Birds help us understand the health of our ecosystems and connecting people to nature builds a culture of stewardship and care. 

Every volunteer, visitor, and school group makes a huge difference in the community, because when we protect birds, we’re also protecting the air, water, land — and ourselves.

Mystery Bird

Did you guess the mystery bird from The Chat newsletter?

If you hover over the image to the right, you'll find a different picture of the bird.

This is a Brown-headed Cowbird! They are North America's most common "brood parasite". The females don't make nests and instead, lay their eggs in other species' nests. They have been found to lay eggs in over 200 different species!

This photo was taken in May 2023 at Walden Ponds by one of our volunteers, Laura Sheets. Thanks for sharing Laura!

Do you have a mystery bird that may seem tricky to identify? Email your picture to Jane, Volunteer Coordinator.

Important Dates

• July 26: Enrichment Program
• Backyard Birdscapes: How Native Plants Help Birds Thrive led by Denver Audubon and Denver Field Ornithologist Volunteer, Colorado Master Gardener Robert Sanchez

• August 24: Enrichment Program
• Native Plant Hike with naturalist Marah Green at O'Fallon Park in Kitteridge

• September 24: Enrichment Program
• Geology and Bird Hike at Roxborough State Park with Roxborough volunteers Betsy and John Healey, and Denver Audubon’s own Curt Frankenfeld

• October 12: You're Owl-some! A Day to Celebrate Our Volunteers!
• Join us for a special morning of celebration and appreciation as we recognize our incredible volunteers—be sure to register!

Feathered Feature:

The Blue Jay 

Words and photos by: Ainsley McWha 

The color blue does not exist in nature. Try telling this to a Blue Jay, whose vibrant plumage is so obviously blue against the verdant backdrop of our Colorado ecosystems. In reality, the birds’ feathers do not appear blue because of a naturally existing blue pigment but because of light manipulation: when light hits a Blue Jay feather, the blue light is refracted while the other wavelengths of visible light are absorbed by melanin—yes, the same brown pigment found in human hair and skin—making them merely appear blue. 

I grew up in eastern Canada; Blue Jays were a frequent visitor in my backyard. Later, I spent eight years living in rural Idaho, and during that time I saw only two Blue Jays. After relocating to the Denver area, I noticed that Blue Jays were quite common. This wasn’t always the case. The Blue Jay’s westward expansion is directly related to human activity: as more people moved west, they planted more trees and put up more bird feeders, essentially creating “stepping stones” for the adaptive Blue Jay to expand their habitat. There are now reports of these birds appearing as far west as the Washington coast and even north into British Columbia. 

Blue Jays are among the most vocal birds; it’s said they have upwards of 35 distinct calls. Even bird sound identifying apps won’t always be able to pinpoint a Blue Jay’s call. From experience, I know that when a group of Blue Jays are squawking in a tree, it is often because they are taunting another bird, like an owl or a hawk. 

Of course, I can’t understand what the Blue Jays are saying, but when they sit on the edge of the hanging empty wooden tray in my yard, I imagine they are calling out: “Where are the peanuts? Where are the peanuts?” 



A full tray elicits a separate call, as the jays call out to their friends, inviting them to share in the buffet. “The peanuts are here! The peanuts are here!”