Scarlet Tanager at Boulder, Colorado
Scarlet Tanager at Boulder, Colorado
Although there have been several published reports of the Scarlet Tanager (Piranga erythromelas) in Colorado, it seems desirable to place on record an additional observation which recently was made. The previous records are all of some years back, no records later than those summarized by W. L. &later (A History of the Birds of Colorado, London, 1922: 410-411) having been found by the writer in a survey of the literature. The record of this species in California (Miller and Miller, Condor, 32, 1930:217) is, of course, much more remarkable than a Colorado record. Nevertheless, the last Colorado record seems to have been in 1904, and the only previous observation for the Denver-Boulder area is based on a specimen said to have been collected by E. L. Berthoud near Golden in 1867.
On May 8, 1940, Elliot Miller and Gwen France, two students in ornithology at the University of Colorado, reported a male Scarlet Tanager on the University campus at Boulder. The bird was seen by me on the same day. It remained among the small trees and shrubs about a pond quite near the biology building for three days, being seen on May 8, 9, and 10. It was not reported after the latter date. Many students, including all members of my class in ornithology, and several faculty members observed the bird at close quarters. It was in the brilliant plumage of the fully mature male, and there was no question of its identification. It appeared perfectly normal in behavior. No attempt was made to collect the bird.
Gordon Alexander
Department of Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, March 17, 1941
