Bird Watching

[The Grebe]

I seen a really big turtle with a weird looking bird on it's back, walk through our yard this morning?

Believe it or not, the turtle had boots on and a scarf around it's neck! The bird had on ski pants and a jacket with a fur collar! I live in BC.

[Dotch]

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My Mallards still have a hole open in the pond. They'll probably be able to keep it open 'till we get a few days in a row of single digits. otherwise not to much in the way of exotic or exciting feathered critters. Lots of typicals for this time of year. Anybody out there seeing anything unusual or interesting?

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Nothing very exotic here either after the snow disappeared. A little excerpt from the weekend:

"The warm weather has kept the sheep active and still foraging in the pasture. While bird watching was slow last week, did spy a rooster pheasant traipsing around the brushpile behind the house. He was strutting around almost like some colorful, long tailed, exotic wild chicken that had escaped from the circus. The sheep noticed him too and being the curious lot they are, began following him. Once they got too close for his comfort, he began to run, hopping a couple fences and disappearing under the red osier dogwood in the garden. He’s no dummy. Food and cover is where it’s at this time of year.

Speaking of food and cover, we’ve been putting in double shifts at the Mall for Men some days. Little wonder coffee prices are going up. So many Christmas goodies, so little time. Lucky for them I hoarded my Mom’s bars so they didn’t make it out of the kitchen here. Was also the recipient of more raisin bars from a former resident of suburban Little Jerusalem. While the apparent bribe was short lived, Mar-Mar will be glad to know I wear my nursing home slippers while consuming them."

[Dotch]

Some red polls this AM! Long time, no see. Wife thinks I'm nuts. No chickadees this winter thus far tho. Are they MIA for anyone else? Enjoy having them land on my finger & stealing sunflower seeds while filling the feeders.

[The Grebe]

Dotch...Here's one for you, or anyone else out there that knows a little about raptors...even an educated guess is fine.

We were up by McGregor today hunting grouse and we seen a hawk of some kind, hovering over a field. It was pretty good sized, maybe the size of a smaller Redtail.

The hawk looked as if it was palamino, black and white, any thoughts? Further down the road we seen another.

Also, not to fear, the Chickadees are all in OUR back yard! I did see one while hunting today, but I think he was migrating to OUR back yard!

[M.T. Bucket]

Grebe,

You saw a light-morph Rough-legged Hawk. They come down from the Arctic during the winter to hunt open marshes and fields for rodents. There is a dark morph as well that is less common. Both can be seen fairly easily in the McGregor area this time of year--last week I saw 3 over the meadows east of town. Besides their distinctive plumages, Rough-legged Hawks can be identified by their feathered legs, small feet, small bill, long wings, and dark "wrists" on the underside of the wings. It has smooth wingbeats and soars with its wings in a slight dihedral--('V' like a Turkey Vulture). The Rough-legged Hawks should be here through late April or so.

Photo by Mike Danzenbaker.

Photo by Brian Zwiebel.

[The Grebe]

"You Da Man!"

[fishface5]

Cool looking hawk! I'll have to pay more attention to the hawks. It does seem like there is an awfull lot of them around this season. Lots of chickadee's in Big lake, the resident cardinal and wife, juncos galore, and tons of misc. woodpeckers, and of course, da mallards.

[M.T. Bucket]

Dotch,

Your entries actually make me miss living in farm country. Whole different set of wildlife up here--kinda wouldn't mind seeing the old gang once in a while. I'd explore the creek bottoms and little patches of timber against the cornfields. Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Blue Jays, Cardinals, White-breasted Nuthatches picking around the oaks and hickories; the red cedars invading anything not tilled; checking the muskrat traps...ah, frost-covered goldenrod in the ditches.

Keep writing!

[M.T. Bucket]

I'm not suprised that you're seeing lots of hawks this year where you're at. It's been warm and snow-free enough that the farm country hawks haven't really needed to move too far south, while the northern hawks (and owls) are probably having trouble finding rodents and moving further south than usual. The meadow vole and red-backed vole populations in Canada have crashed (cyclical crash) and anecdotal accounts I've heard say that the small mammal surveys done in NE Minnesota showed the population of several rodents is down. Tough winter for the northern predators.

I'm assuming you're at Big Lake near Sherburne NWR? I'd like to get down there to watch wildlife one of these days. A friend of mine photographed a Yellow-breasted Chat that was a little out of its range there earlier this year.

[The Grebe]

M.T.Bucket..."The Bird Man Of Minnesota" My buddie seen a Snow Owl last week-end and he did'nt know what it was...I did!

