Explore Minnesota Birding Update, Dec. 4, 2014
During the month of December, Christmas Bird Counts are held throughout the state, and volunteers are needed. This is a great way to meet fellow birders, and beginner and experienced birders are encouraged to participate!
The following is a list of recent, significant sightings:
At least one of the two Common Eiders discovered on Lake Superior in east Duluth on November 10th is still being seen. To view this bird, begin looking at 21st Avenue East, and check points eastward. A Pacific Loon is also being reported in the vicinity.
A Golden-Crowned Sparrow is also being seen in Duluth. This bird is visiting several feeders near 44th Avenue East and Regent Street. Most observations are from the alley behind the houses.
On the 29th, two White-Winged Scoters were found on the Mississippi River near Sartell in Stearns County. Birders will want to begin at Stearns County Road 133, travel south on County Road 1 and look for Rotary Park. One bird was seen to the north of the park and the second was seen to the south.
There was a first-year Glaucous Gull at the west end of Black Dog Lake in Dakota County on December 2nd.
On November 30th, Shawn Conrad reported a Townsend's Solitaire in Coleraine in Itasca County. It was in a crabapple tree across from the main entrance to the Van Dyke Elementary School. Another was seen on the 29th by Brian Smith in Redwood County along on 440th Street, four-tenths of a mile west of County Road 7.
And several Snowy Owls have appeared in the past several days. One is being seen along Todd County Road 5, four and a half miles north of Long Prairie. Another is in Chisago County just north of Rush City along County Road 3, about a quarter of a mile east of County Road 30. On the 1st, one was seen in downtown Minneapolis at the junction of Washington Avenue and 3rd Avenue. And in Sherburne County, two are being seen north of Big Lake and south of U.S. Highway 10 along County Road 17.
Information in this statewide birding report is provided by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU), Minnesota's oldest and largest bird club. View photographs of recent sightings at the MOU website. To submit a bird sighting, email the MOU birding report compiler at rba@moumn.org.
