WhenToBird

Birding spot · Arapahoe County, Colorado

Birding at South Platte Pk\ Carson Nature Area (Cooley Lake): What You'll See Each Week

In November, the birds most often reported at South Platte Pk\ Carson Nature Area (Cooley Lake) are Mallard (93%), Gadwall (87%), and Bufflehead (86%). It is busiest in spring, when 80 species turn up on at least 1 in 20 checklists, and species counts peak in late August (87 species). 166 species have been reported here across 1,101 complete checklists from 362 birders.

Species by week

020406080100Jan 1-7: 50 species on 5%+ of 69 checklistsJan 8-14: 55 species on 5%+ of 44 checklistsJan 15-21: 45 species on 5%+ of 23 checklistsJan 22-31: 52 species on 5%+ of 32 checklistsFeb 1-7: 49 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsFeb 8-14: 52 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsFeb 15-21: 48 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsFeb 22-28: 61 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsMar 1-7: 54 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsMar 8-14: 58 species on 5%+ of 33 checklistsMar 15-21: 58 species on 5%+ of 29 checklistsMar 22-31: 58 species on 5%+ of 46 checklistsApr 1-7: 66 species on 5%+ of 25 checklistsApr 8-14: 58 species on 5%+ of 21 checklistsApr 15-21: 66 species on 5%+ of 22 checklistsApr 22-30: 85 species on 5%+ of 57 checklistsMay 1-7: 74 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsMay 8-14: 86 species on 5%+ of 31 checklistsMay 15-21: 73 species on 5%+ of 21 checklistsMay 22-31: 71 species on 5%+ of 25 checklistsJun 1-7: 59 species on 5%+ of 22 checklistsJun 8-14: low data (8 checklists)Jun 15-21: 65 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsJun 22-30: 68 species on 5%+ of 20 checklistsJul 1-7: 66 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsJul 8-14: 63 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsJul 15-21: low data (6 checklists)Jul 22-31: 54 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsAug 1-7: 62 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsAug 8-14: low data (9 checklists)Aug 15-21: 59 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsAug 22-31: 87 species on 5%+ of 19 checklistsSep 1-7: 75 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsSep 8-14: 57 species on 5%+ of 22 checklistsSep 15-21: low data (8 checklists)Sep 22-30: 66 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsOct 1-7: 69 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsOct 8-14: low data (7 checklists)Oct 15-21: 56 species on 5%+ of 21 checklistsOct 22-31: 73 species on 5%+ of 20 checklistsNov 1-7: 64 species on 5%+ of 18 checklistsNov 8-14: 64 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsNov 15-21: 57 species on 5%+ of 27 checklistsNov 22-30: 58 species on 5%+ of 31 checklistsDec 1-7: 48 species on 5%+ of 23 checklistsDec 8-14: 59 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsDec 15-21: 51 species on 5%+ of 31 checklistsDec 22-31: 56 species on 5%+ of 35 checklistsJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Number of species reported on at least 5% of complete checklists, by week (4 per month). Grey bars: fewer than 10 checklists, not counted.

In November: what to expect

  1. 1Mallard93%
  2. 2Gadwall87%
  3. 3Bufflehead86%
  4. 4Black-capped Chickadee79%
  5. 5American Wigeon78%
  6. 6Northern Shoveler77%
  7. 7Black-billed Magpie71%
  8. 8Canada Goose70%
  9. 9Hooded Merganser70%
  10. 10Common Goldeneye69%
  11. 11Belted Kingfisher66%
  12. 12Northern Flicker65%
  13. 13Red-tailed Hawk63%
  14. 14American Coot60%
  15. 15Green-winged Teal58%

Share of complete checklists at this spot that reported the bird in November. The sparkline is the whole year, with this month highlighted.

Season by season

Winter 50 species

  1. Mallard96%
  2. Bufflehead92%
  3. Common Goldeneye92%
  4. Hooded Merganser84%
  5. Gadwall83%

Spring 80 species

  1. Mallard94%
  2. Black-capped Chickadee83%
  3. Red-winged Blackbird82%
  4. American Robin82%
  5. Northern Flicker76%

Summer 65 species

  1. Mallard92%
  2. Northern Yellow Warbler82%
  3. Northern House Wren80%
  4. Black-capped Chickadee75%
  5. Mourning Dove74%

Fall 72 species

  1. Mallard93%
  2. Black-capped Chickadee85%
  3. Northern Flicker74%
  4. Belted Kingfisher69%
  5. Black-billed Magpie63%

Specialties

Birds reported far more often here than across Colorado.

Nearby spots

Frequency is the share of complete checklists at this location that listed the bird, 2016–2025. Busy places report more of everything, and the weekly chart counts species on at least 5% of checklists so a few stray reports do not inflate it. How to read it.