[mou] Gyrfalcon, Dakota Co.

[Bruce Fall]

The 170th St. Gyrfalcon put  on a good show this afternoon. It was in  
view nearly continuously from 3-5 p.m., mostly perched on the  
irrigation pipe about 1/2 mi. S of 170th St. E and 100-200 yards E of  
U.S. 52. In 2 hr, I watched it make at least 8 separate passes  
through the large (~10,000) flock of Mallards and Canada Geese,  
although it did not make a kill. The falcon also perched for about 15  
minutes in a tree along 170th St. (farm house yard 1/4 mi. E of 52),  
and on a phone pole about 3/4 mi. SE of the farm houses. I added a  
digiscoped photo to the MOU photo gallery. Despite careful searching  
I could not find any Cackling Geese in this goose flock. Prior to the  
cold snap (as recently as 28 January) I usually could find some (up  
to 15 counted, but certainly more) CACG mixed in with the Canadas  
(then a mile S, at 180th and Donnelly). In the cornfields with the  
geese and ducks this afternoon were several flocks of Lapland  
Longspurs totaling about 200.

Bruce A. Fall
Minneapolis