From earlier information and discussion, we decided to drive three hours west to Gunnison in hopes of seeing the female Red-backed Buzzard from South America that had been present there. This was its third year in Gunnison and, in 1988, it had mated with a Swainson's Hawk. We arrived in the town around 10:00 AM and, after some aimless searching, went to the Forest Service office in town, which told us about an area that it frequented. We spent at least three hours looking for it, but to no avail. We did see at least four Swainson's, including one on a nest with young. We also saw Black-capped Chickadee, Western Bluebird, Sage Thrasher, Black-headed Grosbeak, Green-tailed Towhee, Lark and Brewer's Sparrow, American Goldfinch, and Red-winged and Yellow-headed Blackbird. As luck would have it, we would later learn that the bird was seen in the same area we were looking for it about an hour before we got there. Highway birding between Pueblo and Gunnison yielded Common Snipe, Lewis's Woodpecker, Hermit Thrush, and Pine Grosbeak.
Since our only chance at Flammulated Owl seemed to be at night, we though we'd give Rye Mountain Park a try. We got to the park about a half-hour before dark. As darkness prevailed, we tried the tape in a few areas. We were about to give up when a single 'hoot' broke the silence. We got excited and intently listened to try and get a fix on the call. Unfortunately, we never heard another 'hoot' out of it. We returned to our Pueblo motel having heard a "Flam" in both Arizona and Colorado but still never lucky enough to see one.
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