[mou] Bohemians in Aitkin
Hagsela@aol.com
Hagsela@aol.com
Fri, 29 Dec 2006 03:58:21 EST
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On the 27th I saw a flock of 50 Bohemian Waxwings in the town of Aitkin.
They were resting in a tree (making quick trips to the snowy roof nearby
for 'water runs') along 3rd St. SW at the intersection with 1st Av. For
landmark lovers, take a left on the street just north of the grocery store as you
come from the south on Hwy 169. Sorry for the late post, but I stayed an extra
night in the area hoping to see a Great Gray Owl. (See below.)
I spent the 27th and the 28th on Hedbom Rd. looking for Great Gray Owls
and waxwings, but did not see any. (The 4 groups of birders I talked to on
the 27th had not seen the owls either. One had been in the area since about
9:00. I trolled the area from noon to dark on the 27th and from 7:30 to 10:30
a.m. on the 28th.) I had the breathtaking experience of watching two male
Black-backed Woodpeckers and one male American Three-toed Woodpecker working
three separate trees in a circle no more than 50 feet from our location. One
fellow was 7 feet off the ground. Thanks to the other birders who 1st spotted
these guys! I also saw only one small flock of Common Redpolls, 6-7 Gray
Jays, many BC Chickadees, one White-breasted and many Red-breasted Nuthatches.
Other birders saw a Barred Owl along the road. One of the groups of birders
I talked to had seen only one fly by of White-winged Crossbills. I marked
distances from gate to gate (just shy of 11.8 miles) because previously posted
directions were a bit confusing. According to my odometer, the main area of
BB and 3-toed woodpecker activity is from 9.1 to 9.5 miles east of the West
gate (coming from the direction of McGregor), or 2.2 to 2.6 miles west of the
East gate (coming from Floodwood). I believe this is the area the Great Grays
have been seen as well. The gash referred to as the county line as near as I
can tell is 1.9 miles from the East gate. That's the only clearly large swath
of cut land (other than narrow trails) along that part of the road.
On a truly individual, anecdotal note -- when I stopped in Palisade to
check out the feeders at various houses, I was surprised not to see any
redpolls at all. Every year (well, 4 years) 'til now redpolls were the dominant
species. In good numbers were American Goldfinches and Pine Siskins, which I'd
never seen at Palisade feeders before in winter.
Linda Sparling
Hennepin County
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<HTML><FONT FACE=3Darial,helvetica><HTML><FONT COLOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Gen=
eva" FAMILY=3D"SANSSERIF" SIZE=3D"2"> On the 27th I=20=
saw a flock of 50 Bohemian Waxwings in the town of Aitkin. They were=20=
resting in a tree (making quick trips to the snowy roof nearby for 'water ru=
ns') along 3rd St. SW at the intersection with 1st Av. For landmark l=
overs, take a left on the street just north of the grocery store as you come=
from the south on Hwy 169. Sorry for the late post, but I stayed an=20=
extra night in the area hoping to see a Great Gray Owl. (See below.)<BR>
I spent the 27th and the 28th on Hedbom Rd. looking=
for Great Gray Owls and waxwings, but did not see any. (The 4 groups=
of birders I talked to on the 27th had not seen the owls either. One=
had been in the area since about 9:00. I trolled the area from noon=20=
to dark on the 27th and from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. on the 28th.) I had t=
he breathtaking experience of watching two male Black-backed Woodpeckers and=
one male American Three-toed Woodpecker working three separate trees in a c=
ircle no more than 50 feet from our location. One fellow was 7 feet o=
ff the ground. Thanks to the other birders who 1st spotted these guys=
! I also saw only one small flock of Common Redpolls, 6-7 Gray Jays,=20=
many BC Chickadees, one White-breasted and many Red-breasted Nuthatches.&nbs=
p; Other birders saw a Barred Owl along the road. One of the groups=20=
of birders I talked to had seen only one fly by of White-winged Crossbills.&=
nbsp; I marked distances from gate to gate (just shy of 11.8 miles) because=
previously posted directions were a bit confusing. According to my o=
dometer, the main area of BB and 3-toed woodpecker activity is from 9.1 to 9=
.5 miles east of the West gate (coming from the direction of McGregor), or 2=
.2 to 2.6 miles west of the East gate (coming from Floodwood). I beli=
eve this is the area the Great Grays have been seen as well. The gash referr=
ed to as the county line as near as I can tell is 1.9 miles from the East ga=
te. That's the only clearly large swath of cut land (other than narro=
w trails) along that part of the road.<BR>
On a truly individual, anecdotal note -- when I sto=
pped in Palisade to check out the feeders at various houses, I was surprised=
not to see any redpolls at all. Every year (well, 4 years) 'til now=20=
redpolls were the dominant species. In good numbers were American Gol=
dfinches and Pine Siskins, which I'd never seen at Palisade feeders before i=
n winter.<BR>
<BR>
Linda Sparling<BR>
Hennepin County</FONT><FONT COLOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Geneva" FAMILY=3D"SANS=
SERIF" SIZE=3D"2"></FONT></HTML>
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