My Calendar Says Spring Darnit!

This morning I met some new friends of mine at the park for a 3 mile hike full of birding and photo talk. It was a bright sunny day at least but I still can't get over how cold it has remained this late into March. The temperature when I woke this morning was only 16 degrees and I'm still dressing in all my normal winter clothes including a layer of thermal underwear head to toe. The first "official day" of Spring came 3 days ago and it was the coldest first-day on record since 1965! Most anywhere off the trail you can still step in places with snow well above your shoe line. It's still just a bit early I guess for returning birds though and it was relatively quiet still at the park. We did get to see a Northern Shrike for a bit but I wasn't able to get a great photo. There were LOTS of Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers, Chickadees, Nuthatches and Cardinals. Many of the Cardinals were singing loudly adding to the "feel" of Spring. We caught this one plucking a Buckthhorn Berry on the North end of the park. Over on the duck pond we looked for Waldo the Wood Duck but he was not there today. But still with the other Mallards was the one lone Gadwall that I first spotted last weekend. Again I almost didn't notice him among the similarly colored female Mallards. At one point he came right up to us on the edge of the pond and took a ton of photos of him. Something I noticed this time that I hadn't last time was that he had kind of a soft white patch on the front of his breast. I don't know if this was part of his plumage or maybe it was just missing in this part. I was looking later at some photos of a female Gadwall and wondering if next time I go back I should be looking harder. They would appear extremely similar to a female Mallard but with more of a "square" shaped head. One of the last notable sights of the day was a large group of European Starlings that came in to land in a single tall tree. I've been thinking lately that I hadn't seen them in huge numbers -easily in the hundreds- yet like I did last year. Well today there was probably around 40 to 50 of them that came in and started making their noisy high pitched shrill. I don't think these guys ever completely leave for the winter as I've seen a handful here and there this season. But now it is obvious more and more are making their way back northwards.

A Sign of Things to Come

It's been a long while since my last post even though I've continued to visit the park frequently in February and March. I've just over-extended myself far too much lately and have been so busy I cannot find time to blog anymore. I have a backlog of posts so large it's becoming scary to look at my computer's desktop, but I still intend to add them at some point. Two days ago we had freezing rain and then last night we had about an inch and a half on top of that. I remember last year at this time we hadn't had snow on the ground for nearly a month and temps were in 60's! Today when I woke up it was only 15º with roads that were like a skating rink. What a huge difference from last year -but that's Minnesota for you. With this wintery weather refusing to give up, I wasn't expecting to see a lot today but fortunately I was wrong.Apparently the resident Northern Shrikes are still enjoying our weather quite a bit. I spotted this on the east side perched atop the tall trees directly across from the baseball diamonds. I waited for some clouds to pass and the bright blue sky to give me a better backdrop. I don't know if it's the time of year or maybe just the way he was perched but his breast feathers were all puffy and blowing in the breeze -giving him that "Fat Robin" kind of look. It remained completely quiet the whole time before moving along to another perch. Since it was so nice and sunny out today I decided I would walk past the duck pond on the southwest corner and try to get a nice photo of "Waldo" the Wood Duck. I located him quickly among the other Mallards and then decided to sit right down in the snow and wait for them to get comfortable with me and hopefully swim closer. As I snapped photos and watched him weave between the other Mallards, I almost didn't notice but there was another Duck that didn't look quite like the others. The difference from the other female Mallards was so slight and I might not have even realized if I had not been zoomed in on them so closely. My mind raced back to last year and recalled a Duck that took me a long time to identify when I first spotted one. Indeed this was a Gadwall! I couldn't believe it. The group I'd seen last year was so far away and my photos turned out terribly but here was one right in front of me. Once I realized this I forgot all about Waldo and focused on this second Duck that wasn't like the others. In fact I don't know how I didn't notice earlier that it's bill was completely dark instead of bright orange like the other Mallards. A few times though Waldo and the Gadwall would swim right up to one another and I realized that this might not be something I ever see again. Generally I would say that Gadwalls arrive back to our area waaaay before Wood Ducks would return. I wonder if the Gadwall thought he was running late when he ran into Waldo! As I continued to watch, periodically all three species would come together and this is probably the best shot I got of all three. Quite a neat trio I thought. I realized too that this Gadwall was the first "returning" species I've spotted at the park this year! So though it still very much feels like winter, the birds know that spring is just around the corner. Some other birds I spotted today were a Red-tailed Hawk, Pheasant (only heard), Hairy Woodpeckers, Chickadees, Crows, Robins, and a few Cardinals. This male Cardinal actually let me get close enough for a decent photo though I wish he had been fully in the sun and facing me. I've just not captured my "ideal" Cardinal photo yet but I came close today.

