Duluth RBA
Duluth RBA
Duluth RBA
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-RBA *Minnesota *Duluth/North Shore *February 25, 1999 *MNDU9902.25 -Birds mentioned
Hotline: Minnesota, Duluth/North Shore
Date: February 25, 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 Feb. 25, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.
Certainly the most interesting birding news this week comes from Lake Cty Rd 2 north of Two Harbors, where singing male BOREAL OWLS, NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLS, a GREAT GRAY OWL and an unprecedented number of Spruce Grouse were all heard or seen this week.
Dan Bersaw of Two Harbors on the night of Feb. 21, on the west side of 2, a half-mile south of Greenwood Lake or about 33 miles north of Two Harbors. This location is within the breeding range of this species. And usually BOREAL OWLS do not start calling on a regular basis until March. On the same night, Dan also heard a SAW-WHET OWL at the White Pines wayside, which is about 28 miles north of Two Harbors. Some Twin Cities birders saw a GREAT GRAY OWL the same day on Lake Cty. Rd. 2, about 18 miles north of Two Harbors. This is the first GREAT GRAY OWL reported by anyone in several days.
But perhaps most significant was the concentration of no fewer than 24 SPRUCE GROUSE seen by Dudley Edmundson on Feb. 22nd on Cty. Rd 2, 2 to 2 1/2 miles south of the Hwy. 1 intersection. Interestingly, they were all males and they were not seen until 8:45 in the morning, about an hour and a half after sunrise. Twenty-four SPRUCE GROUSE is the largest number ever reported in this area and it may be the largest concentration ever reported anywhere in Minnesota. Dudley also saw 10 SPRUCE GROUSE the next morning on 2, four miles south of Hwy. 1.
Also of note in Lake County recently, Jim Lind of Two Harbors found a BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER Feb. 21 on the 12th hole of the Two Harbors golf course, which is near the golf course parking lot.
An early MERLIN was seen yesterday in Two Harbors. And Lake County is where there was a THREE-TOED WOODPECKER two weekends ago, on the side road that turns off the Spruce Rd. 4/10th of a mile north of Hwy. 1.
Not far from Lake County, a large flock of BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS was seen again in Ely, in northern St. Louis County yesterday.
And back in Duluth BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were reported on Minneapolis St. in the Hunter's Park neighborhood.
Also in Duluth, a MERLIN, which was probably overwintering, was seen Feb. 23 near the zoo.
And both THAYER'S GULLS and GLAUCOUS GULLS were found on the 21st along the North Shore, a half-mile southwest of the French River, along with a flock of nine RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS. The gulls undoubtedly been wintering at the Superior, Wis., Landfill. And the mergansers also probably had been wintering somewhere on the lake.
Finally, last week's tape had reported on a BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER in the pine plantation at Hawk Ridge and a SNOWY OWL or two in the Duluth Harbor, but there were no reports of these being seen during the week.
The next scheduled update of this tape will be Thursday, March 4th.
This Birding Report is provided and funded by Minnesota's state bird club, the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU), as a service to its members. For more information on the MOU, write us c/o Bell Museum of Natural History, 10 Church Street S.E., Minneapolis MN 55455; or visit the MOU web page at http://biosci.cbs.umn.edu/~mou.
