Previous reports: July 1 , September 2 .
Other Hotlines: Minnesota Statewide

-RBA
*Minnesota
*Duluth/North Shore
*September 9, 1999
*MNDU9909.09

-Birds mentioned

• American White Pelican
• Sharp-shinned Hawk
• Cooper's Hawk
• Broad-winged Hawk
• Swainson's Hawk
• American Kestrel
• Sandhill Crane
• Whimbrel
• POMARINE JAEGER
• Franklin's Gull
• Ring-billed Gull
• Caspian Tern
• American Pipit

Hotline: Minnesota, Duluth/North Shore
Date: September 9, 1999
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)
Re-transcriber: David Cahlander (dac@skypoint.com)

This is the Duluth Birding Report for Thursday, September 9, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.

This has certainly been the most interesting birding week for some time in Duluth, highlighted by a probable POMARINE JAEGER, a WHIMBREL, a FRANKLIN'S GULL and a partial albino RING-BILLED GULL, several SANDHILL CRANES, and the first significant movement this season of hawks at Hawk Ridge.

A juvenile dark-morph JAEGER was seen by Doug Buri on Sept. 7 on L. Superior from the Fitger's Building just east of downtown Duluth, and what was probably this same individual was reported by Nancy Jackson the next day over the lake out from 12th Street on Park Point. Neither observer was able to positively the jaeger, but later in the day on Sept. 8 Peder Svinger relocated the jaeger at Fitger's and felt it was most likely a POMARINE JAEGER, based on its large size (seen in direct comparison with Ring-billed Gulls) and the rounded tips to the central tail feathers. Unfortunately no one was able to relocate the jaeger today, but if it is found again this tape would be updated with that information.

While searching for the jaeger today, Jim Lind saw a WHIMBREL flying north over Park Point at 12th Street, while Peder relocated that partial albino RING-BILLED GULL (which had first been seen in Duluth last fall) and the first AMERICAN PIPIT of the season, both at Fitger's. On Sept. 4, Peder also saw an adult FRANKLIN'S GULL at Bayfront Park in the Duluth harbor area, and on Sept. 5 this gull was seen again nearby at the D.E.C.C. parking lot.

At Hawk Ridge, several SANDHILL CRANES have been seen from the Main Overlook: 11 were seen on Sept. 5, 4 were seen Sept. 6, and today 3 more flew by. Also at Hawk Ridge today was a flock of 13 AM. AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS and a CASPIAN TERN.

The hawk migration at the Ridge has been steady this week, with several hundred birds each day since Sept. 6. About 400 to 500 SHARP-SHINNED HAWKS have been counted each day, on Sept. 6 there were also 15 COOPER'S HAWK, on Sept. 7 about 150 AMERICAN KESTRELS were counted, and today the hawk total topped 1,000 for the first time this season, which included about 400 BROAD-WINGED HAWK and 2 SWAINSON'S HAWK. And the flight should continue to be good the next couple days, with continued cool temperatures and west to northwest winds in the forecast.

Finally, another reminder that the annual Hawk Weekend will take place next weekend, Sept. 17-18-19, with birding field trips in Duluth both Saturday and Sunday mornings starting at 7 a.m., guided nature hikes both Saturday and Sunday at Hawk Ridge, and programs at U.M.D. starting at 7 p.m. both Friday and Saturday (with a buffet dinner served before Saturday's program). For more information, call Dave Benson at 728-5812, or e-mail him at .

Unless something unusual is seen in the meantime which needs to be reported immediately, this tape is normally updated once a week on Thursdays, so that the next scheduled update will be on September 16. The phone number is (218) 525-5952, and callers can leave a message if they wish after the tone at the end of the tape. Also note that a message can be left without having to wait for the Birding Report to end: after the tape starts playing, push 5 on a touch-tone phone, the tape will then stop, the tone will sound and you can leave your message.

The Duluth Birding Report is sponsored and funded by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU), the state bird club, 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 S E, Minneapolis MN 55455, or visit the MOU web site at http://biosci.cbs.umn.edu/~mou.

Send your rare and unusual Minnesota sightings to our electronic hotline: MOU-net@biosci.umn.edu. To learn more, send a message (the message being these two words: info mou-net) to majordomo@biosci.umn.edu.

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