At approx. 02:00 this afternoon, while dropping off a relative in the Lincoln Park district of Duluth, I observed a male varied thrush. Initially, my eye was drawn to the bird as it landed in the upper branches of a nearby maple tree. At first I presumed it to be a robin, but on closer inspection was thrilled to discover that it was a varied thrush. The bird only stayed in the tree for a few seconds before it flew off into a large conifer tree where I lost track of it. I began to drive around the block to see if I could discover a food source as there were few if any bird feeding stations around. There were two crabapple trees in the front yard of a house (2215 West 4th Street), and in the apple tree with the larger apples was the varied thrush. He was not terribly fond of having his picture taken, but I managed to get an id image that I posted in the Showcase section of MOU. I don't believe that anyone has reported this thrush as of yet. There was also a female robin and some starlings feeding on the same tree. On more than one occasion, I observed the thrush fly under the front stairs of the house with an apple in it's mouth, apparently utilizing the stairs as shelter. The home owner exhibited awareness of the thrush and said that he had already taken a picture of "that cool looking bird." (He was very nice given my unannounced interest in his front yard). This is only the second varied thrush that I have observed, but this one provided the best looks by far. What a GORGEOUS bird! Happy Birding. Shawn Zierman. **************One site keeps you connected to all your email: AOL Mail, Gmail, and Yahoo Mail. Try it now. (http://www.aol.com/?optin=new-dp&icid=aolcom40vanity&ncid=emlcntaolcom00000025)
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