Duluth RBA
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-RBA *Minnesota *Duluth/North Shore *December 14, 2000 *MNDU0012.14 -Birds mentioned
Hotline: Minnesota, Duluth/North Shore
Date: December 14, 2000
Sponsor: Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU)
Reports: (218) 525-5952
Compiler: Kim Eckert (kreckert@cp.duluth.mn.us)
This is the Duluth Birding Report for Thursday, December 14, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.
With all the reports of northern owls in N E Minnesota during this and previous weeks, it is easy to overlook the other birds of interest seen here recently. Among them are: 2 EASTERN TOWHEES as of Dec 12 at Eagle Ridge Resort in Lutsen (1 had been reported here previously); another TOWHEE, probably a hybrid EASTERN X SPOTTED, relocated Dec 10 in Two Harbors in the alley between 2nd & 3rd St and 3rd & 4th Ave; in this same Two Harbors neighborhood on the same day there were a NORTHERN CARDINAL and late WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW and RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD, a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE still near Emily's Store in Knife River as of Dec 9 (2 solitaires were seen here previously); a late YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER in Duluth at my feeders on the 8200 block of Congdon Blvd (it showed up Dec 8 and is still present today); an adult PEREGRINE FALCON in the Duluth harbor area seen Dec 12-14; 2 THAYER'S GULLS at Canal Park in Duluth yesterday; and 3 late-lingering WOOD DUCKS in the open creek along Co Rd 319 in the Sax-Zim Bog Dec 10.
As far as northern owls are concerned, NORTHERN HAWK OWLS are still easily found in the Sax-Zim Bog (especially along Co Rds 319, 7 and 133) and in central Lake Co (especially on Co Rd 2 and the Stony River Forest Rd). Hawk owls not previously reported were also seen recently at these Lake Co locations: on Hwy 61 near mile marker 20; on Hwy 1, 1 mi E of Co Rd 2; and on Forest Rd 377, 5.5 mi E of Hwy 1. The first Aitkin Co hawk owl of the season was on Co Rd 18, 1 mi E of Hwy 169; new reports in St Louis Co came from the 500 block of 12th Ave W in Virginia, and near Ely at the beginning of the Echo Trail.
GREAT GRAY OWLS are also still easy to find along those same 3 hawk owl roads in Sax-Zim, in central Lake Co along Co Rd 2, and in Aitkin Co near the jct of Co Rd 18 and Pietz's Rd. And new Great Grays were reported elsewhere recently at these locations: on Hwy 1 in Lake Co near the National Forest Lodge, 2 mi W of the Stony River Forest Rd, and 2.3 mi NW of Forest Rd 377; also in Lake Co on the Spruce Rd, 3.5 mi NE of Hwy 1; in Aitkin Co on Hwy 200 E of Jacobsen and on Co Rd 4, 2 mi E of Hwy 47; and in St Louis Co at Bear Lake State Park, at two Hwy 1 locations between Ely and the Lake Co line, and near the jct of Hwy 169 and Co Rd 21.
By contrast, hardly any SNOWY OWLS have been reported in recent weeks, although Audrey Evers found one yesterday in Mountain Iron at the jct of Hwy 169 and St Louis Co Rd 7. There is also probably at least one Snowy in the Duluth-Superior harbor area.
As mentioned on previous Birding Reports, the Duluth Christmas Bird Count
(CBC) will take place on Saturday, Dec 16. As in previous years, our
standard 15-mi diameter circle will be centered at Hawk Ridge and will
extend up the N Shore as far as the French R, N to Eagle L, W to the
airport, and S in the harbor area to 27th Ave W and to 43rd St on Park
Point. Some 50-60 birders will be out in the field that day, but feeder
watchers are also needed to report what they see on the 16th. The best
time to call in your report is between 5 and 7 PM on Saturday; the phone
number to call then is 728-0105, which is where the compilation of the
day's birds will be taking place. You can also report what you see by
leaving a message with count compiler Jim Lind -- by phone at 834-3199 or
by e-mail at
Participants are also being organized for the Two Harbors CBC on Dec 17
(call compiler Frank Nicoletti at 724-0758 for further information), and
for the Dec 18 Sax-Zim Bog CBC (compiled by Mark Stensaas, telephone
590-3703).
The next update of this report will be on Sunday, Dec 17, with the results
of the Duluth CBC, and the following update on Thursday, Dec 21, will
include the results of the Two Harbors and Sax-Zim Bog CBCs. 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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