Birds Extirpated in Boulder County

According to the dictionary, "extirpated" means "destroyed." The birds were not deliberately extirpated as were wolves, for example. Destruction of suitable habitat, and possibly other factors, presumably have made it impossible for them to flourish in Boulder County.

Sharp-tailed Grouse

Boulder would seem peripheral to this grouse's range on the Great Plains, but Gale (1883-94) discussed its nesting habitat within Boulder County without specifying the exact location. The Colorado Division of Wildlife has initiated an effort to reintroduce sharp-tailed grouse south of Boulder.

© Steve Jones

Barrow's Goldeneye

Junius Henderson (1908) listed this species as a "summer resident or perhaps resident." Gale (1883-94) found young birds on upper St. Vrain Creek on July 19, 1886. Barrow's goldeneyes nest in dead snags in mountain lakes of the central Rockies. Recently, researchers have found several pairs nesting on shallow lakes in western Colorado's Flattops Wilderness (Kingery 1998) 

© Bill Schmoker, http://schmoker.org/BirdPics/index.html

Long-billed Curlew

Gale (1883-94) collected several sets of eggs, but his notes did not specify locations. He described this species as a "winter and summer residence" both in the plains and mountains. There are no subsequent records for Boulder County. Suitable nesting habitat (mixed-grass prairie) does exist in Boulder County, but this species' nesting range has contracted steadily during this century as native prairies have become fragmented. (photo © Steve Jones)

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