[mou] prothonotaries, Crosby park, St. Paul

[linda whyte]

Late this afternoon, in the backwaters just upriver from the 35E bridge, a
pair of prothonotary warblers were alternately foraging and singing, along
and across the backwaters from, the river's edge path. This is the same area
where prothonotaries have nested in years past. The site is accessed most
directly by using the park's east entrance. At the bottom of the driveway,
take the dirt path on your left. When the path forks, bear left. You will
come to a flooded area that needs to be crossed to continue; wear high,
waterproof boots, or be prepared to cross on logs over to your right.
Walking directly toward the river (moving parallel to the bridge) will bring
you to the part of the backwater the birds seem to favor.

In the same area there was a fledged baby great-horned owl. A dog-walker
unwittingly flushed it or its parent from a perch, which drew the attention
of some crows. I found the owlet sitting very high in a tree at the river's
edge, with its parent calling softly nearby. It was aware of my presence,
but seemed unperturbed.

Other things seen: warbling vireo; blackpoll , black-throated green, and
yellow warbler; little green herons; Baltimore oriole; house wren;
kingfisher; a snapping turtle the size of the rovk of Gibralter.

Linda Whyte
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://moumn.org/pipermail/mou-net_moumn.org/attachments/20080512/a81bcd70/attachment.html