We also had a kinda weird thing happen a couple weeks ago?

A Downy Woodpecker (I think? It may have been the next size up, whatever taht one is?) worked for about a week or more, to enlarge the hole on one of our hanging bird houses.

The house is usually used by Sparrows, Chickadees and like sized birds.

Once the Woodpecker got into the house, he cleaned it out, dropped everything on the ground...flew away and never came back? I just thought of something...maybe he got killed? I guess that would'nt be so weird, huh? But besides cats, I don't think woodpeckers have to many natural enemies as they are usually higher up from the ground?

I had to give one of my hunting partners the business Wednesday, and I did'nt mince words! He said he had used his bb gun to shoot a couple of the smaller Woodpeckers that were pecking his house.

I told him that you don't kill the messenger! The birds were telling him he has an infestation problem and he should check into it, they were doing him a favor and he plugs em!

You don't work the mailman over for bringing the mail! You don't lay out the mechanic for telling you that you have a bad plug! You don't tune up the misses for telling you there is Creeping Charlie in the yard! Cheez!

I gave him the business long enough so that he will probably think about it the next time a Woodpecker appears....since I'm his dad, he might listen?

[Dotch]

Will have to keep our eyes peeled for more oddball hawks and owls coming down from the north I guess. Seems to be plenty of rodents ripe for the picking around these parts. Still some kestrels on the wires and an occasional red tail circling on some of the warmer than normal afternoons. Haven't actually seen an owl for awhile but one will occasionally roost in the tall old spruce outside the bedroom window. Something reassuring about waking up and hearing "Hooo, hooo" emanating from atop the tree in the middle of the night. Always sleep like a log after that.

Some are so negative about these predatory birds. To me, the fact we still see some raptors is a sign that we haven't completely screwed things up, yet. We'd be knee deep in vermin without them. Anyone catch the news about tearing the red tail hawks nest off of the building outside of New York's Central Park? Sad that they couldn't leave 'em alone.

[The Grebe]

Dotch...The raptors are pretty handy on the Grouse to! There seems to be a specialized hawk for just about every situation, from one that can dive at something like 250 miles and hour, to one that specializes in bugs, and everything in between. Raptors are cool and you are absolutely right, without them, we would be knee deep in rodents.

When I used to trap, I found a spot where an Owl used to upchuck the bone pellets from the stuff he would eat and there was one hell of a pile of little mouse bones and teeth there!

On the way up fishing yesterday, we seen 2 Bald Eagles, thats always cool!

I read in the paper, or heard on the news, that they were

going to try and find a way to let the Redtails stay.

They said the estimated weight of the nest was 200 pounds and they did'nt want to take the chance on it falling and killing somebody.

The folks put up a fuss to let the Redtails stay and the powers that be, relented and looked into alternatives, but they did'nt know if the hawks would return.

[Dotch]

I hear ya, Grebe. I know the hawks and owls impact the pheasant population here too. The thing that gripes me tho are the guys who put up the biggest stink about them are often the same guys who haven't lifted a finger to provide more habitat for the pheasants other than to buy a license and a stamp.

Those little bonepiles in the owl pellets are fascinating aren't they? Certainly held my attention when I was kid, picking them apart, much to my Mom's chagrin.

[The Grebe]

Dotch... I never went to far into the inspection phase, I would poke them with a stick for a second, thats about it.

When I first discovered them, I did'nt know what they were, I thought I had discovered a site where aliens beings had been doing there thing! I thought that at any minute a beam of light would come down and I would end up being one of them little piles! I asked around and I was enlightened...no UFO's, no big heads, just Owls!

[full force five]

Yesterday I had at the feeder: chickadees, dark-eyed juncos, cardinals, blue-jays, sparrows, both house and yellow finches, white-breasted nuthatches, downy woodpeckers, and pheasants. There are dark-eyed juncos by the hundreds it seems in my backyard. Of course the chickadees are there in great numbers, it’s a bird that should be admired.

[fishface5]

Well, Mon 5:30 AM The pond was froze solid. There where two drake mallards on the ice. I woke at about 1pm, they where gone. There was what looked like a wing out there. My kids went skating out on the pond today and sure enough, a cat got one of the mallards. The kids said one hen was back yesterday. I didn't see her but I threw a little corn out just in case she's lookin' for a meal. I think they just go to the river in Monticelo. Maybe they'll come back for a visit once or twice this winter. The Cardinals are around, and two kinds of nut-hatches. That's about it for excitement at the bird feeders.

