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Raptor Chronicles
By Colorado's Oldest Raptor Sanctuary
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Spring is always a time of renewal and hope, but this year, it's sending our spirits into the stratosphere. After four years of reproductive failure, two nests which we've featured for years, each have TWO babies! The Commerce City bald eagles, who have not successfully fledged a baby since they moved west from their collapsed nest at E-470 and 120th Ave, now have two wobbly-bobbly babies. Loyal readers know that we suspected one of the pair might be infertile!
And at the opposite end of the Greater Denver Metro area, we have the golden eagles at Wildcat Mountain. They haven't fledged young since 2019. The last four years have seen incubation abandoned at the nest very early in the cycle. Not this year!
Just about the time we think we know what's going on, the birds surprise us. Reproduction, raising babies, feeding them, parenting...it's just HARD. Any of this sound familiar? My own daughter is fledging from college this month, and the purely-biological way of looking at this means it's the end of my "reproductive investment". (I can hear all the parents of children over age 22 laughing right now.) Hopefully she'll linger around the natal territory for a few years and not head out on a long migration, yet.
Speaking of long migrations, this spring we've seen record numbers of broad-winged hawks at the hawk watch migration count point on Dinosaur Ridge on the west side of town. The smallest of the North American buteos, they neither breed nor winter here in Colorado. But as of May 4th, 155 of these diminutive cousins of the red-tailed hawk have veered WAY west, on their journey from South America northwards to the eastern United States. The Force is strong with this year's migrants!
Nature always surprises us...how can you not rejoice?~Anne Price, President
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For the past four years we have watched this pair of bald eagles go through the process of courtship, laying and incubating eggs, only to then abandon their nest. Although we cannot be certain of the pair's identity, we believe this is the pair that originally nested at E-470 and 120th Avenue. The nest collapsed and we went in to retrieve the young eagles. They were kept at a local rehab facility and then released the following year. You can view the video of the whole rescue process on our channel. We're very happy to report that the current video above is the first record of both eaglets alive and well as of April 16, 2023!
The estimated age for the oldest is between 7-10 days. At about 1:40 in the video you'll see the younger and smaller eaglet making a brief appearance, only to be bullied into retreat. Raptors lay eggs asynchronously and the first chick is about two days older than the second. That chick has a head start on everything. Since young bald eagles are notorious bullies, it's obvious the elder chick is well on its way. Both eaglets still have the gauntlet of bad weather, and diseases like West Nile or the dreadful HPAI (Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza) virus to contend with. We'll be keeping a close look on this nest through the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned; please subscribe and donate to keep our raptor videos coming.
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Colorado spring weather can be very volatile. We experience wind, heat, and even snow all over the course of the same day as a normal weather pattern. This great-horned owl nest five minutes east of our office shows the drama the owls faced over the course of three days, beginning with a pair of crows harassing the female owl who can no longer occupy the nest because her three babies take up all the space. Mom is hanging out just about 20 yards away from her brood. The crows harassed her, but left the kids alone. We went from crow harassment, to wind, to heat, to cold drizzle. Welcome to a Colorado Spring! Enjoy, and help us grow by subscribing to our channel! |
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Our Raptor Video Debuts at Denver Botanic Gardens |
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On April 7, 2023 members and visitors at Denver Botanic Gardens enjoyed the third "Raptor Day at the Gardens". Good Friday saw hundreds of guests participating in a wide variety of raptor experiences, including this video showcasing eleven raptor species native to Colorado. The seventeen minute video repeated every twenty minutes for audiences in the Sturm Family Auditorium. Shot mostly in 4K, the film provided a quiet respite from the crowds while featuring some intimate and close-up moments of Colorado's falcons, eagles, hawks and owls. |
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Lots of Other Ways to Help!
Check it out everyone...we can accept Venmo now!
Look for the QR code in all of our newsletters, and at our public events this summer!
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A Special Anniversary Offer on All Three of Our Books!
Celebrate our 43nd anniversary by purchasing our
three books at this special price!
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Our Online Store is Open!
A new look...click on the image below.
SORRY...OWL PURSES SOLD OUT
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Help Our Book Fly Higher:
Order Today!
Reviews
“A unique book aimed at introducing young and beginning birders to the world of raptors. . . . Creative for certain! Helpful, too.”–Jim Williams, Wingnut Blog, Minneapolis Star Tribune
“A very cool new book.”–Doc Kirby, On The Bookshelf
“Bird enthusiasts of all ages will find this book full of educational fun.”–Skipping Stones
“All the essays were well-written and provided lots of easy-to-understand information, which allows the reader to identify many different types of raptors. I also really enjoyed the further reading at the back of the book about the kestrel box. The instructions were clear-cut, and the activity was easy and fun to do.”–Hannah, age thirteen, Kids’ BookBuzz
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As promised, here are the first earrings for 2023! The iconic, secretive and beautiful northern goshawk is the largest of the three North American accipiter species, and all three are found here in Colorado! With their deep red eyes, misty gray bellies, and long tails, these birds are occasionally seen during the fall and winter in Denver, but they prefer to hunt in coniferous forests. The model for the left-hand earring was the female we had for 17 years, donated to us by a falconer after fracturing her left wing. Thanks again to our wonderful partners at Jabebo. Buy them here!
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Help us put another 1,000 eagles on the streets of our great state! Qualified members of REF are entitled to display them on their cars. Put Colorado's first and best environmental plates on YOUR vehicle!
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One of our members sent us this picture of his Cobra with our license plates. Anyone else out there with a classic car wearing our eagle? Send us your image! |
Special thanks to The Kroenke Group & THF Realty for extending our lease and keeping the fee at zero dollars though 2023! Support like this ensures we will make it through these challenging times.
