Barr Lake State Park is located in Brighton, northeast of downtown Denver in Colorado's eastern plains. Barr Lake attracts over 350 migratory and resident avian species including white pelicans, great blue herons, cormorants, egrets, bald eagles, golden eagles and several types of hawks and falcons. Barr Lake is also home to coyote, badger, fox, rabbit, mule deer and white tail deer - one of few places in the Denver front range where these two commingle.

Eagles molt in patches, taking almost half a year to replace feathers, starting with the head and working downward

Barr Lake supports rainbow trout, walleye, wiper, tiger muskie, largemouth bass, yellow perch, crappie, bluegill and channel, blue and flathead catfish

The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a member of the sea and fish eagle group

Barr Lake is one of few places in the Denver area where mule and white tail deer commingle

There are at least 7 subspecies of Canada Geese, though all display very similar traits

Before settlement, Barr Lake was a deflation basin used by buffalo as a wallow

Golden Eagles are more closely related to hawks than to Bald Eagles; Bald Eagles are more closely related to kites

Open shorelines and sandbars expose food and attract scores of birds

Redwing Black Birds are among North America's most numerous and widely distributed birds

Bald eagles can reach 10,000', and speeds of 30-35 mph at level flight

Before water diversion and habitat fragmentation, buffalo used Barr Lake as a wallow

Bald eagles can weigh 10 - 14 lbs with 72 - 90 inch wingspans (females are slightly larger than males)

The primary difference between mule and white-tail deer antlers is that mule deer antlers fork as they grow, vs. branching from a single main beam

Fall colors on the north shores of Barr Lake

More than 350 species of migratory birds have been documented in Barr Lake State Park

Rainbow trout, walleye, wiper, tiger muskie, largemouth bass, yellow perch, crappie and flathead catfish can be fished in Barr Lake

Red-winged blackbirds are among the most numerous and widely distributed birds in the world

A group of geese take to the air over Barr Lake

Several wildlife blinds ring the lake for observing bald eagle nests

A red winged blackbird rests in a tree near the Nature Center

Mule deer frequent the south side of Barr Lake - a protected wildlife refuge

Once paired, bald eagles remain together until one dies