January 7, 2011 Explore Minnesota Birding Report
During the months of January and February, keep an eye out for great gray and snowy owls, as well as snow buntings, lapland longspurs, hoary redpolls, and American tree sparrows. Open water areas along rivers are great to view Canada geese, trumpeter swans, and mallards - if you look closely, you may also see common goldeneyes, American mergansers, and American black ducks. And the section of the Mississippi River between Red Wing and Wabasha in southeastern Minnesota offers an adundance of sites to view bald eagles. Anyone wanting more information on southeastern Minnesota phenology, should check out the Eagle Bluff Environmental Learing Center blog site.
The following is a list of significant sightings:
On January 5th, Bill Unzen reported an adult gray-morph Gyrfalcon near the junction of Lac qui Parle County Roads 66 and 69.
On January 4th, a Snowy Owl was found by Dan and Barbara Williams on the west side of Lake of the Woods County Road 3, between County Roads 35 and 1.
A Northern Hawk Owl was still along McDavitt Road in the Sax-Zim Bog on the 5th, approximately two miles north of Sax Road.
A Great Gray Owl was seen on the 4th in the Sax-Zim Bog along St. Louis County Road 7, one-quarter of a mile north of County Road 133. Another was seen on the 6th along the Hedbom Logging Road in Aitkin County, two and a half miles west of the east gate. And a Great Gray Owl was in Lake County on the 1st along State Highway 1, roughly three miles south of Spruce Road.
Numerous gulls are still in the Duluth harbor, including Thayer's Gull, Iceland Gull, Glaucous Gull, and Great Black-Backed Gull.
Matt Mecklenburg found a female American Three-Toed Woodpecker in Lake County on the 1st along the old Tomahawk Road, roughly five miles east of State Highway 1.
A Townsend's Solitaire is still being seen at the north end of Lake Vadnais feeding in the cedars on the west side of Sucker Lake Road, about one-third of a mile south of Ramsey County Road F.
A Varied Thrush is being seen in Aitkin County. Birders interested in seeing the bird should contact the landowner, Dolores, at 218/549-3158 for permission and directions.
And a Harris's Sparrow is overwintering at Koni Frank's feeder in Dassel, in Meeker County, along 708th Avenue.
Information in this statewide birding report is provided by and financially supported by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU), Minnesota's oldest and largest bird club. The report is composed from reports submitted by MOU members and other birders throughout the state. You can support this weekly birding update by submitting your bird reports to Anthony Hertzel at axhertzel@gmail.com or by calling the hotline directly at 763-780-8890 and leaving a detailed message. MOU members receive the organization's quarterly journal "The Loon," and the bi-monthly magazine, "Minnesota Birding." For membership information, send an e-mail message to our membership secretary at membership@moumn.org
"The information in this report is provided courtesy of the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union and Explore Minnesota Tourism."
