Birding at Evergreen Lake - A Kingdom in the Cattails

Birding at Evergreen Lake

Spread out below Mount Evans, the Front Range foothills are an exquisite parcel in Colorado. There are dark forests, clear creeks, deep canyons and wide open meadows that support a diverse variety of wildlife but if it’s birds you’re looking for, Evergreen Lake is the place to be.

Formed when Bear Creek was dammed, the lake is a birder’s heaven centered around a riparian ecosystem that hosts a vast array of feathered friends. Red-winged blackbirds appears to rule the roost from their kingdom in the cattails while barn swallows are masters of flight that own the airspace just above the water’s surface.

Of course you’ll see some of the stereotypical waterfowl like Canada geese, crows, mallard ducks and prehistoric cormorants. There are also some more exotic species so on any given day you might see a great blue heron, a rufous hummingbird or a gang of masked bandits called cedar waxwings.

At the pond, we’ve also seen a hooded merganser, American dipper and dazzling goldfinches. I’ve never been able to get a pic of some of the majestic visitors like an osprey, bald eagle or belted kingfisher but I do take the time to observe one of the wetlands most unassuming creatures - the common muskrat.

Red-winged Blackbird

Barn Swallow

Canada Goose

American Crow

Mallard Duck

Double-crested Cormorant

Great Blue Heron

Rufous Humminbird

Cedar Waxwing

Hooded Merganser

Common Muskrat

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