A few days ago, an author contacted us with an interesting question regarding birds in Colorado. For once, Charlie, Corey, and I all felt unqualified to accurately address the inquiry. So, I offered two solutions, the easy one and the fun one. The easy solution would have been to connect the author with some skilled CO birders. The fun way, on the other hand, would be to open the question up to our readers to tap into a veritable universe of birding brilliance. Guess what she chose…
I’m writing a children’s novel set in Colorado in May. An older character spots a rare bird near a river (I’m imagining a setting similar to the Platte River right after it exits the foothills into the plains). A few days later, the young main character goes to the same spot along the river and pishes in hopes of sighting the rare bird. The bird does appear again.
What type of bird would be believable in this situation?
Any suggestions?
migrating eskimo curlew might be the option if she wanted the rarest of the rare; perhaps too rare to be believable? Alternatively maybe one of the sage or sharp-tailed grouse ssp. listed on the colorado list linked below?
http://wildlife.state.co.us/WildlifeSpecies/SpeciesOfConcern/Birds/
Are you looking for a rare-anywhere bird, or a rare to CO bird, meaning common elsewhere – like an off-course eastern warbler species?
-Mike
How necessary is the pishing? I don’t think something like a Curlew would respond well to pishing…but something like a sparrow (Bachman’s? Seaside?) might.
Perhaps something like Vermilion Flycatcher?
It’s rare to Colorado, would probably respond to pishing, and would look stunning depicted in a children’s book.
oops missed the pishing bit, curlew and pishing probably wouldn’t work.
tai haku, are you sure?
Who’s ever really tried in an earnest way to pish in an Eskimo curlew on the Texan coast?
Cheers! 🙂
May in eastern Colorado? Late May? I should think that Connecticut Warbler would fit the bill.
I’m the author, and appreciate your responses.
Apologies for not being more clear: I want a rare-to-Colorado bird. And I also really want pishing because it’s a children’s novel and “pishing” is such fun to say (and do).
I like the idea of the Vermilion Flycatcher. Any other thoughts?
(As a funny aside, I hadn’t mentioned it but BIRD BRAIN is my working title, so I really like the heading on this post).
For a bird that is rare-to-CO, but totally plausible as a vagrant, and would respond to pishing (which can also be “spishing,” depending on who you talk to) you might consider the Golden-winged Warbler.
Like the Vermillion Flycatcher (also a great choice) it’s stunning to see, but a Golden-wing would add another layer of excitement: they are the focus of intense study by scientists as their population numbers are dropping. Very interesting scientific story, perhaps interesting as a back story in your children’s novel. And because they’re harder and harder to find, certainly desirable to see by birders.
Of course, they are just plain cool birds in their own right!
-Mike
I love your suggestion for the Golden-winged warbler, Mike! As soon as I read about scientists being very interested in tracking them and their numbers, the plot wheels started turning in my head. As long as it would be believable for it to show up as a vagrant in May, the Golden-winged warbler would be the perfect bird for my story.
Anyone else have thoughts on this? Agree or disagree?
Thank you again, everyone!