Even in the early morning at Westminster Hills Open Space, crisp air gives way to the beginnings of dry heat, rising alongside sun and song. Western Meadowlarks chirp melodies to the percussive rhythm of dirt and gravel crunching underfoot.
A handful of people are out here before 8 a.m., practicing their morning rituals; some with dogs, some with coffee, some with headphones, some sporting a combination of all three.
Approaching the Yucca Loop, a central oval where many of the trails in Westminster Hills connect, a series of buck-and-rail barricades placed every 150 feet or so are the only man-made adornments on an otherwise natural network of trails through prairie grasses. The rustic A-frames are positioned to block the informal, trampled paths that cut through the center of this oval, with bolted signs that read “WILDLIFE PROTECTION ZONE: DO NOT ENTER.”
These are the first signs, both literal and figurative, that something very special is occurring in this space. The second sign is the presence of a man named Jeff.
Jeff Birek, an ornithologist contracted by the City of Westminster, is stationed along a trail closely monitoring the situation inside the protection zone with a powerful tripod-mounted scope.
The barricades and warning signs are one result of a nesting pair of burrowing owls that has taken up residence in Westminster Hills. The more exciting results are the four healthy chicks that have emerged from their chosen burrow.
“Monitoring any nest that is protected in any way is always something special,” Birek said. “These are birds that we are not taking as a given that will be here for the next generation.”
Burrowing owls are a rare sight in suburbia. The species is in decline nationwide, and recent studies estimate that only around 3,500 burrowing owls remain in Colorado. They are more common in the eastern part of the state but have been pushed westward as development and agriculture consume wild prairie.
The fact that these owls have chosen to call Westminster Hills home is no small feat for those in charge of preserving an area that receives 750,000 visits per year. Burrowing owls are picky by nature, and have been known to abandon a nesting site even if the grass grows slightly too tall and obscures their view of potential predators.
“For me, this is an indicator of how great this space is,” Birek said. “This is an imperiled mixed-grass prairie and only exists in a few places around here. There’s not that many places you can go where that balance is being kept as well as it’s been kept here.”
The latest balancing act began earlier this year once the burrowing owls were confirmed to be nesting within the Yucca Loop. A protective perimeter was set up in March following Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) guidelines of a 660-foot minimum distance from the burrow.
Similar closures have happened in neighboring communities such as Boulder, where the Vesper Trail was closed in 2024 in response to two nesting pairs of burrowing owls.
Temporary barricades were erected in Westminster Hills but deemed by some as unclear and insufficient for keeping dogs – and the occasional dog owner – out of the protected area. Connecting all the barricades with a continuous fence would disrupt the movement of wildlife, so park rangers are trusting dog owners to connect the dots for their pets and keep them away from the owls.
Before the barricades went up, Linda Bova, a volunteer with Westy Dog Park Guardians, a group that frequently partners with the City to protect and preserve Westminster Hills, passed out flyers to inform residents about the new protected zone around the owl nests. Bova brings along her seven-year-old golden retriever Hank to walk the trails and educate the public on the temporary closure.
“We’re all for it,” Bova said about enforcing the protective area. “We want to work with the rangers. Just because we love dogs doesn’t mean we don’t love wildlife.”
While park rangers say education and conversation have mostly been successful, staff find themselves needing to inform some visitors that their dogs need to be under voice control to be off leash in the area. Loud yells of “Come on!” “Get back here!” or “Leave it!” work for most, but for some dogs, the call of the critters is all-consuming.
“There’s always a risk because it just takes one dog to get in there and cause a problem,” Birek said. “One dog at the wrong time goes in, kills all the chicks. It’s just a flash if that happens or not.”
Arvada resident Ken Katz and his dog Frida – full name Frida K after Mexican painter Frida Kahlo – frequent the space and don’t mind the closure one bit.
“It’s a minimal inconvenience,” Katz said while on his usual bike ride with Frida. “It reinforces that this community is outdoor- minded, and they provide facilities like this, 470 acres as a place for people to go with their dogs and have a blast.”
Residents can expect the wildlife protection zone to remain in place until October 31, 2026, as recommended by CPW, to give the owls the best possible chance of a successful nesting season.
In the meantime, Katz said he plans to continue to visit Westminster Hills most mornings before it gets too hot, even if that means he will be riding an alternate route until the owls are done nesting.
“I’m turning 70, so I need my exercise, and she’s a border collie-heeler so you can’t run her enough,” he said. “This place is my savior. It’s my religion. Not to offend anybody who’s really religious, but for me this is spirituality, the whole thing. I mean, look at that view!”
To view the trail map and learn more about the wildlife protection zone, visit www.westminsterco.gov/381/Open-Space-Trails.