington, CO.

More information is included about the upcoming Cheyenne Christmas Bird Count, scheduled for Saturday, December 17th.  With such a number of rare visitors in the area, the opportunity for “life birds” is a real possibility.  Join us!

Calendar

More information about all activities can be found in the December issue of FLYER.

Saturday, December 17 – Cheyenne Christmas Bird Count

Meet at the downtown Post Office at 8:00 a.m., 2120 Capitol Ave. or be a field observer on your own!  If you are interested in participating, contact Grant Frost, 307-343-2024, so that he has a list of those expected, so he can let you know if the plans change for any reason such as stormy weather.  Complete instructions are found in the December newsletter.

If you are doing an area assigned by Grant, please start there by 8 a.m. Throughout the rest of the day, you are free to look for birds anywhere within the Cheyenne count circle—see map on Page 3 of the newsletter.  Record numbers of each species you observe and the amount of time and distance you walk and the amount of time and distance you drive. Keep track of where and when you saw species of note so we can tell if you counted the same bird or flock as someone else.

Watching your home feeder?  Please visit the December issue of FLYER to get a Feeder-Watcher Data Sheet.  You will find instructions about how to count birds at the feeder and how to report your results.

Come to the tally party (December 17 at 5:30 p.m., Perkins Restaurant – 1730 Dell Range Blvd.) with your results or contact Grant Frost, CBC coordinator, 307-343-2024, frostgrant2@gmail.com.

Friday, December 30, 8:00 a.m. – Country Club Bird Survey

Contact Chuck Seniawski to be on his email notice list: 307-638-6519 or chuckski@aol.com. The count will start in the Country Clubhouse’s main parking lot.

Sunday, January 1, 2023, 8:00 a.m. – Guernsey/Ft. Laramie Christmas Bird Count

If you are going to join the count, please let Jane Dorn know at 307-640-4002. Also call her if the weather turns nasty; she will set an alternate date. Bring water, lunch, warm clothes, binoculars, and a scope if you have one, and whatever you need for a day watching birds at Guernsey State Park, Ft. Laramie National Historic Site, the Oregon Trail Ruts and Hartville.

Birding on your own or watching your feeders? The center point of the 7.5-mile radius count circle is where Highway 26 crosses the Goshen County/Platte County line. Please send in your results ASAP to the count compiler, Jane Dorn, 307-640-4002, linglebird@yahoo.com.

Anyone in the neighborhood of the count area is welcome to meet Jane at 8 a.m. at the Ft. Laramie Post Office, or at 9:30 a.m. at the main entrance to Guernsey State Park.