Back Dated - January 2015

A quick recap of the birding so far this year that I’ve missed.

I was able to pick up two rarities for this area already this year. I went out looking for the Eurasian Tree Sparrow spotted by a home owner south of Hastings. It wasn’t long waiting for the bird mixed in with a large group of House Sparrow. Good solid look, but still not my favorite way to bird. A bird in the yard always feels like a personal thing to me, but I get the value and the sharing of the event with the community. Just always feels deeper to go out into the wilderness and find a bird. Nature of the beast I guess and something I need to get more comfortable with on local rarities as they are a regular thing at feeders. Maybe it’s the creepy factor of staring at someone’s house / back yard that does it to me.

Anyway I then headed up to Resurrection Cemetery which is east of Fort Snelling SP over the river. This was a site for a Townsend’s Solitaire that had been spending the winter in the area. I worked for a good stretch, but had no luck. A couple out looking for the bird asked me about my thoughts on playing a call. I’ve been on both sides of this discussion and felt in this case it was acceptable. We weren’t in a breeding situation and the temp was good enough that I didn’t feel like bumping the bird was a major issue. One play of the song was enough as the bird echoed back and came into view. It soon left the near area and flew to another part of the cemetery. A fun lifer that would not have happened without a call being played. I’m sure debate is a pretty open thing when it comes to drawing in birds by a call, but like I said I fall on both sides of the argument depending upon the situation.

Additionally in the first days of the year I have gone to Point Douglas park in Hastings to view birds. Many Common Merganser in play as well as a single Red-breasted Merganser as the cool find in the masses of Common. I did find some Common Goldeneye as well and a lone Greater Scaup mixed in the group as well. I can’t remember if I kept the sighting as that on my eBird or not as another birding did argue with me that it was impossible to tell without looking at the outstretched wing. Subsequent posts on eBird have confirmed Greater Scaup at the site and I think my original feel was correct.

The other highlight was the ultra-tough find of a Snowy Owl out at the airport. Being able to get right into the middle of the runway areas on Cargo road we got the very end and were using the turnabout when I spotted a white dome on top of the small bunker on the other side of the fence. Turned out to be a Snowy that had been reported in the area recently. This was at the far end of the road past FedEd where Cargo Road is a dead end. Pretty cool sighting that Melissa and I got to see together.

That covers the highlights so far I guess.

#Snowy Owl

#Red-breasted Merganser

#Eurasian Tree Sparrow

#Townsend’s Solitaire