The Great Grouse Tour - Colorado in April

April is a spectacular time of year in Colorado. Late winter and early spring meet, with stunningly beautiful snow-capped peaks and the first blush of green on the river-edge cottonwoods. It's also the time when the five lekking grouse - Sharp-tailed Grouse, Greater and Gunnison Sage-Grouse, and Lesser and Greater Prairie-Chickens - are engaged in their spectacular, foot-stomping, cackling, hooting and moaning displays. These leks are probably the most fascinating wildlife show in North America, and yet they are seen by few people. Our tour is designed to give us ample time to watch it all.

Our travels to the grouse leks will involve some long drives, but what drives they are! We'll go through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, six national forests, a national grassland and past more than a dozen 14,000-foot mountain peaks. We'll look as well for a variety of resident, early-arriving or late-departing species including White-tailed Ptarmigan and Blue Grouse. Mammals will be unusually well represented and we could see Bighorn Sheep, Pronghorn, Elk, Mule and White-tailed Deer, Coyote, Red Fox and, with luck, Bobcat or Black Bear.

Friday 4 April to Sunday 13 April

with Chris Wood as leader.

Colorado bird list
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Day 1: The tour begins in London with a flight to Denver, Colorado. Night in Denver.

Day 2: We'll depart early for the foothills outside Denver where we may see three species of nuthatches, Mountain and Western Bluebirds, and Cassin's Finch. Along watercourses we'll look for the stream-loving American Dipper, and if the weather permits we'll make our way to one of the high mountain passes and endeavour to locate the elusive White-tailed Ptarmigan, still white at this season. In the afternoon we'll cross Willow Creek Pass and drop into North Park. If the weather is suitable we may have an optional evening outing back into the high mountains in hopes of listening to, and, with extraordinary good fortune, perhaps seeing Tengmalm's Owl. Night in North Park.

Day 3: We'll rise early to witness the stunning display of the largest North American grouse, Greater Sage-Grouse. As we watch the lek we'll pay particular attention to plumage and behavioral differences between this species and the Gunnison Sage-Grouse, a newly described species we'll look for later in the trip. After leaving the lek we'll explore the nearby wetlands and sagebrush flats of North Park, where we might see the courtship of newly arrived Cinnamon Teal and American Avocets and hear the rich melodies of Sage Thrasher. In the afternoon we'll cross Rabbit Ears Pass, stopping at high elevations to listen and look for Blue Grouse and other high-country species such as Pine Grosbeak and Three-toed Woodpecker. We'll end the day with a drive to the Yampa River Valley. Night in Craig.

Day 4: We'll depart in the pre-dawn hours for a Sharp-tailed Grouse lek, where we'll witness the amazing display of this foot-stomper. Later, our drive to Gunnison will take us through the fabulous mesa country of western Colorado, including the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. We'll have time for birdwatching, perhaps seeing Gambel's Quail and Black-throated Sparrow in the drier areas and Pinyon Jay in pinyon-juniper woodlands. Night in Gunnison.

Day 5: This morning we'll visit a lek of the Gunnison Sage-Grouse. With the displays of Greater Sage-Grouse still fresh in our minds we'll be able to appreciate the differences that led to the recognition of this bird as a separate species. After enjoying the grouse and the vocal Sage Thrashers, we'll drop into the Arkansas River Valley. Here we'll search for several species near the northern limit of their range: Scaled Quail, Curve-billed Thrasher, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, and Canyon Towhee, for example. In the afternoon we'll go birdwatching in Pueblo County, which has the largest total of bird species of any county in Colorado. Night in Pueblo.

Day 6: We'll search for birds as we head east along the Arkansas River Valley, one of the most exciting birding places in Colorado. Riverine cottonwoods, just beginning to show green, are oases in a sea of shortgrass prairie and collect newly arrived migrants like a magnet, perhaps including Say's Phoebe or Harris's Sparrow. The reservoirs and pools may host waterfowl and early-arriving waders such as Baird's Sandpiper, Wilson's Phalarope, American Avocet, and Long-billed Curlew. Night in Springfield.

Day 7: We'll rise early and travel to the shortgrass prairie of the Comanche National Grasslands to watch the displays of Lesser Prairie-Chicken. Well spend some time on the grasslands looking for nesting birds including Chihuahuan Ravens and Long-billed Curlews, and search prairie-dog colonies for Burrowing Owl and Ferruginous Hawk. As we head north we'll stop at Two Buttes Reservoir, one of the state's most interesting migrant traps, as well as other reservoirs and isolated patches of trees that may harbour interesting birds. Night in Wray.

Day 8: Thanks to the help of the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Yuma County Historical Society, sunrise will find us on a private ranch in the rolling hills of Yuma County overlooking a Greater Prairie-Chicken lek. After the birds have finished displaying, we'll slowly return to Denver, stopping en route at Bonny Reservoir, where in the wooded fringe we may see species more typical of eastern North America including Northern Cardinal, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Eastern Bluebird and 'Eastern' White-breasted Nuthatch. Night in Denver.

Day 9: After some final birding around Denver, we will catch an afternoon flight back to London, where the tour concludes on day 10.

Cost £1290

Single Room Supplement £150

The ground arrangements for this tour are organised by our American associates WINGS.

Colorado bird list
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