Well, this is going to be a strange year. Between Big Stone Lake, the Whetstone River, Minnesota River Headwaters, Marsh Lake, and down to Lac qui Parle State Park (Watson dam), I observed the following duckish species over the weekend:
Canada Goose, Greater White-fronted Goose, Snow Goose, Mallard, Gadwall, Redhead, Canvasback*, Ruddy Duck, Lesser Scaup, Greater Scaup, Ring-necked Duck, Common Merganser**, Red-Breasted Merganser,*** Hooded Merganser, Common Goldeneye, Northern Pintail, Wood Duck. *Flock of 8 on the Minnesota River, viewed from bridge off county highway 15 due south of Odessa/Refuge HQ. **Large concentration (roughly 30) actively diving/feeding far out in the NE reservoir, viewed from berm road (scope) off Hwy 75 along the dam. ***At least 3 male RB Mergansers visible through scope alongside the aforementioned Common Mergansers. 1 lone, croaking Sandhill Crane flew over Ortonville Sunday morning around 10:00 AM, too high for me to see. Ring-billed Gulls, Northern Harriers, Western Meadowlarks, and Killdeers have also just recently appeared. SHOREBIRD HABITAT, MIGRATION OUTLOOK There is minimal shorebird habitat in the area. There wasn't enough snow cover to leave pools of standing water in tilled fields. Pothole wetlands are not showing much shoreline. Salt Lake, for instance, will only have a few feet of mudflats, best viewed from the SW corner. The Minnesota River between Ortonville and Marsh Lake is pretty low right now. Some of the most easily-viewed mudflats will be along river banks this year. There should be some decent river channel viewing at several points within Big Stone NWR, and also around Marsh Lake and the Lac qui Parle State Park dam. Cory Lake, at Hamlin WMA in southern Lac qui Parle County, may be one of the more productive sites for spring shorebird viewing. (It can be challenging there in the summer due to shoreline vegetation). The lake is undergoing a drawdown and could pool up with some temporary water if we get some precipitation in the next 2 months. It may end up being one of our few expansive mudflats this year. The forecast is calling for warm temps and south winds again by the weekend, so I'd expect another big wave of movement. Jason Frank Ortonville ---- General information and guidelines for posting: https://moumn.org/listservice.html Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html During the pandemic, the MOU encourages you to stay safe, practice social distancing, and continue to bird responsibly.
