Explore Minnesota Birding Report August 5, 2011
The fall migration has already begun, with the first shorebirds gathering to fly south - watch for them on shallow wetlands and mudflats. Birders will also want to consider a trip to the Minnesota River dam in Granite Falls, the dam near Watson, and the Spillway on Marsh Lake in Appleton to view the many American white pelicans.
The following information has been provided courtesy of the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union. This report is brought to you by ExploreMinnesota.com.
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The following is a list of recent, significant sightings:
Nine Buff-Breasted Sandpipers were found by Jan Kraemer on August 1st at the Park Point Recreation Area ball fields in Duluth. On July 29th, Bob Williams found several Buff-Breasted Sandpipers in a field on the south side of McLeod County Road 5, roughly two miles west of County Road 1. John Cyrus reported them in Carver County on the 30th in a field just north of the Salem Avenue sod farm. On the same day, Jim Ryan found them in Rice County in a field on the west side of Goodhue Avenue, just south of 90th Street. And on July 31st, Steve Weston found them at Etter bottoms in Goodhue County.
Other shorebirds reported over the past several days include Semipalmated Plover, Lesser Yellowlegs, Solitary Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, and Pectoral Sandpiper.
And on August 4th, Bruce Baer reported a Swainson's Hawk in Dakota County at Mile Post 24 of State Highway 3.
Information in this statewide birding report is provided by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU), Minnesota's oldest and largest bird club. To submit a bird sighting, email the MOU birding report compiler at rba@moumn.org.
