Above, Anne Price with Dan and Anna Konkel, with the "gyr" greeting us on the block perch.
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On July 15th Peter and Anne raced up to Sheridan Wyoming to pick up a "senior" male gyrfalcon from Dan Konkel, one of the largest gyrfalcon breeders in the United States. This handsome male, 15 years old, has ceased functioning as a breeding bird, but since he was raised as an imprint, Dan believed he would adapt well to our educational programs.
Gyrfalcons are the largest species of falcon in the world, with a circumpolar range, like snowy owls. They have a long and fabled history with humans; when King Richard the Lionheart was captured while on crusade, part of his ransom were two of his gyrfalcons. Here in Colorado, the mascot of the United States Air Force Academy is the white gyrfalcon, and falcons are flown at half time during home football games.
This is the third gyrfalcon we've cared for in our forty-year history, and we look forward to introducing him to you soon!
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Dan placing a falconry hood on the gyr's head before we put him in our van for the ride back to Denver.
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The summer has been...interesting. We are hoping to resume our small group tours in August, limited to
six
guests at a time, and all members of the same household. We have secured additional disinfectant and hand sanitizer, and will be requiring that all guests over the age of six years wear a mask. It's pretty hot right now, so we definitely recommend scheduling a tour prior to 11AM if possible. Please click
here
for more information.
I'm pleased to have started some in-person presentations again, mostly for children, and like many of us, I'm continuing to perfect my "Zoom" presentation skills. It's just not the same, but I'm grateful for the technology that allows me to see smiling faces, while keeping everyone safe and healthy.
Thank you for your donations, large and small, including folks who have kindly sent in gloves, bleach, and other supplies. We are very grateful for the support. If you would like to do a "front porch" drop off of supplies for
our raptors, please call our office at (303) 680-8500 and we'll be happy to let you know what we need, and
how to get it to us. Please remember that under the current CARES Act, your donation is more likely to be
Remember you can also support us by shopping
at
AmazonSmile
and through the
King Soopers
Community Rewards program...see below. Please note that we have not yet made a decision regarding our Fall Open House. We'll need to wait to see what our county and state guidelines dictate will be safe for all involved. We remain very grateful for the continuing financial support and phone calls just to check in from our members
and friends!~
Anne Price, President
Thanks to the following members and visitors who have donated a total of just over $8,200 since our past three newsletters: B. Birdsall, L Chapman, C. Cunneen, A. Keeth, K. Kondo, L. Crosby, K. Metz, M & J. Smith,
Chris Cunneen J Forbes, K. Herron, J. Mastra, B. Elsasser, P. Lautenbach, M Greve, H. Gaines, R. Furlong, T. Weber, K. Waterman, D. Smith, J Kolk, C. Marcellus, S. Harmon, R. Vice, M. Morales, K Orm, J.A. Kettner, E. Bee, S.B. Spiwak, C. Milnick, T.J. Weedin, T. Smith, R. Lynn, S. Livingston, G. Tylee, S. Minzer, G. Secor, S. Anstine, M. Miller, D. Lucas, R. Hoffman, P Esposito, K Cottingham, J. Crowe, S. Peach, J. Thelen, A Haddad, X Li,
D McCubbin, and J. Reisert
If we have missed your name , please let us know so we can correct the listing.
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Independence Day at Barr Lake State Park
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This past Independence Day we had a special program featuring America's living national symbol at neighboring Barr Lake State Park. Pandemic restrictions were in full effect and as you can see, some of the masks certainly fit the day's symbolism. Thanks to the very special audience that made this first public event during the pandemic a wonderful success on many fronts. And thanks to the Barr Lake State Park volunteers and naturalist team for their support! Birders know that this park is one of the best all-around birding spots so close to Denver.
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Gaylord Resort in Colorado brought us in for their grand opening ceremonies back in 2019, and they decided that we could help them with their re-opening for this summer season with the COVID-19 restrictions. We knew we could deliver some wonderful opportunities for their visitors and we helped them with several days of special appearances. As you can see, their guests loved the raptor experience! And yes, our masks were custom-made by one of our Directors in Seattle.
