Prowers County
Author(s): Andrew Spencer, Nathan Pieplow
County Seat: Lamar
County Size: 1,629 square miles
Low Elevation: 3,348 ft. - Arkansas River on the KS border
High Elevation : 4,711 ft. - Two Buttes
Best Birds : Black-chinned Sparrow (2006), Pyrrhuloxia (1989), Broad-billed Hummingbird (2005)
Checklist : Download pdf | View HTML
Introduction: Spring is not spring, for many Colorado birders, without a trip to Prowers County. There are enough migrant traps in and around Lamar to keep you busy for half a day, and when you consider that within forty miles of town are spectacular hotspots like Two Buttes, John Martin and the Indian Reservoirs, plus tragically underbirded spots like Holly, it's hard not to consider this place the epicenter of southeastern birding. Although waterbirds can be a challenge, the county does host an annual Snow Goose festival each February, and Sandhill Crane flocks in migration can be mind-boggling. This is not flyover country, folks--for the birders or for the birds!
Birding Locations
Taylor Ranch
Description - This working ranch boasts a suite of attractions for travelers. The unique landscape hosts all our native prairie birds such as mountain plover, scaled quail and Cassin’s kingbird. The ranch also boasts a high concentration of raptors including bald eagle, northern harrier, swainson hawk as well as nesting ferruginous hawks and golden eagles. Migrants have included sandhill cranes. Arroyos, natural springs, and frontage along Two Buttes Creek make this a beautiful site to hike. A variety of reptiles such as collared lizards, possible leopard frogs and hog nosed snakes have been seen on the property. The owners can impart a great deal of the area's lore, including knowledge of a site on the property where a hanging took place and are willing to give guided tours. Pronghorn, white tailed and mule deer, a variety of foxes and coyote frequent the ranch. The ranch's livestock include rare British White cattle and Arabian horses.
Habitat - Shortgrass prairie, lowland riparian
Directions - To inquire about access to this ranch and to get directions, please call 719-336-0909 a minimum of 48 hours in advance of your potential visit. Please remember that this is a working ranch as well as a private residence, and there may be times when the landowner cannot accommodate visits. While you are on the ranch, remember to stay on roads, leave gates as you find them (whether open or closed), and refrain from taking anything off the ranch or leaving trash behind.
Delorme - 103 B7
Roads of Colorado - 142 B2
Rocking 7K Ranch
Aliases - North Butte Creek
Description - This 5,000 acre, 5th generation working ranch located in southern Prowers County offers vast shortgrass prairie with rocky outcrops and cedar-lined bluffs. North Butte Creek runs the length of the property, and in combination with the trees around ranch headquarters, it may be the best migrant trap in the area, as it is one of the only significant stopover sites between Two Buttes State Wildlife Area and the town of Lamar. A variety of warblers a well as clay colored sparrows may be seen in spring and fall migration. In addition to its abundant wildlife, the ranch is full of historic attractions including a cave used by Native Americans, rock corrals thought to be made pre-settlement, and abundant rock art. Some of the other birds that have been viewed at this ranch include mountain plover, long billed curlew, wild turkey, chihuahuan raven, yellow billed cuckoo, common poorwill, burrowing owl and a variety of hummingbirds. The ranch offers nice accommodations in a pleasant setting including meals. Other amenities may be possible such as chuck wagon dinners and picnics and photographers are free to set up blinds with landowner approval. This is a great base to stay at while visiting other birding sites in the area. Admission $5 person/day ($35/person for lodging and breakfast), other meals & packages available.
Habitat - Grassland/Prairie, Mesa/Rimrock, Lowland Riparian
Directions - Take US 287 south out of Lamar 26 miles. Turn left on County Road F (by the windmills). Follow County Rd. F 12 miles to County Rd 21. Turn left on 21, the ranch is located 1 mile north on the left hand side of the road. To inquire about access to this ranch and for further directions, please call 719-734-5245 in advance of your potential visit. Please remember that this is a working ranch as well as a private residence, and there may be times when the landowner cannot accommodate visits. While you are on the ranch, remember to stay on roads, leave gates as you find them (whether open or closed), and refrain from taking anything off the ranch or leaving trash behind.
