Surveys for yellow-billed cuckoos on lands managed by the National Park Service in Dinosaur National Monument and northwest Colorado

Beason, Jason

Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory conducted surveys for Western Yellow-billed Cuckoos and other bird species of interest in July and August 2009. Surveys were accomplished by broadcasting cuckoo calls at designated points in suitable habitat in Dinosaur National Monument in northwestern Colorado and northeastern Utah. We also surveyed private land with historical cuckoo records and appropriate habitat in northwestern Colorado in July and August 2009.We completed at least one visit to 134 survey points during the course of the season. We visited 48 of the points twice and 33 points three times. A total of 215 call-playback surveys were completed for a total of 1505 survey minutes. Habitat types were recorded during the first visit to each survey location.During these surveys we did not detect Yellow-billed Cuckoos on lands managed by the National Park Service in Dinosaur National Monument or private land in northwestern Colorado. Even though cuckoos were not detected, they were detected on private land in northwestern Colorado as recently as July 2008 and suitable habitat is found within Dinosaur National Monument. There are historical cuckoo records for this part of the state and the only breeding confirmation in western Colorado for the first Colorado Breeding Bird Atlas was along the Yampa River in Routt County. Therefore, it is feasible that Yellow-billed Cuckoos were present in Dinosaur National Monument and were not detected during surveys. We also recorded detections of Willow Flycatchers (Empidonax traillii), Least Flycatchers (Empidonax minimus) and Yellow-breasted Chats (Icteria virens), which were chosen as species of interest by the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory. Willow Flycatcher and Yellow-breasted Chat were chosen because of their low density on the landscape and they require high-quality riparian habitat. Least Flycatchers were chosen because they are also indicators of high-quality riparian habitat and we are attempting to document their western range expansion. Three new species were detected for the park, Sora (Porzana carolina), Eurasian Dollared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto), and Cordilleran Flycatcher (Empidonax occidentalis).

Surveys for yellow-billed cuckoos on lands managed by the National Park Service in Dinosaur National Monument and northwest Colorado

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