[mou] Duluth RBA 9/15/05

[Jim Lind]

This is the Duluth Birding Report for Thursday, September 15th, 
sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.

The highest raptor count of the season so far occurred at Hawk Ridge 
on the 14th.  More than 13,700 raptors were seen, including 12,560 
BROAD-WINGED HAWKS.  Most of these were immature birds, so the main 
movement of adult Broad-wings is probably yet to come.  The 13th saw 
another big push of landbirds along the North Shore, with 256 
passerines banded at Hawk Ridge and more than 3,000 warblers seen 
flying past the overlook.  A WOOD THRUSH was banded at the Ridge on 
the 12th.

Two PARASITIC JAEGERS and a possible LONG-TAILED JAEGER were found by 
Mike Hendrickson and Tom Auer on September 9th on Park Point near the 
Sky Harbor Airport.  Three juvenile SABINE'S GULLS were found here on 
the 8th by Bill Litkey.  The juvenile RED KNOT was relocated in the 
same area on the 11th by Scott Meyer and Doug Keiser.  Lars Benson 
saw a flock of more than 50 AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS flying over 
downtown Duluth on the 8th, and two were seen at Hawk Ridge on the 
11th.

A very early BLACK SCOTER was reported on the 12th from Five-Mile 
Rock northeast of Grand Marais by Denny and Barb Martin.  A LAPLAND 
LONGSPUR was seen in Two Harbors on the 9th.  Two GREAT EGRETS are 
still being seen at the Two Harbors golf course ponds, mainly along 
4th Street, a half mile north of Highway 61.  Two BUFF-BREASTED 
SANDPIPERS were found by Doug Buri on the breakwall at Agate Bay in 
Two Harbors on the 8th.

On September 14th, Janet Riegle found a juvenile LECONTE'S SPARROW in 
a wet grassy area behind Bayfront Park in downtown Duluth.  One was 
also seen at the Beaver Bay sewage ponds on the 13th, as well as a 
few RUSTY BLACKBIRDS.  Also on the 13th, Jan Green reported HARRIS'S 
SPARROW and WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW from Old North Shore Drive.  

The next scheduled update of this report will be on Thursday, 
September 22nd.

The telephone number of the Duluth Rare Bird Alert is 218-834-2858.  
Information about bird sightings may be left following the recorded 
message.

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 to 
mou@cbs.umn.edu, or visit the MOU web site at moumn.org.