Delorme -
Roads of Colorado -
Frank Ranch
Description - Located just east of the Colorado Green Wind Farm 23 miles south of Lamar, the Frank Ranch offers birding along North Butte Creek as well as in the shortgrass prairie uplands. The black-tailed prairie dog towns are home to both Mountain Plover and Burrowing Owl and the old homesteads often yield Barn Owls. The area around headquarters is treed and may be a good migrant trap as it is due north of Two Buttes State Wildlife Area. The CRP on the Frank Ranch is a reliable place to see Grasshopper Sparrows and Northern Harriers and perhaps an occasional Short-eared Owl. The ranch is also home to a unique fossilized oyster bed on the banks of North Butte Creek. To visit the ranch please contact David Frank at (719) 336-3494 no fewer than 72 hours in advance.
Habitat - Grassland/Prairie, Lowland Riparian
Directions - To inquire about access to this ranch and to get directions, please call David Frank at 719-336-3494 a minimum of 72 hours in advance of your potential visit. Please remember that this is a working ranch as well as a private residence, and there may be times when the landowner cannot accommodate visits. While you are on the ranch, remember to stay on roads, leave gates as you find them (whether open or closed), and refrain from taking anything off the ranch or leaving trash behind.
Delorme - 103 B7
Roads of Colorado -
Terry Family Farms
Description - Located north of Grenada in Prowers County, Terry Farms offers a unique rural open bay style lodging opportunity for groups of 3 to 30. In addition the lodge offers gourmet meals, farm tours and horseback riding. Terry Farms would be an ideal place for groups or families to stay while at the High Plains Snow Goose Festival, during Lesser Prairie-Chicken viewing season or anytime birding in southeast Colorado. Reservations are required well in advance. For more information contact Devorah Terry at (719) 384-2571 or terryfamilyfarms@hotmail.com.
Habitat - Grassland/Prairie
Directions - Contact Devorah Terry at (719) 384-2571 or terryfamilyfarms@hotmail.com.
Delorme -
Roads of Colorado -
Soaring Hawk Ranch
Description - This site offers 40 acres of ungrazed sand-sage prairie in very good condition. The owners are experienced falconers with two falconry hawks available for viewing, and currently conduct a show during the Snow Goose Festival (February). This site will soon be a raptor-rehabilitation facility and education center. Donations from Birding Trail visitors will help make this a reality. A raptor-banding operation is conducted during the month of November, when visitors are welcome to view trapping from a blind.
Habitat - Grassland/Prairie
Directions - To inquire about access to this ranch and to get directions, please call 719-688-9634 a minimum of 48 hours in advance of your potential visit. Please remember that this is a working ranch as well as a private residence, and there may be times when the landowner cannot accommodate visits. While you are on the ranch, remember to stay on roads, leave gates as you find them (whether open or closed), and refrain from taking anything off the ranch or leaving trash behind.
Delorme -
Roads of Colorado -
Lamar
Aliases - Willow Creek Park, Fairmount Cemetery, Riverside Cemetery
Description - The first stop in town for most birders is the Lamar Community College Woods. Ask any Colorado birder to list the top migrant traps in the state, and this location is guaranteed to be high on the list. Most of these birders will also bemoan the recent habitat destruction which they claim has affected the potential of the spot. Practically every species of eastern warbler that has occurred in the state has been seen here, plus almost every other migrant. The northern portions of the woods are usually the best for warblers, but the whole strip should be checked. The swampy area in the central part of the woods often has a Northern Waterthrush, and possibly flycatchers perching on the dead trees. Solitary Sandpipers can usually be found along the creek in the spring. If the cardinals are around, they are most often found in the brushier undergrowth towards the south end of the strip. In the winter the woods are not as productive, but sometimes large sparrow flocks are present, with Harris' and White-throated possible, and during winters when mountain species invade the plains, this is the best location to look for species such as Mountain Chickadee and Cassin's Finch. The summer is generally not such a good time to bird here, but there is a substantial breeding population of Mississippi Kites and Red-headed Woodpeckers. Eastern Screech-Owl has been seen here, but not recently.
Willow Creek Park is very close to the community college woods as the migrant flies, and even though it lacks underbrush, it can occasionally be very good for migrant warblers and vireos, as well as for nesting Mississippi Kites in summer.
The nearby Lamar High School Grove is not to be missed. The narrow but dense hedgerow here has produced many a good migrant over the years. The grove is particularly charming because it can be birded easily by one person, and birds reported here are usually a cinch to refind.
South of town is the last don't-miss spot in Lamar: Fairmount Cemetery. (Actually Lamar has two cemeteries, but if you hear birders talk about the "Lamar Cemetery," this is the one they mean.) The trees can be good for almost any tree-top migrant, but the extensive pruning of lower branches has denuded the cemetery of undergrowth. Nonetheless the cemetery has a better reputation as a migrant trap than the city park, possibly because of its many mature evergreens.
