Kelly Applegate reminded me of something. There is also a well developed Purple Martin colony at Crane Meadows. I have passed a lot of time just watching them interact. Crane Meadows is a nice place to visit if you like to walk. They have one 3 1/2 mile loop that starts at an observation deck with a kiosk and good parking. The trail, that has a crushed rock base, moves North along the Platte River and a small dam that creates the Rice/Skunk Lakes. It goes through a stand of Oaks, past a prairie, around some small marshes and back to another observation deck with a permanent scope so you may view the lakes. Then it winds back through a larger Oak growth and through some low lands with shrubs that has produced both Cuckoos. It is a good place to pick up on Warblers and Thrush, plus, great for water fowl in the Spring. The North end has produced Great Horned, Barred, Long-eared and Screech Owls. I have to get Milt Blomberg into the Pines to find a Saw Whet Owl to add to our list. I have also gotten a Red Shouldered Hawk and usually kick up a Coopers or Sharp Shinned Hawk. Its a very nice place to bird and get off the beaten track. Thank you Kelly for bringing the Purple Martins to my attention. I shouldn't have omitted them in my earlier report. Frank Gosiak, Little Falls, Mn P.S. Red Headed Woodpeckers are just past the North end observation deck as you wind east.
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