Spanish Peaks/Lake Isabel CBCs The 17th Spanish Peaks CBC, 12-24-05, tallied a record number 56 species. The previous best was 53 species set in 1998.  An amazing 7 new birds were added to the Count: 10 Snow Geese at Town Lakes found by Dave Hamilton 2 Killdeer at the Golf Course (these birds were long expected for this Count) 1 N. Pygmy Owl on the Wahatoya Rd. 1 Say's Phoebe at the athletic field on Birch and Field 1 Gray Jay near the end of the Sulphur Springs Rd. found by Donna Emmons'party 1 Bewick's Wren on CSH 12 in pinyon/juniper trees near the sewage ponds overlook 7 Mountain Bluebirds (also long expected) just north of Town Lakes The bird of the day was undoubtably the N. Pygmy Owl found and photoed by Leon Bright, Tom Doerk, and Dave Moore.  It was even heard calling and posed nicely for its picture.  All birds should be this cooperative! Birds seen only one other time on the Count were: 2 Ferruginous Hawks--1 on CR#410 near the airport, and the other on Valley Rd. 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker toward the north end of Cherry Street. 10 Eastern Bluebirds on the Golf Course 1 N. Mockingbird on the Wahatoya Rd. Another "zootie" was a White-throated Sparrow in Cuchara, seen only 2 other times on this CBC. In Colorado City, Lake Beckwith seems to be the current hotspot with the following sightings: 1 juvenile G. White-fronted Goose 12-26-05 1 Long-eared Owl 12-26-05 1 Ladder-backed Woodpecker 12-25-05 1 Purple Finch 12-25-05 The Lake Isabel CBC, which includes the Colorado City area, will be held Sunday, January 1 2006. Meet 8AM at the Lake Beckwith Dam Parking Area on Cuerno Verde Blvd. about 3 miles west of the jct. of I-25 and CSH 165. Dave Silverman, compiler Lake Isabel/Spanish Peaks CBCs