Five miles south of Lamar along US 287/US 385 you will see a radio tower on the east side of the road with a row of small trees lining the access road. There is no access to the trees, but if you pull over in front of the gate, you should be able to spot the resident pair of Scissor-tailed Flycatchers if they are present, as they were from 2002-2004 (but, sadly, not in 2005).
Although most birders stick to the south, the north side of town may also be worth checking. The "other" cemetery in Lamar, Riverside Cemetery, also has some trees that could attract migrants. This cemetery is in the northeast part of town, on the north side of Maple Street, east of Main Street/US 287/US 385.
Along Main Street/US 287/US 385 where it crosses the Arkansas River are a couple of gravel pit ponds on the east side of the road which can be decent for diving ducks and grebes. In this water-challenged county, it may be worth parking south of the bridge and walking up to scope these pits.
Habitat - Urban/Suburban, Lowland Riparian, Park/Cemetery, Hedgerow/Shelterbelt, Stream
Directions - Lamar is along the Arkansas River at the intersection of US 50, US 287 and US 385. To get to Willow Creek Park, drive south on Main Street (US 287/US 385) through downtown. Turn left on Memorial Highway (not really a highway) which heads east one block to the park. To get to the Community College woods, continue south through town on Main Street/287/385 from Memorial another 200 yards to Savage Avenue. Turn left (east) into the community college parking lot. Drive straight back behind the building and park in any open spot. The woods along Willow Creek parallel the campus for its entire length. To get to the high school grove, from the intersection of Main and Savage, go west on Savage. The high school is at the end of the road in about half a mile. Go around to the back of the high school by turning right on 11th Street and then left on Willow Valley Road. Park near the intersection of Willow Valley and 14th. The High School grove runs south along the east side of 14th for about 200 yards. To get to the cemetery, continue south from Willow Creek Park on Memorial about a mile and a half south of town. Alternatively, from 287/385 south of town, turn east on College, then south towards the cemetery a couple blocks away.
Delorme - 99 D7
Roads of Colorado - 126 A3
Wiley Pond
Description - Two miles south of the town of Wiley, in the northeast corner of the intersection of US 287 and US 50, is a very occasional pond. Do not come here expecting to see water! But in the event that there is water here, look for almost any duck or shorebird species that could occur on the plains. Rarities such as Eurasian Wigeon have occurred here.
Habitat - Pond/Lake/Reservoir (sometimes)
Directions - From Lamar, travel west on US 50 and take the exit for US 287 north. The pond is to the northeast of the entrance ramp to 287.
Delorme - 99 D7
Roads of Colorado - 126 A3
Thurston Reservoir State Wildlife Area
Description - This is the premier water-birding location in the county – not that that's saying much. Occasionally this reservoir can have multitudes of shorebirds or waterfowl, with almost any species possible. There are often huge flocks of white geese here in the winter. The nearby fields almost always have large flocks of Sandhill Cranes in March and April, plus huge flocks of blackbirds in the winter.
Habitat - Pond/Lake/Reservoir
Directions - From Lamar, 8 miles north on Highway 196, 1 mile west on County Road TT, 1/2 mile north on County Road 7.
Delorme - 99 D7
Roads of Colorado - 126 A2
Holly area
Aliases - Arkansas River State Wildlife Area, Hammit State Wildlife Area
Description - The town itself, four miles west of Kansas, has great potential for migrants. You might want to start at Gateway Park, which stretches north from US 50 for several blocks, with mature deciduous shade trees the whole way. Another spot to check is the Holly cemetery northeast of town, which has a mix of deciduous and coniferous trees and is a little more isolated.
Just west of town along US 50 are a couple of wet spots which can have ducks and possibly shorebirds in season. One is on the north side of 50, two miles west of town, between CR 32 and CR 33. The other is on the south side of 50, just east of the bridge across the Arkansas River, five miles west of town.
Don't miss the rest area three miles east of town, which has a nice combination of trees and brush. It could produce absolutely anything, but is drastically underbirded.
South of the rest area, where the Arkansas River crosses the state line, is the remote Arkansas River State Wildlife Area (also known as the Hammit State Wildlife Area). The DOW has marked this SWA for decommission, but as of this writing it persists. The riparian habitat here is pretty marginal, but look for Yellow-breasted Chat and Bobwhite and, if you are very lucky, Eastern Meadowlark.
