On Saturday, January 31, a capacity crowd of eager Evergreen Audubon members descended on Steele Street Park to begin a good day’s birding along one of northern stretches of the South Platte River near Denver. This river reach is an interesting mix of commerce, industry, residential neighborhoods, parks, and riverside trails, resulting in a surprisingly diverse range of habitats and birds close to Denver’s urban center. Discharge of the city’s treated wastewater effluent upstream of our planned route keeps the river open, and, when not fully ice covered, numerous reservoirs scattered along the banks of the river provide additional habitat for water birds.
Waterfowl are a major reason to be on the South Platte this time of year. As we birded the Steele Park reach, we had great opportunities to view a number of the winter waterfowl that are present, including Northern Shovelers, American Wigeons, Northern Pintails, Green-winged Teal, Ring-necked Ducks, and Common Goldeneyes. The males of these species were all in their striking breeding plumage, and as they were all starting to pair, provided us with opportunities to compare and identify the less colorful females.
However, waterfowl were not the only visually striking birds. We had a great opportunity to observe a Prairie Falcon right by the parking lot at Steele Street Park, as we discussed the field marks of this species and compared it to the related but smaller and differently colored American Kestrel.
We then caravaned to the South Platte River Trailhead at 74th Street directly adjacent to the river and upstream of our first stop. We then walked upstream to the junction of the South Platte and Clear Creek, seeing many of the same waterfowl species. Stream junctures often provide good opportunities for observing because these junctures appear to provide sandbars and shoals that attract waterfowl and shorebirds. Of particular note here was the presence of what we identified as a possible hybrid Common/Barrows Goldeneye, based on the intermediate back feather coloration, as well as head shape and color.
Our final stop was along the South Platte near 64th and York Streets. This stretch is where Denver’s treated effluent discharges into the river, with a quieter stretch upstream of the discharge. Black-Crowned Night Herons are commonly observed roosting at this site and we were not disappointed. We saw eight birds, one of which was a clearly first-year juvenile, and another that we conjectured to be a second-year juvenile starting to come into its full adult plumage, showing a grey crown and other intermediate plumage characteristics. Two overflights of American White Pelicans completed our visit to this site and the end of our walk.
Our time on the South Platte demonstrated that great birding opportunities occur in winter, and I hope everyone takes the opportunity to get to these and other sites and take in the wonder of winter waterfowl, and our other birds.
See you in the field! Ed Furlong
Northern Stretches of the South Platte near Denver
Jan 31, 2026 8:00 AM – 1:05 PM
40 species (+1 possible hybrid species)
14 participants
Canada Goose 147
Northern Shoveler 272
Gadwall 126
American Wigeon 6
Mallard 37
Northern Pintail 43
Green-winged Teal 22
Ring-necked Duck 15
Lesser Scaup 18
Bufflehead 20
Common Goldeneye 17
Common/Barrow’s Goldeneye 1
Hooded Merganser 26
Common Merganser 4
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 21
American Coot 65
Killdeer 1
Ring-billed Gull 47
Pied-billed Grebe 1
Double-crested Cormorant 9
Black-crowned Night Heron 8
American White Pelican 43
Bald Eagle 1
Red-tailed Hawk 4
Belted Kingfisher 3
Downy Woodpecker 2
Prairie Falcon 1
Black-billed Magpie 2
House Finch 6
Song Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 6