Previous reports: August 29 , September 5 12 19 25 , October 3 10 17 24 .
Other Hotlines: Minnesota Statewide | Detroit Lakes

-RBA
*Minnesota
*Duluth/North Shore
*October 31, 2002
*MNDU0210.31

-Birds mentioned

• Pacific Loon
• HARLEQUIN DUCK
• Long-tailed Duck
• Black Scoter
• Surf Scoter
• White-winged Scoter
• Ruddy Duck
• Bald Eagle
• Northern Goshawk
• Red-tailed Hawk
• Rough-legged Hawk
• Golden Eagle
• GYRFALCON
• Bonaparte's Gull
• Thayer's Gull
• THREE-TOED WOODPECKER
• Black-backed Woodpecker
• Nashville Warbler
• Snow Bunting

Hotline: Minnesota, Duluth/North Shore
Date: October 31, 2002
Sponsor: Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU)
Reports: (218) 525-5952
Compiler: David R. Benson (drbenson@cpinternet.com)
Transcriber: David R. Benson (drbenson@cpinternet.com)

This is the Duluth Birding Report for Thursday, October 31st, 2002, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.

There have been two sightings of GYRFALCON over the past week: Bob Russell and Denny Martin reported one bird at Grand Portage on the 27th, and today, Jan and John Green saw a Gyr in Grand Marais, flying over Artists' Point.

Today was a good day at Hawk Ridge, with at least 23 GOLDEN EAGLES, over 1000 RED-TAILED HAWKS, over 70 ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS, a good flight of BALD EAGLES, and over 20 NORTHERN GOSHAWKS. Today the banding station recaptured a Red-tailed Hawk that was originally banded in the late 1970s, making this bird one of the oldest Red-tails on record. Complete totals will be available within the next few days at www.hawkridge.org. Also at Hawk Ridge, on the 24th, Frank Nicoletti spotted a THREE-TOED WOODPECKER.

Over 100 birders were in Grand Marais over the weekend, making the most of the large numbers of migrants still present along the North Shore of Lake Superior. Over 110 species were reported by one or another of the groups, including these highlights: PACIFIC LOON at Five-Mile Rock on the 27th, a HARLEQUIN DUCK in the bay at Grand Portage near the stockade on the 26th & 27th, SURF SCOTER, WHITE-WINGED SCOTER, BLACK SCOTER, LONG-TAILED DUCKS, a RUDDY DUCK at Grand Portage on the 25th (and another sighting today in Grand Marais), a BONAPARTE'S GULL at Grand Portage, several BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKERS seen along the shore, and many flocks of SNOW BUNTINGS.

Josh Watson found an adult THAYER'S GULL in Grand Marais on the 30th, and Jan Green reported a NASHVILLE WARBLER from Grand Marais today.

The next scheduled update of this report will be Thursday, November 7th.

The phone number for the Duluth Birding Report is (218) 728-5030, and callers can report bird sightings if they wish after the tone at the end of each tape.

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@cbs.umn.edu; or visit the MOU web site at mou.mn.org.

Return to Home Page