[Dotch]

Purty slow down south here too. Sparrows, starlings, downies, hairies, blue jays, juncos and a few nuthatches. *@%! wind keeps blowing every couple days and whipping the thistle seed out of the thistle sock. Thinking about getting a heated bird bath to see if that might draw a few newcomers in occasionally. Anyone else have one and an opinion on whether they attract more species?

[Jackpine Rob]

Why not get a hot tub Dotch? You and the little Mrs. can get some use out of it also....

We're experiencing a little cat problem at our house - and I have been too busy to deal with it properly. Our feeder is up on the edge of the deck, and the birds and squirrels naturally knock some seed to the ground. The feline has been using the air conditioner for cover, and drilling unsuspecting birds when they come for the dropped food. There's a window from the lower level very close, so the screen has been removed in anticipation of a "close encounter".

Why people let those destructive menaces loose is just beyond me.

[The Grebe]

Purty slow up here also...Pidgeons, an occassional Chickadee and a few puffed up Sparrows sitting on the split rail...this cold and wind has got all the birds hiding out!

Maybe after the cold breaks this week-end, more birds will start being active. I think I will take a stroll along the river this week-end and see if I can find anything interesting...I'm not real big on ice fishing on the week ends, close to the city, to many people.

[Dotch]

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Why not get a hot tub Dotch? You and the little Mrs. can get some use out of it also....

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Yeah, right, and guess who'd be cleaning the sparrow dump out of that...lol! Got the trusty Powerline all sighted in, eh? In the barn=good cat. In the bushes around the house=target practice.

[The Grebe]

Seen a Morning Dove on Thursday...man, it was cold outside! I have seen them before in the winter, but it is always a surprise to me.

Over the years, have seen a number of Robbins in the dead of winter, seen 5 or 6 of them at once, in this one area over in St. Paul.

I called someone, either the U of M, or the DNR, can't recall and they told me that we have some Robbins that stay all winter if the food supply holds up. They live on freeze dried berries, little Apples and things like that.

Robbins can get alot into their mouths....something was boosting our Strawberries one year and I could'nt figure out where they were going, no sign?

I was looking out the window one early morning and watched a Robbin pick a ripe Strawberry that was bigger then a quarter and swallow it in one gulp! Birds are definately survivors.

[Dotch]

excerpted from Fencelines vol. 2 no. 48

"Bird watching was excellent over the weekend due in part to the change in venue. At the in-laws near the South Branch of the Root River, saw several cardinals, chickadees and downy woodpeckers. Mrs. Cheviot reported 7 pairs of cardinals at the feeders there the next morning. Best of all when I left to go do chores around dusk, there were a couple wild turkeys trying to figure out how to navigate their way around the woven wire fence. They’re bright around hunting season but apparently not brain surgeons in the wintertime.

At my Mom’s the next day, there were several large hawks soaring overhead. Since I was trying my best to stay on the road, it was hard to determine exactly who they were. Brother Roger claimed to have seen a couple bald eagles in the tree planting in the field north of the house. At the feeders, there were some chickadees, house finches, blue jays and a female red-bellied woodpecker.

Back home, little has changed. Still faithful downy and hairy woodpeckers at the suet and a few blue jays but otherwise, it’s pretty mundane. Am about to reload with some fresh thistle seed & suet from brother John so we’ll see what transpires. With a change in the weather to more precipitation, it usually makes for an increase in activity at the feeders and more entertainment for those of us who enjoy feeding them."

[Dotch]

After chores, several goldfinches were back this AM eating sunflower & safflower so quickly put out the new thistle feeder I got for Christmas. Also refilled their sock with new seed. Could hear several more tittering from their hiding place in the Austrian & white pine waiting for me to leave for the office. Squirrels were on a tear when I went by St. Olaf Lake, probably foraging for some of the acorns they'd buried this fall. Precipitation's on the way for later in the week. Wish I had time to do the Christmas bird count but alas, there is no rest for the wicked.

[M.T. Bucket]

Lucky you! This time of year we get very few species at our feeders--being in town and on the pigeons' daily route. Those friggin' pigeons keep everything away and eat a lot of food. Haven't found a good way of deterring them in nearly 5 years of living here.

We'll get chickadees, blue jays, white-breasted nuthatches, and lots of gray squirrels. If we're lucky we'll get a few common redpolls or some bohemian waxwings perched in the mountain ash tree. For anything else we'll have to wait until late April.

Wish I could blast these pigeons in town ...I counted 58 in our yard one day.

[Dan Thiem]

Once, my old uncle had a problem with pigeons...He obtained one of them "silo ducks" and tied it in a tree upside down by he legs. Couple days later, no more problem.

True story!