[mou] Duluth RBA 10/30/03

[David R. Benson]

This is the Duluth Birding Report for Thursday, October 30, 2003, sponsored
by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.

Kim Eckert reported a female plumage LAZULI BUNTING from Cook County on the
26th. The bird was near mile marker 121, 11 miles east of Grand Marais or 2
miles east of Paradise Beach. The SAGE THRASHER was  seen as recently as
Tuesday the 28th in Grand Marais. Jim Lind found a VARIED THRUSH near
Silver Bay on the shore of Lake Superior on Sunday.

With the Grand Marais Birding Festival taking place and other groups of
birders in Grand Marais, there were many interesting sightings last
weekend, including PACIFIC LOONS reported from Paradise Beach and from
Grand Marais on the 25th, several sightings of all three scoters, 3
HARLEQUIN DUCKS at Paradise Beach, a LONG-EARED OWL at Artist's Point on
the 26th, a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE at Artist's Point, a BOREAL CHICKADEE at
Magney Park on the 26th, plus several late warblers, including NASHVILLE,
NORTHERN PARULA, CAPE MAY, BLACKPOLL , and AMERICAN REDSTART.

This afternoon there were six BLACK SCOTERS in the harbor at the boat
landing at Park Point in Duluth. Mike Hendrickson reported a WHITE-WINGED
SCOTER at Part Point yesterday; he also saw an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER.

On the 27th, Sparky Stensaas reported SHARP-TAILED GROUSE displaying on the
lek near Meadowlands on St. Louis Cty Rd 29, 1.8 miles north of 133. He
also reported BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER is still lingering in the Pine
Plantation at Hawk Ridge. Don Kienholz reported that the Black-backed at
the Lester Park Golf Course was still near the lower parking lot as
recently as Monday. Don also noted PINE GROSBEAKS and a GREATER YELLOWLEGS
this week.

Judy Gibbs reported a partial-albino AMERICAN CROW with all-white primaries
and secondaries northeast of Stoney Point on the 27th. On the 25th, Nancy
Swanson had a SANDHILL CRANE in her yard in Solway Township. On the 23rd,
birders from St. Paul reported an immature PARASITIC JAEGER from Burlington
Bay in Two Harbors. Jim Lind saw a very late VEERY in Two Harbors on the
23rd, and it was seen again on the 25th.

The next scheduled update of this report will be on Thursday,November 9th.

The phone number for the Duluth Birding Report is (218) 728-5030, and
callers can report bird sightings if they wish after the tone at the end of
each tape.

The Duluth Birding Report is sponsored and funded by the Minnesota
Ornithologists' Union (MOU) as a service to its members.  For more
information on the MOU, either write us c/o the Bell Museum of Natural
History, 10 Church Street SE, Minneapolis MN 55455; or send an e-mail to
mou@cbs.umn.edu; or visit the MOU web site at mou.mn.org.