Last weekend I went out to the Salt Lake Festival, Minnesota's oldest birding festival, out on the western border of Minnesota. Unlike last year, this year the weather was beautiful for the drive out, lacking last years blizzard like feel. However, we awoke to a coating of snow, which soon melted away.
While Saturday birders found over 150 different species, we had a respectable eighty plus, realizing that we never walked the woods to tally up some common wood species. Highlights included a couple of spots where we were surrounded by Snipe, many calling. We had one take a long display flight over us with an incredible serenade. Marbled Godwits were even more spectacular in their display flights. On Sunday we had an Upland Sandpiper and a small covey of Prairie Chickens fly by in just a few minutes. We had over thirty Harriers flying, but I regretted not getting a count. We also had a large flight of a mixed flock of Franklin and Bonaparte Gulls, allowing for good study. We also had both Fosters and Common Terns flying together. Other birds of note included Long-billed Dowitchers, Huns (Gray Partridge), a flock of eight White-faced Ibises, American Avocets, Wilson's Phalaropes, and courting Western Grebes. Thursday morning as I left for work I added three more FOY birds in my yard: House Wren, Catbird, and Broad-tailed Hawk. The Hawks nested last year in the neighborhood. Tonight as I stood outside waiting for Mercury to brighten in the evening sky, we had a Little Brown or Brown Miotis Bat flitter by. Spring flowers are blooming in the yard, including the fragrant Creeping Charlie, which I am presently battling in the back. I also found that my wild volunteer patch of orchids (Fancy Orchis) is coming back lustily. Steve Weston on Quiggley Lake in Eagan, MN swest...@comcast.net ---- Join or Leave mou-net:http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives:http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
