Duluth RBA
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-RBA *Minnesota *Duluth/North Shore *November 22, 2001 *MNDU0111.22 -Birds mentioned
Hotline: Minnesota, Duluth/North Shore
Date: November 22, 2001
Sponsor: Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU)
Reports: (218) 525-5952
Compiler: Kim Eckert (kreckert@cp.duluth.mn.us)
Transcriber: Kim Eckert (kreckert@cp.duluth.mn.us)
This is the Duluth Birding Report for Thursday, November 22, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.
With the continuation of mostly mild weather this week, the birding has been relatively uneventful in NE Minn, with nothing of interest reported the last few days. Last weekend, however, HARLEQUIN DUCK, LONG-TAILED DUCK, BLACK SCOTER, WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS, ICELAND GULL, and THAYER'S GULLS were all seen up the North Shore in Grand Marais; new SNOWY OWLS were reported in Duluth and in Aitkin Co; and that NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD in Duluth was still present.
The Harlequin Duck report was of 3 individuals on Nov 17 at Artists Point on the E side of the Grand Marais harbor, but they could not be relocated on the 18th. On the 18th, there were 2 Iceland Gulls in the harbor, both juv/1st-winter birds, where only 1 individual had been present since late Oct.
On Nov 16, a Snowy Owl appeared in Duluth in the DECC parking lot in the harbor area, and on the same day there were 3 Snowys in Aitkin Co: 2 owls were about 6 mi N of Aitkin along Co Rd 1, and 1 individual was about 3.5 mi NE of Aitkin along U S Hwy 169. Note that some -- or perhaps most -- of these earlier-than-normal owls are under stress from starvation, so if you find one that seems unusually tame as you approach, call Molly and Dave Evans in Duluth at 724-0261, and they can arrange to have it picked up for rehabilitation.
That N Mockingbird in Duluth was still present as of at least Nov 16. It was originally seen on Nov 2 at 13 8th Ave W, and on the 16th it was found in the alley between 8th & 9th Streets and Lake & 1st Ave W, but it was last seen flying E across Lake Ave.
Note that the Aitkin Co. Brant mentioned on last week's Birding Report was the result of an ID error: the bird was actually an imm dark-morph Snow Goose. Also note the Yellow-billed Loon seen on Nov 4 on Mille Lacs L may have been present for only that one day. Although numerous observers on Nov 5-6 reported they relocated this loon, it is now apparent many birders -- if not all of them -- were actually seeing an atypically pale Common Loon. If anyone has photos or other documentation of the Yellow-billed Loon from the 5th or 6th, please be sure to send it in.
A reminder that the annual Duluth CBC will take place Saturday, Dec 16, and compiler Jim Lind will soon be recruiting observers and feeder-watchers to record what they find that day within our standard 15-mile-diameter count circle, which is centered at Hawk Ridge. For more information, you can call Jim at home in Two Harbors at 834-3199 or at work in Duluth at 720-4384; Jim's e-mail address is jimlind@lakenet.com.
Finally, various mechanical problems have recurred recently with this Birding Report's telephone answering machine, and it is possible the tape recorded version could be out of service for a time if this machine needs to be replaced. However, note the Report will continue to appear on the MOU's listserve (mou-net@biosci.umn.edu) and on the MOU's website (mou.mn.org).
Unless something unusual is seen in the meantime which needs to be reported immediately, this Report is normally updated once a week on Thursdays, so that the next scheduled update will be on November 29. The phone number for the Duluth Birding Report is (218) 525-5952, and callers can report bird sightings if they wish after the tone at the end of each tape. Messages can also be left without having to wait for the report to end: to do this, after the tape starts playing push 5, the tape will stop, the tone will sound, and you can then leave your 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 of Natural History, 10 Church Street SE, Minneapolis MN 55455; or send an e-mail to mou@biosci.umn.edu; or visit the MOU web site at mou.mn.org.
