Message from the President
Fall is in the air! Even though our temperatures are still periodically in the 90s here in Denver, a few crisp mornings and even an early canvasback duck have assured us that my favorite season will soon be upon us. Most have our birds have finished molting; even if they're still growing in feathers, the amount of feathers that appear on the pea gravel each morning is diminishing. Our wonderful raptors look simply stunning in brand-new plumage at this time of year, before Colorado's harsh sun and climate begin to take their toll. Peregrines are migrating, and soon the Mississippi kites and Swainson's hawks will begin their epic journeys to South America. Some merlins from Canada are already here, but tough to spot with the leaves still on the trees. And soon, we'll be glimpsing rough-legged hawks on the very eastern edges of town
For our local members, we have a couple of fun public events coming up this month, and we hope to see many of you there. For those of you a bit farther away, watch our YouTube channel and Facebook page for videos from the events.
Thank you for your support!
Anne Price, President
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Jeff's Great Raptor Capture: Northern Goshawks |
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Northern goshawks, Accipiter gentilis have a very wide distribution throughout the world, almost mimicking that of another widespread raptor, the golden eagle. Goshawks are the only member of their genus to be found in both North America and Europe/Asia. Here in Colorado, they nest between around 8000-10,000 feet in elevation, since that's where our forests are. Their nests are notoriously-difficult to locate, and they can be either in deciduous trees like aspen, or in pines.
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One of Colorado's newest state parks is Staunton State Park located about 40 miles southwest of Denver. The terrain is varied, rising up through the Colorado foothills. This year, possibly for the first time, a successful nesting of northern goshawks occurred, and once the trails near the nest were re-opened, Jeff took his camera with great effort, was able to capture this elusive raptor.
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Jeff reported that there were three fledglings present, but he had to use his ears, as well as his eyes, to find them. Baby goshawks are very noisy around the nest, calling for food from their parents. The parent birds have a very well-deserved reputation for fierce defense of their nests and immediate territory, and will knock hardhats off of the heads of forest biologists. Most researchers we've spoken to also wear heavy coats and even Kevlar vests if they have to go near an active goshawk nest. Note the immature plumage of the fledglings in these photos, complete with yellow eyes, cream-and-brown streaked breasts and bellies, and brown backs. Their smaller cousins, the Cooper's hawk and sharp-shinned hawk, look virtually the same during the first year. However, goshawks have a white "eyebrow" or supercilium, which becomes more pronounced in adult plumage. Immature goshawks can also be very difficult to distinguish from immature Cooper's hawks, due to the size difference between males and females. In other words, a male goshawk can appear to be about the size of a female Cooper's hawk. With immature birds, one of the keys is to look at the bands on the tail: in Cooper's hawks, the bands are straight across, but the bands on goshawk tails are uneven and somewhat wavy. Thank you Jeff!
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FALL OPEN HOUSE ANNOUNCEMENT!
FINALLY! After 24 very long months and three missed gatherings, we are excited let everyone know that we are holding our
Fall Open House on Saturday, September 25th from 10:30AM to 1:00PM. Mark your calendars now! We won't be serving refreshments this time due to Covid, however we'll have water available and have the mews open for folks to visit, as well as raptors on the front porch to enjoy up-close and personal. We're looking forward to seeing our friends and supporters in person once again!
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Consulting Services: Too Many Rabbits? |
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If you work at a large professional campus or in an industrial setting, warehouse park, or even a golf course that is home to far too many cottontail rabbits, we have a non-toxic solution that simply eliminates these pests and turns them into raptor food. The video tells the entire story. We've created this proprietary trapping system which safely and discretely removes these pests and recycles them into food for our birds. Please all us at 303-680-8500 or send an email to raptor2@usaref.org. Note: this is not a system for small-scale areas like individual homes.
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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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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!
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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!
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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.
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Join us on Friday, September 10th for Raptor Day at
Denver Botanic Gardens!
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Join us on Friday, September 10th for Raptor Day at the Denver Botanic Gardens! We'll have three stations with our raptors on display throughout the York Street location from 12:00-4:00PM. Later that day in a separate event, Anne Price will be presenting a lecture on the ethno-ornithological tradition of eagle falconry in central Asia, in advance of a screening of The Eagle Huntress. There are still a few tickets available for the evening event...don't wait and we hope to see some of our members there!
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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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As the summer season winds down, we finally returned to the Town of Dillon on August 22nd for our annual Raptor Summit presentation in advance of Movies on the Water night. We were delayed over a year due to Covid, but it was totally worth the wait!
We had lovely evening with absolutely perfect weather and over 250 enthusiastic folks in attendance. Our new peregrine falcon and eastern screech owl made their "large venue" debuts, after getting their feet wet with smaller classroom presentations in June and July. Prior to the start of the show, an adult osprey made a nice pass over the amphitheater, and the good folks at the Friends of the Dillon Ranger District also had a table.
The Town of Dillon first began hosting us way back in the 1980s, and we've always enjoyed the wonderful audiences comprised of both locals and visitors from out of state. Simply put, you'd be hard-pressed beat Colorado's mountain communities in the summer!
Thank you again to Matt and Kevin with the Town of Dillon for all the support!
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Join the 45 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: Elise Bales, Morgan Brantmeyer, Kevin Corwin, Karen Gonzalez, Bernhard Hafner, Kim Kistler, Linda Julia, Jennifer McAllister, Anne Price, Jennifer Redmond, Peter Reshetniak, Beverly Rice, Mitch Skinner, Ann Stanz
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