[mou-net] Cooper's Hawks
Hi All-- Erika and I have seen more Cooper's Hawks than usual this summer. Recent sightings include two widely separated birds last Friday along the bike trail along the Minnehaha Creek bike trail between Lake Nakomis and Lake Harriet in Minneapolis. On Saturday we found a large female Cooper's Hawk at the U of M Landscape Arboretum in Carver Co. I posted photos of that bird on my blog this morning (http://dantallmansbirdblog.blogspot.com). *Birds of North America* reports increases of this hawk in Michigan and Wisconsin of 10 percent or more in recent Breeding Bird Surveys. -- Dan or Erika Tallman Northfield, Minnesota daner...@gmail.com http://dantallmansbirdblog.blogspot.com the best shod travel with wet feet...Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes ”—H. D. Thoreau Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
[mou-net] Blue Grosbeak (Martin Co.)
Just spotted a male Blue Grosbeak in Martin Co. just west of the intersection of 20th ave and 220th st. Bird was spotted on the powerline and then flew into the grove of trees on the south side of 220th. This is just north of the Great River Energy Lakefield Junction Station. There is also a very nice looking spot for shorebirds just south of here along 20th ave, but only had Killdeer, yellowlegs, and some least sp today. - Derek Bakken Sent from my iPhone Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
[mou-net] MOU Youth Mentorship Program
As the coordinator of the MOU Youth Mentorship Program I would like to report how many contacts have been reported to me so far this year. I think that the folks volunteering at the State Fair may like this information. It is a great time to let the state know more about the YMP and how our super volunteers are available to teach youth about birds. We have Youth Mentors and kits in all parts of the state. So far this year 1526 youth and 1162 adults have participated in the program. Great work! -- KEVIN D. SMITH Dakota County Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
[mou-net] Shorebirds in Grant and Stevens Counties this weekend
On Saturday and Sunday my brother Marv, Kevin Smith, and I birded our way down the western side of the state from the North Ottawa impoundment in Grant County to Blue Mound State Park. The best shorebird spot, as expected, was the North Ottawa impoundment, where we had: 125 Great Egret 2 American Avocet 3 Black-belied Plover 6 Semipalmated Plover 35 Killdeer 12 Spotted Sandpiper 23 Greater Yellowlegs 48 Lesser Yellowlegs 14 Stilt Sandpipers 3 Baird's Sandpipers 30 Least Sandpipers 25 Pectoral Sandpipers 20 Semipalmated Sandpipers 100 peep species 8 Short-billed/Long-billed Dowitchers 2 Wilson's Snipes ...plus a variety of waterfowl and other birds. The larger numbers here are on the conservative side. We saw the small group of dowitchers when we first drove up at the south end and scanned the area. Unfortunately, by the time we turned our scopes back to look at them more closely, they had left. The best find of the trip was a fallow field in Stevens County just south of Chokio, which had been flooded earlier and was now mostly mud and grass. When we stopped to scan it, we found 46 Buff-breasted Sandpipers (thanks to Kevin for doing the count!), 17 American Golden Plovers, and one Black-bellied Plover. The location was the SE corner of 270th St. and 620th Ave. Other good birds on the trip were Red-necked Phalaropes (several locations), Semipalmated Plovers (Rock Co.), Eared Grebes (Hancock WTP and Salt Lake), Red-necked Grebe (Salt Lake), Blue Grosbeaks (Blue Mounds SP), Forster's Tern (N. Ottawa Impoundment), Loggerhead Shrike (Yellow Medicine Co.), Peregrine Falcon (Big Stone NWR), Upland Sandpiper (Big Stone NWR), and Eurasian Collared-Dove (Chokio). We found large flocks of Franklin's Gulls all over; we estimated more than 2000 at the Osakis WTP alone. Since we were already in Rock County visiting Blue Mounds SP, we decided to check the spot where the Least Terns had been seen last week, even though Roy Z. had reported that they were no longer there. No Least Terns, only two Black Terns. However, we did find numerous shorebirds foraging there—mostly Lesser Yellowlegs; Least, Semipalmated, and Pectoral Sandpipers; a few Baird's Sandpipers; one Stilt Sandpiper; and Semipalmated Plovers. Great weekend! Good birding to all. Gerry Hoekstra Northfield Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
[mou-net] Carver County
Southbound migrants have been slowly making their way into Carver County this past week with nothing particularly unusual for this time of year. August 12 Rapids Lake MVNWR Olive-sided Flycatcher 1 Northern Waterthrush 2 Black-and-white Warbler 1 Tennessee Warbler 2 August 15 Carver Park Reserve Ovenbird 1 Nashville warbler 1 Rapids Lake MVNWR Black-and-white Warbler 1 Canada Warbler 1 August 16 Landscape Arboretum Alder Flycatcher 1 Mourning Warbler 1 Chestnut-sided Warbler 1 Canada Warbler 1 August 17 Rapids Lake MVNWR Alder Flycatcher 2 Black-and-white Warbler 1 Mourning Warbler 1 Chestnut-sided Warbler 2 Canada Warbler 1 August 18 Carver Park Reserve Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 1 Alder Flycatcher 2 Ovenbird 1 Black-and-white Warbler 1 Tennessee Warbler 1 Nashville Warbler 1 Blackburnian Warbler 2 Canada Warbler 1 Landscape Arboretum Alder Flycatcher 2 Black-and-white Warbler 2 John Cyrus Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
