-RBA
*Minnesota
*Duluth/North Shore
*November 26, 1998
*MNDU9811.26

-Birds mentioned

• Rough-legged Hawk
• Golden Eagle
• Gyrfalcon (none reported)
• Spruce Grouse (none reported)
• Thayer's Gull (Wisconsin)
• Iceland Gull (Wisconsin)
• Glaucous Gull (Wisconsin)
• Snowy Owl (none reported)
• Northern Hawk Owl (none reported)
• Great Gray Owl (none reported)
• Boreal Owl (none reported)
• Three-toed Woodpecker (none reported)
• Black-backed Woodpecker (none reported)
• Townsend's Solitaire
• Varied Thrush (none reported)
• Bohemian Waxwing
• Northern Shrike
• Northern Cardinal
• Chipping Sparrow
• Snow Bunting (none reported)
• Red Crossbill
• White-winged Crossbill (none reported)
• Common Redpoll
• Hoary Redpoll (none reported)

Hotline: Minnesota Duluth/North Shore
Date: November 26, 1998
Sponsor: Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU)
Reports: (218) 525-5952
Compiler: Kim Eckert (kreckert@cp.duluth.mn.us)
Transcriber: Dory Spence (dory21@juno.com)
Re-transcriber: David Cahlander (dac@skypoint.com)

This is the Duluth Birding Report for Thursday, Nov. 26, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.

Overall, since the third week of October, the birding has been relatively uneventful in Duluth and NE Minnesota. Two strong winter storms earlier in November failed to blow in any significant movement of birds, and this week's warmer than normal temperatures (and lack of snow cover) have not been conducive to birds being active or coming into feeders.

About the only highlights this week were: a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE seen yesterday, the 25th, at the Hawk Ridge Banding Station in Duluth; good numbers of gulls still at the Superior, Wisconsin landfill at the south end of Wisconsin Point, including GLAUCOUS GULL, THAYER'S GULL, and 2 ICELAND GULLS on Nov. 21; a very late CHIPPING SPARROW at my feeder on the 8200 block of Congdon Blvd. in Duluth; two reports of NORTHERN CARDINALS at feeders in the general vicinity of UMD in Duluth, and some RED CROSSBILLS last weekend on the 1900 block of Kent Rd., also near UMD.

A check of the harbor at Grand Marais and other locations up the North Shore in Lake and Cook counties on the 23rd failed to turn up anything of interest.

Meanwhile at Hawk Ridge, Frank Nicoletti is still counting at the Main Overlook and has recently seen several GOLDEN EAGLES along with good numbers of ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS. He has also seen several flocks of BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS migrating through in recent days. NORTHERN SHRIKES are also being seen in Duluth and vicinity on occasion, but I am aware of no recent reports of the following birds that had been seen in October or earlier in November: SPRUCE GROUSE, GREAT GRAY OWL, BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER, SNOW BUNTING, COMMON REDPOLL and WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL. And so far this season there have been no reports at all here of GYRFALCON, SNOWY OWL, NORTHERN HAWK OWL, BOREAL OWLS, THREE-TOED WOODPECKER, VARIED THRUSH, or HOARY REDPOLL.

Hopefully, the birding will improve in time for the annual Duluth Christmas Bird Count which will take place on Saturday, Dec. 19. In the next week I will start contacting participants and provide additional information about the count on upcoming tapes. In the meantime for more information give me a call at 525-6930.

The next scheduled update will be on Thursday, Dec. 3, and as always if you have birds to report you may leave a message after the tone.

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