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! Check out some of the newest intersections as of October 2021.
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WISH LIST
We're still looking for a gently-used, 20-25 foot RV (Class C) that would serve as a mobile office for traveling programs around Colorado and farther away. Or maybe you have an SUV or pickup truck you would like to donate? We can put it to good use! Please give our office a call if you have a vehicle you think we could use!
(303) 680-8500
Thank you!
Raptor Chronicles
in case you missed any issues, we currently have issues dating back to January 2020!
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Limited Edition Eagle Pin |
An exclusive creation for us, this fine pewter pin has been hand painted to let everyone know what you think of America's living national symbol. Available in a very limited edition, while they last. This beautiful pin measures 1 1/8" by 1 1/2". Two clasps keep it firmly attached. $50 each includes shipping. Discounts for multiple purchases. Click here to order.
If you don't wish to use PayPal, then please click here.
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Wonderful News at Wildcat Mountain! |
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The golden eagle pair at Wildcat Mountain now have at least one eaglet. The awesome team at HRCA Backcountry Wilderness Area are overjoyed, as are we. (Breaking news: as we went to press, Peter captured footage of TWO eaglets...more in the next edition!)
This pair (and we are reasonably certain that it's the same male and female) have nested on this cliff since 2012. They produced a single eaglet in 2014, and then two eaglets in 2017, 2018 and 2019. They've failed to hatch any young since then, and of course we've been speculating as to why.
No matter; both eagles are clearly still fertile, and we're all keeping a close watch, with our wings, talons and fingers crossed. Please help them be successful this year by observing all trail closure rules and following the signage...and thank you once again to Mark Giebel and his staff and volunteers at HRCA Backcountry Wilderness Area!
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Join the 56 Families Supporting Our Raptor Sanctuary
Help Us Reach 100 Supporting Families!
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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 increase the number of families supporting us...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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Earth Day & Birthdays at Barr Lake State Park |
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It was a chilly, but beautiful 2023 Earth Day morning at Barr Lake State Park, so our bald eagle presentation was moved indoors into the Education classroom. Bald eagles were practically made for cold weather, but the humans definitely appreciated the change in venue.
"Bald" is kind of an interesting word; originally spelled "balde" in 16th century English, it first appeared in literature around 1300, referring to a white patch or blaze, especially on the head. It continued to be used mostly in reference to animals, especially horses, as in "skewbald", or "piebald", but by the 19th century, it also began to refer to anything that was "open, undisguised or unadorned".
Regardless of how you refer to them, bald eagles are certainly well-adorned, and at Barr Lake, you can see them year round. Thank you to all the great people who came out to celebrate Earth Day with us, and a special shout-out to the volunteers and staff at our state park neighbors across the road. Happy 46th Birthday, Barr Lake State Park!
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Star K Bald Eagle Nest Abandoned |
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Unfortunately, the bald eagle nest at Star K Ranch in Aurora, which we featured in the previous edition, seems to have been abandoned. Peter's most recent visit yielded no activity, no eagles present in the trees, no one incubating the nest. Only the eagles have the answer. |
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Earth Day Query: Earth's Temperature? |
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Have you ever wondered how the earth's temperature is calculated? I did for years when the whole global warming theory was launched back in the 70's after the global cooling headlines faded away. With just a little bit of research I was shocked as to how imperfect all of it really is. An audit of the weather stations in America revealed that 96% of them do not even follow the guidelines used to accurately gather data like temperature. Many are situated in so many places where the heat island effect increases the temperature recordings much more than a properly sited location would produce. When you read many of the reports, it is points to a massive amount of corrupted data. To provide some clarity to the current debate about the current state of our climate, the world's most viewed and revealing web site on climate related theories has introduced an easy way to track the world's temperature on an hourly basis. Remember, the U.S. has the most temperature reporting stations, which provide for very low resolution. The world's oceans have very few, and the rest of the earth's land mass is somewhere in between. Take some time to visit, explore and learn.~Peter Reshetniak, Founder & Director of Special Projects
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Desert Storm War Memorial Update |
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Peter's most recent visit to the studio of Robert Eccelston revealed some excellent progress in the further development of the saker falcon and the bald eagle models.The national bird of Kuwait, following the national bird of the United States as they rise up over a sand dune, represents the partnership of both countries during the war to expel Iraq from Kuwait. Robert is shown here in front of his work. He discussed some changes he was considering making to the attitude of the saker falcon. The reverse side of the models has not yet reached the refinement stage of the top side of both raptors, shown in the photo above.
Robert's careful attention to the wide variety of variables in sculpting both birds portends a beautiful piece to be depicted in stainless steel. Stay tuned as this international project takes flight!
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In the Next Issue: Go Spy a Kite! |
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Once again, Jeff Wang's stunning photography and detective work is going to amaze, delight and educate us. If you've never considered a visit to Florida, you may just change your mind after seeing the next edition of Raptor Chronicles!
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In addition to America, our Facebook followers are found in the following countries:
United Kingdom, Canada, Spain, Pakistan, Netherlands, Norway, Italy, Mexico, Ukraine, Russia, Australia and France!
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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 automatic monthly pledges...thank you!
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REF Staff: Anne Price, President & Curator; Peter Reshetniak, Founder & Director of Special Projects; Savannah Grout, Mews Manager
Docents & Volunteers: Kristy Bortz, Kevin Corwin, Karen Gonzalez, Kim Kistler, Linda Julia, Jennifer McAllister, Denis Murray, Zachary Nastri, Karen Ogle, Anne Price, Jennifer Redmond, Peter Reshetniak, Beverly Rice, Mitch Skinner and Ann Stanz
Docents in Training: Clarissa Cigrand, Robert Mitchell, Zachary Nastri and Peggy Plaus
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