[mou] Birding around the metro

[Steve Weston]

This evening (Tuesday) about 7pm I had the opportunity to check out a couple of shorebird spots in Dakota County.  The first was a large pond with exposed shore on 170th Street just east of Pilot Knob in the northeast corner of Lakeville.  This is pretty good shorebird habitat.  I found about 20 Killdeer, 20 Semi-palmated Sandpipers, and 3 Pectoral Sandpipers close to the road allowing for easy examination.  Across the lake were what appeared to be a couple of Lesser Yellowlegs and another peep, but poor lighting and distance greatly impinged on my confidence.

I headed down to the Empire sod farms to check for Buff-breasted Sandpipers.  A flock of 16 Buff-breasted feeding under the irrigation sprinkler brought me to an unexpected screeching halt at the Braun sod fields about a mile west of the Jirik fields.  I never find anything of interest here, so I never give the fields more than a glance.

I continued east to the Jirik sod fields, which were dry and vacant save a few Killdeer, swallows, and other passerines that did not capture my attention.  Late for a meeting, I headed back the way I came.  But, the Braun fields were crawling with sandpipers.  I counted 80 Buff-breasted and a couple or three Killdeer.  I suspect that the flock of 55 that had been at Jirik, were now at the Braun sod fields.

Other birds of note included a Loon flying over I-694 near US 61 today.  Yesterday I saw a soaring Red-shouldered Hawk above I-35e near the river.  On Sunday, I had a hummingbird check out my empty feeder.  Hopefully it will return now that it is filled.  That evening I saw two bats flying above the lake.  Their flight eliminated the Pipistrelle, but I lack the knowledge to ID them, although I would suspect that they were either Little or Big Brown Bat. Our evenings include regular serenades by a local Barred Owl that sings close to the house.  On Moday, I stopped on a road in Eagan to check out a mouse like animal that was dead in the road.  As soon as I stopped, the mouse scuried into the grass.  I assume it was a Meadow Vole.  Other wildlife has gone by too fast to ID or was too common to note.

Steve Weston on Quiggley Lake in Eagan, MN
sweston2 at comcast.net



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