Thanks Marie!
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Bald Eagle Report From Seattle
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After my May 18th visit to the Broadmoor eagle's nest (Seattle's Madison Park neighborhood) with three eaglets visible, this rainy day segment on May 25th showed only two eaglets in the nest. If you watch the previous video on our
YouTube channel
, you'll see a lot of bullying going on, which is quite typical of bald and golden eagles. Because eagles (and raptors in general) lay their eggs asynchronously, there can be a two or three day difference between laying dates, which gives the first chick to hatch a decided advantage. This first eaglet will be bigger and stronger than any of the siblings that follow. In lean resource years, the first eaglet stands a better chance of surviving than the subsequent siblings. Nature is not fair and this is one of those demonstrations of how harsh she can be. This video is a bit longer than most, but a lot is going on and I'm hoping our Seattle members and friends will enjoy the extended visit on a rainy day in May.
Because of the pandemic's interruption of our normal lives, my video editing has taken a back seat to more pressing demands, but I'm slowly catching up. I hope you enjoy them !~
Peter Reshetniak, Director of Special Projects
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June 18th (the first few seconds of video) was the first time it was evident to me that only one of the original three eaglets was left in the nest. The fate of the other two is unknown, although in years when the parents cannot provide enough food, the smaller, weaker and younger eaglets do not survive. The majority of this video was recorded on July 23rd and it's apparent that this remaining young bald eagle is now on its way to the equivalent of the teenage years and hopefully becoming an adult. For young bald eagles this means a lot of begging, bullying, scavenging and stealing food from any and all candidates. This youngster should still be visible around its nest area in Madison Park and the Broadmoor Golf course in Seattle for the next month or longer. The nest will be the center of its slowly expanding universe and residents will often hear food begging calls. At a certain point, the parents will just leave the area and leave their offspring to fend for itself
.
Thank you to the more than 3,000 followers from the Seattle area watching these eagles and supporting our work!
Peter Reshetniak, Director of Special Projects
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23 Families are Supporting Us...Please Join Them!
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Have you signed up for the King Soopers Community Rewards Program yet? Do you have a Loyalty Card and digital account? Just visit
https://www.kingsoopers.com/o/store-services/community-rewards
, log in, and enroll to have REF receive donated funds from King Soopers and Kroger! We'd love to double the number of families supporting us by the end of the summer...please share with your friends and family!
OUR COMMUNITY REWARDS NUMBER IS TF405
.
Simply log into your account, look for "Community Rewards" on the left hand side, and enter TF405. Our name will appear, and you can link your card to REF. You save on groceries, earn fuel points, and we'll receive a quarterly donation from King Soopers.
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Denver's Crestmoor Drive Owl Finale
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This was recorded on May 13th, after a heavy rain storm in the Denver area. I took a walk to see if I could still find any of the great-horned owls along Crestmoor Drive shown in previous videos. I was in luck, as one of the human residents steered me into his driveway and pointed out a young owl hanging on as the wind blew. The owl was busy drying out and getting feather preened back into normal condition. This is the last in the Crestmoor Drive series for this year.~
Peter Reshetniak, Director of Special Projects
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Color in Place: A Great Contest at Home!
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This is an easy way to learn about North America's raptors while you're at home with your kids...and it's a great opportunity to explore the world of raptors and win prizes.
Rules here:
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Shouldn't You Be Driving For Wildlife?
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and support us every time you drive!
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A Special Anniversary Offer on all Three of Our Books!
Celebrate our 40th anniversary by purchasing our three books at this special price!
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Fall Photo Shoot Booking Now!
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We are excited to announce a full day photo shoot on
Saturday, October 10, 2020
. This year we are offering a flying raptor photo shoot in the morning, and a posed photo shoot in the afternoon. You can book one or both sessions depending on your interests. If you book both sessions a $25 discount applies.
