We made a big push for volunteers at the beginning of this and felt we had gotten most of the people who were interested. I am not certain, though, so I thought I would ask one more time. As for where counts are needed, according to Peder Svingen's data, the approximate center of the Great Gray Owl irruption seems to run from central Cass and Hubbard counties through northern Aitkin to central Kanabec and Pine. We have limited to no route in these areas, so any censuses done in there would add to our data. The routes must be done either Saturday 2 /5 or Sunday 2/6 and then again in March one weekend. They must be done within 2 hours of sunrise or sunset, and you will need at least two people to do it, it is too hard to drive and watch both sides of the road by yourself. The route should be 30-35 miles in length, and along roads where you can stop and pull over. If anyone is really committed to doing this and not currently doing a routed further north, please contact me today via email and I will see if something can be done.
Mark Alt=20 President,=20 Minnesota Ornithologists Union J. F. Bell Museum of Natural History University of Minnesota 10 Church Street SE Minneapolis, MN 55455-0104 MOU.mn.org mark....@bestbuy.com Cell: 612-803-9085
