Duluth RBA

Duluth RBA phone number: 218-525-5952

Previous reports: October 14 21 28 , November 4 11 18 24 28 , December 2 9 .
Other Hotlines: Minnesota Statewide 

-RBA
*Minnesota
*Duluth/North Shore
*December 16, 1999
*MNDU9912.16

-Birds mentioned
-Transcript

Hotline: Minnesota, Duluth/North Shore
Date: December 16, 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, December 16, sponsored by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.

With the birding in Grand Marais finally slowing down recently, the most interesting birding news in NE Minnesota this week involves northern owls, with several Great Grays, a N Hawk Owl and a new Snowy Owl showing up.

On Dec 12 a birder from Chicago found no fewer than 5 GREAT GRAY OWLS west of Duluth in Aitkin Co, all along Co Rd 18. The exact locations were not given, but it is likely they were along the 6-mi stretch of 18 between U S Hwy 169 and Co Rd 5. In the Sax-Zim Bog NW of Duluth, a new Great Gray was found Dec 11 along St Louis Co Rd 29, just W of Co Rd 204; this location is 3 mi N and 1 mi E of Meadowlands. And back in Duluth on the 10th, a Great Gray was reported somewhere along Rice Lake Rd in the vicinity of the airport, but no one has apparently relocated it since then.

A NORTHERN HAWK OWL was just reported from the Iron Range N of Duluth. It was seen Dec 13 along MN Hwy 135, just W of the town of Biwabik near the railroad viaduct, and this represents the 3rd hawk owl seen so far this winter.

A SNOWY OWL was seen Dec 11 in the Duluth harbor near the North Star Steel Building, which is on the W side of I-535 near the Port Terminal, and this is probably a different Snowy than the one seen 2 weeks ago at the Port Terminal.

No one has apparently been able to relocate the King Eider or Glaucous-winged Gull in the Grand Marais area in Cook Co recently. However, earlier this week those 3 HARLEQUIN DUCKS were seen again in the harbor, and late WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS were also seen there and at mile marker 116, 6 mi E of Grand Marais.

Elsewhere in NE Minnesota: an OLDSQUAW was seen last week in Lake Co among the Com Goldeneye flock which winters in the open water on the Kawishiwi R along MN Hwy 1, just E of the St Louis Co line; a NORTHERN CARDINAL was at Nancy Jackson's feeder yesterday in Hoyt Lakes in St Louis Co; on Dec 11 a RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER was at a feeder just south of the interesection of St Louis Co Rds 52 and 230, which is 2 mi E of Toivola; a SPRUCE GROUSE was found on the 11th in Itasca Co at Scenic State Park, along the old road which leads to the fire lookout tower; and a 1st-winter GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL was seen Dec 13 at Knife River in Lake Co (this is probably the same individual which had been previously reported at the Superior WI landfill).

Here in Duluth the birds of particular note reported recently were: a distant unidentified SCOTER (or possibly an eider?) flying by Canal Park Dec 11; an ad THAYER'S GULL also at Canal Park Dec 13; a lone HOARY REDPOLL yesterday along Scenic Hwy 61 near the French River; and some late-lingering water birds still present today in the harbor near the grain elevators, including DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, blue-morph SNOW GOOSE, GREEN-WINGED TEAL and AMERICAN WIGEON.

As previously announced, the Duluth Christmas Bird Count (CBC) will take place this Saturday, Dec 18, with our standard 15-mi diameter circle again centered at Hawk Ridge. This area extends up the North Shore to the French R, north to Eagle L off Jean Duluth Rd, west to the airport and Wild Rice L, in the harbor as far as 27th Ave W, and on Park Point to 43rd St.

Feeder watchers are a very important part of the Duluth CBC. If you live within the count circle and would like to report what you see at your feeder on Saturday the 18th, please call 728-0105 that evening -- this is the number where the compilation of the day's count will be held, and the best time to call is between 5 and 7 p.m. on the 18th. (You can also e-mail your feeder report to compiler Jim Lind at .)

Note that there are several birds which are normally difficult to find on most Duluth CBCs, and if you see any of these between now and Saturday within the Duluth count circle -- whether or not they are at feeders -- be sure to report them to compiler Jim Lind so we can try to relocate them on count day. Jim's daytime phone number at work in Duluth is 720-4384; in the evening and on weekends, his home number in Two Harbors is 834-3435. In addition to obvious rarities and unusually late lingerers, the birds for which information is needed include: any waterfowl, any hawks or owls, any woodpeckers other than Downy and Hairy, Gray Jay, Boreal Chickadee, Brown Creeper, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Townsend's Solitaire, American Robin, Varied Thrush, any waxwings, any sparrows other than House Sparrow, Snow Bunting, N Cardinal, any blackbirds or grackle, Purple or House finches, any crossbills, Hoary Redpoll and American Goldfinch.

Finally, 3 other CBCs near Duluth are coming up: at Two Harbors Dec 19 (for more information, call Frank Nicoletti at 724-0758), in the Sax-Zim Bog Dec 20 (for information, contact Mark Stensaas at the Duluth Pack Store, 722-1707), and at Isabella in Lake Co Jan 2 (contact Steve Wilson, who lives in Tower MN, at 753-6110).

The next scheduled update of this Birding Report will be on Sunday, Dec 19, with the results of Saturday's Duluth CBC.

The Duluth Birding Report phone number is (218) 525-5952, and callers can leave a message if they wish after the tone at the end of the tape. Also note that a message can be left without having to wait for the birding report to end: after the tape starts playing, push 5 on a touch-tone phone, the tape will then stop, the tone will sound and you can leave your message.

The Duluth Birding Report is sponsored and funded by the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU), the state bird club, 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 S E, Minneapolis MN 55455, or visit the MOU web site at .



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