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Raptor Chronicles
By Colorado's Oldest Raptor Sanctuary
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At the end of the month, we're celebrating our return to the International Sportsmen's Exposition in Denver. This show hasn't been held since 2020 due to Covid, and it usually takes place in early January. We're delighted to be partnering with Colorado Parks & Wildlife once again and hope to see many of our Colorado members in attendance. Be sure to RSVP to our Open House in May, and Happy Spring everyone!~Anne Price, President
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International Sportsmen's Exposition at the Colorado Convention Center |
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Even if you don't consider yourself a hunter or angler, you owe it to yourself to check out the International Sportsmen's Expo at the Colorado Convention Center. The show runs from Thursday March 24th through Sunday, March 27th. There are many booths featuring apparel, outdoor equipment, great vacation lodges, and cool gadgets which you never knew you couldn't live without!
Look for us with the Colorado Parks & Wildlife folks, who are celebrating 125 years as an agency in 2022.We'll have our raptors there every day, rotating species throughout the show run. It's a great opportunity to shop with us as well for earrings, books, pins and other gifts. Don't forget to bring your camera!
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Announcing our Spring Open House on Saturday, May 14!
We are thrilled to announce the return of our Spring Open House! Please join us at our Brighton facility on Saturday, May 14 from 10:30AM to 1:00PM. Our mews (raptor housing) will be open to visitors and we'll have raptors on the front porch area for close-up photos, as well as door prizes and light morning refreshments.
Please RSVP here for more information, and mark your calendars now!
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Wildcat Mountain Golden Eagle Update |
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Mom golden eagle surveys her domain in this short video. It's a bit breezy, and being an eagle, she's always on the lookout for food, her mate, or something else demanding her attention.
Frankly, we were hoping to see her sitting tightly on either of the two nests, keeping an egg warm. In previous years, she's laid at the very end of February. However, as any raptor biologist will tell you, birds don't check their calendars! The mysterious natural forces which coalesce to trigger egg-laying are only partially understood by us puny humans.
Once again, she demonstrates her incredible mastery of the air with her casual "step" off the north end of Wildcat Mountain to do a little hunting (?). Or, perhaps to simply enjoy the lovely Backcountry habitat which is her home. Here's hoping that we see her in a nest very soon!
For information on trail closures, including maps and lots of background on this nest, just click.
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Lots of Other Ways to Help! |
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A Special Anniversary Offer on All Three of Our Books!
Celebrate our 41st 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.
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Help Our Book Take Flight:
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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Listen for us the first Saturday of the month at
12:00 Noon for five minutes of "raptorous"
delight with the BirdTalk Guys,
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At long last, our friends at Jabebo have given raptorphiles what we want: the most ubiquitous hawk working with humans around the world! The new Harris' hawk design took a bit longer than expected; getting the dark eyes to stand out against dark plumage turned out to be harder than Anne or Kevin expected, but we're thrilled with the results! Get yours 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 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!
in Case You Missed it!
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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. Just click to order.
If you don't wish to use PayPal, then please click here.
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The Denver area bald eagle nests which we've been monitoring all seem to be roughly on the same incubation schedule. Despite three different locations in Aurora, Brighton and Commerce City, the mature females are undertaking all the motions and behaviors of impending parenthood in the same fashion.
At the end of the video, you'll see the male of the Star K Ranch pair keeping watch in a nearby tree on a gorgeous, almost-spring day. The fathers periodically give the mothers a break, providing them a chance to stretch their wings, maybe do a little hunting and just get out for some preening and a bath. In Colorado, bald eagles favor large cottonwood trees, but often with many dead branches and trunk sections. These branches don't leaf out, which means the adults have a good view of the nest, potential prey and threats. The downside is, they are often unstable, weak and rotting from the inside. With one violent early-summer storm, they may collapse.
For now, all seems well with our three families...fingers crossed!
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This beautiful five-year study of our female bald eagle was photographed and composited by Marilyn Stevens. It measures 16″ x 20″ and is printed on fine photo paper with a “luster” finish. The print will fit many ready-made frames. To our knowledge this is the only available photographic sequence of an immature bald eagle showing off the plumage changes as she matures. Remember, both male and female look identical except for their size, but the male is about 30% smaller. Our foil seal is attached to the bottom of each print. (Not shown in the image above). This is a limited offer and the price includes shipping anywhere in the continental U.S.A.
Pick it up at our office for only $25!
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Black to Nature Book Club |
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On a beautiful Saturday of President’s Day weekend, we enjoyed chatting with the member families of the “Black to Nature” book club who were making a day of bald eagle watching and exploration at Barr Lake State Park. Temperatures plummeted to 0 degrees by February 22nd, so the sunny weather of around 55F was most welcome!
Audience members, including our friends from Bird Conservancy of the Rockies and other visitors, had the chance to see what a female bald eagle looks like, up close and personal. Several of the children asked excellent questions about the habits of wild balds, and we presented a copy of our “Raptors” activity book to the leader of this book club, who is also a librarian. Thanks once again to CPW and especially Michelle Seubert of Barr Lake State Park for an awesome setting to speak about wild eagles in Colorado!
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President's Day at Beaver Creek Resort |
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On a chilly but festive President’s Day, Beaver Creek Resort welcomed us back to their Village to celebrate the conclusion of their weekend “Spangled” festival. Crowds were treated to a program featuring our almost seven year-old female bald eagle, along with the opportunity to ask questions, learn a few fun facts about American history, and take pictures with our eagle afterwards.
We LOVED how many kids and families just sat down on the pavestones and hung out near the stage! They asked some really insightful questions and it was a pleasure visiting with both locals and out-of-town visitors. Mother Nature cooperated nicely by delaying the snow, and she even turned off the wind shortly after Anne began speaking. Thanks once again to Beaver Creek Resort for bringing us back to one of our favorite places in Colorado, and especially to Claire Wood and the Beaver Creek Lodge for making everything run so smoothly!
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Join the 51 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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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!!
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REF Staff: Anne Price, President & Curator; Peter Reshetniak, Founder & Director of Special Projects; Savannah Grout, Mews Manager
Docents & Volunteers: Elise Bales, Phil Carter, Kevin Corwin, Karen Gonzalez, Bernhard Hafner, Kim Kistler, Linda Julia, Jennifer McAllister, Anne Price, Jennifer Redmond, Peter Reshetniak, Beverly Rice, Mitch Skinner, Ann Stanz
Docent In Training: Kristy Bortz
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