Fun Facts
Common Grackles ar e fr equ ent
practitioners of anting - letting ants crawl
over its body and wings. The ants secrete
formic acid that help rid the bird of
parasites.
Barn Swallow par ents so m etim es
get help from other birds to feed their
young. These “helpers at the nest” are
usually older siblings from previous
clutches, but unrelated juveniles may help
as well.
Horned Lark fem ales per fo r m a
courting display that looks very much as if
she is taking a dust bath. In fact,
potential mates seem prone to confusion
on this score: a male catching a glimpse of
a dust-bathing female may attempt to
mate with her.
House Finch m ales have r ed
coloring which comes from pigments
contained in its food during molt (birds
can’t make bright red or yellow colors
directly). So the more pigment in the
food, the redder the male!
Blackbirds & Orioles
http://boulderaudubon.org
Protecting Birds and their Habitat
in Colorado and Wyoming
http://fortnet.org/audubon/
http://home.lonetree.com/audubon/
© Peter G. Arnold
Common Grackle
http://fcgov.com/gardens/
(970) 416-2486
The Gardens on Spring Creek
Birding Guide
Western
Meadowlark
2145 Centre Ave., Fort Collins, CO 80526
Rufous Hummingbird
http://rockies.audubon.org
Red-winged
(970) 416-6931
© Peter G. Arnold
Cover Photo of Broad-tailed Hummingbird & photographs of Western
Meadowlark, Northern Flicker, Black-billed Magpie & Red-breasted
Nuthatch are all courtesy of © Gerhard Assenmacher
Blackbird
© Dave Showalter
© Peter G. Arnold
© Stephen Jones
Canada Goose
Black-billed Magpie
© Brent Daniel All Rights Reserved
Red-breasted Nuthatch
© Peter G. Arnold
Red-tailed Hawk
Mallard Duck
Northern Flicker
Great Blue Heron
Marsh Wren
Mourning Dove
American Goldfinch
© Peter G. Arnold
Yellow Warbler
© Brent Daniel All Rights Reserved
© Ronald Harden
© Brent Daniel All Rights Reserved
© Peter G. Arnold
© Peter G. Arnold
© Brent Daniel All Rights Reserved
House Finch
Barn Swallow
© Brent Daniel All Rights Reserved
Horned Lark