Duluth RBA
Duluth RBA
Duluth RBA
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-RBA *Minnesota *Duluth/North Shore *September 7, 2000 *MNDU0009.07 -Birds mentioned
Hotline: Minnesota, Duluth/North Shore
Date: September 7, 2000
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 7, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.
With 7 consecutive days of E winds, from Aug 31 to yesterday, the migration of warblers and other passerines here recently has been about as slow as it ever gets at this time of year. Most birders out looking for woods birds at Park Point and elsewhere have been finding virtually nothing, and the only significant warbler wave reported was the modest total of 12 species found Sept 4 along the Lighthouse Trail in Two Harbors.
Fortunately, however, the off-lake winds have resulted in a few water birds of interest in Duluth and vicinity, including 2 PARASITIC JAEGERS, WHIMBRELS and BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPERS.
One of the jaegers was an adult light-morph Parasitic on Sept 3 on the L Superior side of Park Point, between the Recreation Area and the Superior Entry; presumably this was the the same individual seen here Aug 31. The other Parasitic Jaeger was a dark juvenile seen both Sept 3 and 4 at the mouth of the Lester R; this bird was harassing the gulls which frequent nearby Brighton Beach, and it spent much of its time resting on the lake close to shore where it could be carefully studied and identified.
A few Whimbrels were reported Sept 3 at the Beaver Bay sewage ponds in Lake Co. These birds were not present there the next day, but on Sept 4 there were 2 Buff-breasted Sandpipers along the runway at the nearby Silver Bay - Beaver Bay airport. The sewage ponds are along Lake Co Rd 4 about 3/4 mi N of Hwy 61, and the airport is along Co Rd 3 about 5 mi W of Co Rd 4.
Some Buff-breasted Sandpipers were also seen Sept 1 in the Sax-Zim Bog area, reportedly at the jct of St Louis Co Rds 29 and 740; Co Rd 29 goes both N and S of Meadowlands, but the location of 740 is not known.
The winds have also been unfavorable for much to be migrating lately at Hawk Ridge. The highest total so far this month was a modest 235 raptors on Sept 5, and about the only news was an early movement of 26 BALD EAGLES on Sept 4. More favorable W winds are blowing today, but the forecast for tomorrow is for S winds and warmer temperatures, and on Saturday more rain is possible.
Hopefully, the weather for migrants will improve next week in time for the annual Hawk Weekend activities, Sept 15-16-17. On Friday the 15th, there will be a program at UMD's Chemistry Dept Auditorium, room 200, with registration and refreshments starting at 7 p.m. On both Saturday and Sunday mornings, Sept 16 and 17, besides all the activities during the day at Hawk Ridge itself, there will be birding field trips meeting at 7 a.m. at the following locations: the entrance gate at the 40th Ave West Erie Pier area, the Park Point Recreation Area, and the Lester Park parking lot on Lester River Rd just N of Superior St. And on Saturday evening the 16th there will be a dinner (with advance reservations required) followed by a program starting at 7 p.m. at UMD's Kirby Student Center Ballroom.
For more information on the raptor count at Hawk Ridge and on Hawk Weekend,
consult our web site at
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 September 14. 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 on a touch-tone phone, 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
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