[mou] 2005 MOU Field Trip Schedule

[M. Thomas Auer]

Hello MOU Members,

For 2005, I'll be acting as the MOU's Field Trip Chairman. I want to
thank Mike Hendrickson for nominating me for the position and those
who have helped me so far.

I've just finalized my trip schedule for the year and am making the
official announcement and opening the trips to participants. I'm happy
with the schedule I've put together and I think it will be an exciting
year.

The schedule is designed to give MOU members personally guided access
to a large variety of Minnesota's birds, in different parts of the
state at different times of the year. These trips are open to birders
of all skill levels and everyone should feel welcome. One of the goals
of these trips is to offer birders a chance to advance their
identification skills and the leaders will always work hard to make
sure that everybody sees the bird!

Myself and another co-leader will be guiding each weekend, providing
assistance throughout the trip. I like to keep the experience friendly
and personal, so I'm going to put a limit of 25 birders per trip. I
will keep a waiting list, incase people have to cancel and others are
interested.

The schedule follows:

April 16th and 17th =E2=80=93 Rock County=20
Base: Luverne
=09The far southwest corner of the state is considerably different from
the rest of the state with places like Blue Mounds SP. Spring
migration always has a good possibility of producing western vagrants
and strays, such as Spotted Towhee, Mountain Bluebird, Rock Wren and
Prairie Falcon. We have a good chance of seeing Great-tailed Grackle
and Black-headed Gull. The timing will be such that plenty of
waterfowl and raptors will still be present, but some shorebirds and
some passerines will also be arriving.

May 14th and 15th =E2=80=93 Lac Qui Parle Co.
Base: Montevideo
=09If you keep your eye on The Loon seasonal reports or North American
Birds, you may have noticed that this county is a variable "hot spot"
this weekend in May. Last year Black Rail, Curlew Sandpiper, Burrowing
Owl, Say's Phoebe, and Black-headed Grosbeak were all found here at
this time of year. Warblers and shorebirds should be at their peak.
Overall, a big list of birds is expected. Not a trip to miss!

May 21st and 22nd =E2=80=93 Southeast Specialties
Base: Winona
=09The very southeast corner of the state has been known to harbor
numerous species which make restricted appearances in the state, such
as: Acadian Flycatcher, Bell's Vireo, Blue-winged Warbler, Cerulean
Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, and Hooded
Warbler. We'll work the bottomlands for these and other species,
hoping to run into an "overshoot" migrant from the south.

September 17th =E2=80=93 Duluth Migration (one day)
Base: Duluth
=09This one day trip around the Duluth area will cover all the local
migrant traps and funnels. Last year, during this time 22 species of
Warbler were seen. If the weather cooperates (cloudy and foggy), a
good fallout could occur. All types and species of bird are fair game
at this point in fall migration in Duluth. As well, we'll spend some
time looking for Jaegers and vagrant gulls, such as Little or
Sabine's, on Lake Superior.

October 15th and 16th =E2=80=93 Northshore
Base: Duluth and Grand Marais
=09There's no place most birders in Minnesota would rather be in the
peak of fall migration than on the Northshore. The trip will start in
Duluth and work its way north to Grand Marais, hitting all the best
spots for migrants on the way up. Saturday night, we'll stay in Grand
Marais and hopefully make a stop to Bill Lane's owl banding station
that night, to see some Saw-whet Owl migration in action. On Sunday,
we'll bird around Grand Marais, then head back to Duluth. The whole
time, I'll be keeping an ear to the grapevine for any vagrants that
may have appeared on the northshore.

November 19th =E2=80=93 Gulls, Gulls, Gulls (one day)
Base: Duluth
=09Late November is the best time of the year for migrant and vagrant
gulls on the Great Lakes and the Duluth/Superior area is no exception.
If you're looking to hone your gull identification, then this is the
trip for you. Up to 8 species of Gulls can be expected and hopefully
well studied. The Knife River, Canal Park, Superior Entry, and
(hopefully (fingers-crossed)) the Superior Landfill will all be
locations where we will spend time.



If you would like to sign up for one of these trips, please send an
email to me and I'll put you on the list.


Good Birding!
Tom Auer
Duluth, MN