Spring has always been variable here in Colorado’s Front Range, and as a result, predicting where the birds will be is always a bit of a guessing game. Well, eleven Evergreen Audubon guessed well and showed up bright and early on Saturday March 28 to bird Barr Lake at Barr Lake State Park, and they were amply rewarded.
Barr Lake is an agricultural reservoir developed by the Farmers Reservoir and Irrigation Company (FRICO), a mutual ditch company, incorporated in 1902, to provide water for farmers in the Brighton, CO area. In 1908, FRICO expanded and combined two dam structures incorporating and expanding two smaller reservoirs into what is now Barr Lake. Ornithological study and birding have been a part of Barr Lake since 1909*, and was extensively studied by researchers from what is now the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Subsequently, much is known about the distribution of avifauna in this location and it has been a perennial favorite hot spot for birds along the Front Range.
The combination of plains plant communities, agricultural lands, and lake & stream riparian areas means that a wide array of different birds are typically found. Barr Lake itself was relatively full, storing water diverted from the South Platte for summer agricultural use. Thus walking the Niedrach and Perimeter trails along the lake’s south shore took us along and through marshy edges and flooded cottonwood stands where Wood Ducks and Cinnamon Teal were present. On the more open water , rafts of Gadwalls, Northern Shovelers, and Ring-Billed Gulls were observed.
Along the perimeter trail’s edge we were treated to seeing several nesting pairs of American Kestrels, using cavities in dead cottonwoods between the reservoir and the perimeter trail. Northern Harriers were kiting just above the grasslands opposite the cottonwoods. Eagles and Red-Tailed Hawks were soaring above these grasslands and above the trees beyond. Throughout our walk we were accompanied by the songs of Western Meadowlarks and Song Sparrows. Great birds wherever you looked or listened!
A nesting Barn Owl had been previously observed and reported, and we were fortunate to find the cavity it was nesting in. The Barn Owl was quite reluctant to reveal itself from within the cavity, but the unique facial disk, rounded head and eyes were sufficiently visible for us to feel confident in our identification, although we all agreed it took a lot of looking through the scope, then through the binoculars, then in the scope again to discern the Barn Owl’s features from the background colors and textures of the cottonwood cavity it occupied.
Barr Lake has the Eaglewatch Pavilion overlooking the southern, wildlife refuge component of the park. In previous years has been a good place to see wintering Bald Eagles roosting and in some springs observe nesting eagles. Wind storms have blown over roosting and nesting trees over the years, and Colorado Parks and WIldlife has put up nesting baskets to induce eagle nesting. We did not observe any active nests, but we did see one roosting bald eagle in that area. Even more interesting was a rookery of hundreds of Double-Crested Cormorants roosting, nesting and readily viewable from the pavilion. Great Blue Herons also found nesting sites amongst the cormorant nests, a novel occurrence. The appearance of several American White Pelicans at the pavilion was a fitting cap to great morning of birding
Less than 45 minutes from Evergreen, Barr Lake State Park is a reliable place in all seasons to see a range of habitats and birds characteristic of the Front Range Plains. Be sure to put it on your list of bird hot spots and get out there and enjoy some birding!
Ed Furlong
Evergreen Audubon
*Hersey, L. J. and Rockwell, Robt. B. (1909) “An Annotated List of the Birds of the Barr Lake District, Adams County, Colorado,” Condor: Vol. 11 : Iss. 4 , Article 1. Available at: ttps://digitalcommons.usf.edu/condor/vol11/iss4/1
Barr Lake State Park, Brighton US-CO 39.93309, -104.75376, Adams, Colorado, US
Mar 28, 2026 8:10 AM – 8:59 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.93 miles
38 species
Cackling Goose 11
Canada Goose (canadensis Group) 13
Wood Duck 7
Cinnamon Teal 2
Northern Shoveler 18
Gadwall 33
Mallard 6
Common Merganser 3
Wild Turkey 1
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 3
Mourning Dove 5
American Coot 20
Killdeer 7
Ring-billed Gull 150
Pied-billed Grebe 1
Horned Grebe 2
Double-crested Cormorant 130
Great Blue Heron 7
American White Pelican 3
Turkey Vulture 1
Golden Eagle 1
Northern Harrier 4
Bald Eagle 4
Red-tailed Hawk 7
American Barn Owl 1
Belted Kingfisher 1
Northern Flicker 3
American Kestrel 8
Prairie Falcon 1
American Crow 1
Black-capped Chickadee 2
European Starling 12
House Sparrow 24
White-crowned Sparrow 17
Song Sparrow 3
Western Meadowlark 17
Red-winged Blackbird 100
Great-tailed Grackle 7