Click here
for booking and additional information. Typically our photo shoots sell out within a month. Don't miss this opportunity!
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Help Our Book Take Flight: Order Today!
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This poster is available for a limited time. Printed on heavy poster board, 11.5" x 20"
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Last September we celebrated three years since the arrival of our wonderful female bald eagle. She arrived as a timid, 18 month old sub-adult, and it's been a privilege, a lot of hard work, and a team effort that's resulted in the beautiful, confident and well-adjusted bird you see in the collage above. Thank you once again to
Marilyn Stevens
for continuing to take these stunning images of our "girl", now
five
years old!
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Twenty-One Years Ago!
We created Colorado's first environmental license plates back in 1999. Only qualified REF members are permitted to display these on their vehicles. Tell your friends and help us put another 1,000 eagles on the highways and byways of Colorado! Just $24.95 helps spread our message that
Coloradoans Respect Wildlife.
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Searching for the Perfect Gift?
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Raptor-themed gifts for raptor lovers
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Gifts Cards Available!
We've had many requests for Gift Cards. Thanks to the folks at Square we are now very happy to make
gift cards available
to everyone to give to friends, family, and total strangers! Lots of designs for raptorphiles. Currently our gift cards are only available in the electronic versions.
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Thanks to our past and future partners, THF Prairie Center Development, L.L.C., THF Prairie Center Investors, L.L.C. and the City of Brighton, for creating the best intersection in Colorado just a minute or two north of our headquarters!
As the new villages grow at Prairie Center, so do the streets with cool names!
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Wish List!
We are looking for a gently-used, 25-foot RV that would serve as a mobile office for traveling programs around Colorado and further away.
Or, maybe you have an SUV or pickup truck you would like to donate? We can put them to good use! Please give our office a call if you have a vehicle you think we could use! (303) 680-8500
Thank you!
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More on Gyrfalcons
Read more
about the challenges that gyrfalcons face as the only arctic raptor the doesn't regularly head south for the winter.
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Fantastic Flammulated Owl Pictures from Jeff Wang
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Flammulated (meaning "flame") owls are one of Colorado's smallest, and hardest-to-find owls. They are about the same size as both eastern and western screech owls, but have several key differences, including beautiful rusty streaks, much smaller ear tufts, and deep brown rather than yellow irises. Like screech owls, they have two color morphs, red and gray. Jeff worked with a naturalist and over the last several weeks, has carefully photographed this nesting pair delivering food to the nest cavity.
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Above, one of the parents delivers food to an older waiting owlet who is anxious for dinner!
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Unlike most tiny owls of similar size, flammulated owls eat very few vertebrate animals, but instead tend to hunt near the tops of pine trees for insects and other invertebrates.
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The differences in plumage between the adults and the older owlets are visible in the photos above and below. Flammulated owls do not stay in Colorado and other mountain areas during the winter, but instead migrate
to Mexico and portions of Central America.
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Finding flammulated owls is incredibly challenging. Not only does their plumage provide excellent camouflage, their hoot is extremely low for an owl of this size, and difficult to pinpoint in a pine forest at night. Turns out they have an unusually-large trachea for such a small bird which gives them the sound of a much larger owl!
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Automatic Monthly Donations:
Thanks to everyone who has set up a monthly donation via PayPal. We have people from both coasts, a few states in the middle, and in Colorado contributing monthly pledges automatically...thank you!!
(303) 680 8500
Copyright 2020, Raptor Education Foundation, All rights reserved.
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Docent & Volunteer Staff
: Elise Bales, Morgan Brantmeyer, Kevin Corwin, Karen Gonzalez, Bernhard Hafner, Linda Julia, Kim Kistler, Jennifer McAllister,
Anne Price, Jennifer Redmond, Peter Reshetniak, Beverly Rice, Mitch Skinner, Ann Stanz
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Hours of operation:
8:30AM-4:30 M-F.
Hours vary by season; tours are
by appointment only. Please visit
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