I startled an American Woodcock this morning along the western shore of Rapids Lake. In addition to other migrants, I refound 1 Yellow-rumped Warbler. The normally reliable overwintering Swamp Sparrow was not cooperative. I last saw him on March 1. Also on March 1, I saw my FOY Song Sparrow along the shore of Rapids Lake and likely refound a Golden-crowned Kinglet. All waterfowl seen today were either flyovers or in the Minnesota River. Many ducks were just landing on the river when I was there.
March 6 Rapids Lake MVNWR count Cackling Goose 1 (flyover calling) Canada Goose 235 (multiple flocks flying all directions, some flocks flying in circles) Trumpeter Swan 13 Wood Duck 1 Mallard 85 (2/3 in Minnesota River near Rapids Lake, additional flock of ~40 unidentified smaller ducks seen flying, ~10 distant small ducks in the river) Northern Pintail 1 (male flyover) Ring-necked Duck 4 Common Goldeneye 20 Hooded Merganser 21 (15 male, 6 female) Wild Turkey many Bald Eagle 4 (One adult dove at a Hooded Merganser on the Minnesota River, but the merganser dove underwater before the eagle could catch it.) Cooper's Hawk 1 (male) American Woodcock 1 Ring-billed Gull 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker 3 Downy Woodpecker 3 Hairy Woodpecker 1 Northern Flicker 1 Pilieated Woodpecker 1 Blue Jay American Crow Horned Lark 4 Black-capped Chickadee 15 White-breasted Nuthatch 4 Eastern Bluebird 1 American Robin 3 Yellow-rumped Warbler 1 American Tree Sparrow 2 Dark-eyed Junco 1 (decrease in these and Tree Sparrows compared to just a few days ago) Northern Cardinal Red-winged Blackbird 48 (flock of ~40, 5, and 3) Rusty Blackbird 1 Brown-headed Cowbird 1 American Goldfinch 3 ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html