Another area worth checking is the spot where CO 89 crosses the Arkansas River just south of town, and the areas to the east on the south side of the river. A small population of Lesser Prairie-chicken may persist near here, but the chances of seeing one are slim. Eastern Meadowlarks have also been reported from this area (as was the first state record of Pyrrhuloxia!), so keep eyes and ears open.
Habitat - Urban/Suburban, Park/Cemetery, Lowland Riparian, Stream, Grassland/Prairie, Pond/Lake/Reservoir
Directions - Holly is along US 50 four miles west of the Kansas border. To get to the cemetery, head north on 1st Avenue (CR 35) on the east end of town a quarter mile and turn right (east) onto CR FF.2. The cemetery is at the end of this road. To get to the Arkansas River SWA, go all the way east on US 50 to the state line and turn south on CR 39. Follow this road through several twists and turns as it winds down towards the river, about 1.5 miles away. Do not attempt the trip if the road is wet.
Delorme - 103 D6
Roads of Colorado - 127 D3-E3
Bristol
Aliases - Cottonwood Creek Marsh
Description - This tiny town actually has a couple pretty dense thickets worth checking for migrants. Sunnyslope Cemetery northwest of town may attract good birds with its small conifers, and the sewage ponds southeast of town can have a good variety of shorebirds and ducks.
About five miles west of town is a private pond along Cottonwood Creek on the east side of CR 19 which can be barely scanned from a distance. The north side of this pond is a good-sized marsh which extends nearly to the county road. This is the only known site for Black Rail in Prowers County. Dickcissels can abound in summer, and Burrowing Owls are in prairie-dog towns north and east of the marsh.
Habitat - Urban/Suburban, Pond/Lake/Reservoir
Directions - From US 50 in Granada, follow US 385 north across the Arkansas River. To get to the sewage ponds, go 1.5 miles north of the river is the intersection with CR KK/CO 196. Turn right on CR KK and take another immediate right onto a dirt track that leads down to the sewage ponds. To get to the town, continue north on 385 another half mile. To get to the Black Rail marsh, head west on KK/196 about 5.5 miles to CR 19 and turn right (north). A mile north, turn right (east) on CR LL. The marsh is to the left (south), and the pond is south of that.
Delorme - 103 D5
Roads of Colorado - 126 C3
Granada
Description - There are a couple of cemeteries south of this town, but they are probably not nearly as good for migrants as the town itself, which has much larger shade trees. Just southwest of town is the site of the Amache Japanese Internment Camp, which has many small trees but is worth visiting not so much for its birding potential as for its sobering historical significance.
Habitat - Urban/Suburban
Directions - Granada is on US 50/US 385, sixteen miles east of Lamar.
Delorme - 103 D5
Roads of Colorado - 126 C3
Mike Higbee State Wildlife Area
Description - If you are headed east from Lamar towards Holly during migration, you might want to schedule a stop at this small SWA. Some small hedgerows, mostly of Russian-olive, surround the maintenance buildings to the east of the SWA sign. The SWA also overlooks a creek with a very few trees, but some decent marsh habitat. Northern Bobwhite, Virginia Rail, Sora, Green Heron, Belted Kingfisher, Eastern Kingbird, Common Yellowthroat, Blue Grosbeak and Orchard Oriole are all possible here. Black Rail has been reported from here too, but not confirmed.
Habitat - Hedgerow/Shelterbelt, Stream
Directions - Mike Higbee SWA is four miles east of Lamar on the south side of US 50/US 385.
Delorme - 99 D7
Roads of Colorado - 126 B3
Arena Dust Tours (Prairie-chicken lek viewing)
Description - Fred and Norma Dorenkamp run prairie-chicken tours in April out of their home six miles northeast of Granada. The Dorenkamps, longtime residents of this area, have established good relationships with several private landowners who have Lesser Prairie-chicken leks on their properties. At this time, the only way to see prairie-chickens in Prowers County is on an Arena Dust tour. $50/person will get you the guided tour plus a subsequent breakfast. It is possible to stay in Lamar, 17 miles to the west; alternatively, the Dorenkamps are willing to put tour participants up as guests in their home. They have two rooms with double beds available for $55 apiece.
Habitat - Grassland/Prairie
Directions - To schedule a tour for any day in April, contact Fred or Norma Dorenkamp at 719-688-3970 or 719-688-3969 (evenings: 719-734-5226), or by email at arena_dust@yahoo.com. For more information, see their website at www.arenadusttours.com.
Delorme - 103 D5
Roads of Colorado - 126 C3