Fresh Snow and Critters

Last Tuesday a fairly significant snowstorm moved through the state. It hit areas north of us with nearly a foot but the Twin Cities got about 3 to 4 inches max. Then last night we had about another inch added on top making it actually feel like winter for a change. The park was very much alive today with some great sights. First I caught this Muskrat sitting on the thin ice over the waterway connecting the duck pond to the next lake. Before this photo he was eating what looked to be a greenish colored weed or cattail and I couldn't figure out where he would have gotten that. On the northeast side I wandered up the next trail for a bit when I started to hear a loud shrieking bird call. At first I thought it was a Blue Jay imitating a Hawk. It took me a while to finally get to where the sound was coming from to see that it was a Hawk. He only sat still for a couple of photos before taking off but I think it was probably a Red-tailed. The next bird I saw really stood out against today's overcast and grey skies. This Cardinal was picking Buckthorn berries with his back to the wind -as evident by his crown feathers periodically bending all the way over the front of his head. But the best sighting of the day was yet to come on the south side. As I crossed the bridge over the creek I looked upstream which and spotted another Muskrat on the ice underneath a bush. I quietly made my way up the woodchip trail when I saw what I thought was yet another one on an island of ice in the creek. As it moved I realized it wasn't a Musksrat but a Mink! I had my camera on him right away but there were so many trees and brush in the way. Though I didn't get a decent picture of it, he was eating a little fish about 6 inches long. After he finished that he walked back my way along the ice island and even looked directly at me as I was searching for a better clearing through the brush. He hung out along the edge of the water for a bit, burying his snout into the snow in search of something. Then he turned around and slinked along towards the other end of the ice. There were a pair of Mallards swimming by and when the Mink got to the end of the ice, he jumped high in the air landing in the water right by them, sending the ducks off quacking angrily. It was hilarious and seemed to have no point other than amusement for the Mink.

Warm and Wiiiindy

This Sunday was another nice sunny and warm day, only it was super windy. Because of the wind I didn't expect to see many birds but I was able to get closer to this Cardinal than I normally get to them. In fact I walked up right underneath him. From this angle he didn't fit that familiar "regal" and trim looking shape but rather more like a fat Robin. In the first little pond near the parking lot I also spotted a few Wood Ducks -with just one being a Male. They are so much more skittish than Mallards and took off at the first sight of me. It doesn't seem like there's been as many Wood Ducks this year compared to last, and I definitely have not gotten as close to them this year. It's getting so late now that this may be the last I see of them this season. Later I spotted another Easter Phoebe catching insects over the water. I took some photos but they turned out all washed out from the bright sun reflecting on the water. Despite the strong wind, Canada Geese were moving around in large flocks today. No two groups ever seem to be headed the same direction. This larger than normal group circled above me for a bit and broke into more of a circular pattern versus a typical "v."

Another few soakings

This Saturday it had already rained hard in the morning from about 8 to 9am. I waited this out before heading to the park thinking I'd be dry for at least the next hour -but I was wrong. Not too far into my walk I spotted a dark shape on the path that I thought was a piece of wood or something. Upon closer inspection it was Toad who probably came out to enjoy the wet weather. I tried to move him off the trail but he wouldn't budge even when I grabbed him so I let him be. About 20 minutes later I'd just crossed the straight part of the path on the north side when it began to down-pour yet again. I stood in a place under some trees and tried to wait it out, but the rain picked up in intensity and I found myself moving around looking for a drier spot. In a matter of minutes I was soaked from head to toe and still had 3/4 of the way to go. What a bummer. Amazingly the rain stopped almost as abruptly as it had started, the sky cleared completely and the sun came out full blast in just a matter of minutes. I noticed a Flickr bouncing around right on the paved path -probably looking for insects after the rain. As I was trying to get some shots, I could see movement behind me but paid little attention thinking it was just another park-goer. When the person that I thought was coming still hadn't passed me I turned around to realize it was a Doe. It looked like a young one but did not have any white fawn-spots. Later near the south side I spotted this Cardinal against the clear blue sky. I'm guessing it was a young female by it's rather grey-ish appearance, and it's only real recognizable feature being the large orange bill. The bird was clearly drying itself out in the bright sun -just as I was trying to do at the same time. Later in the day it rained yet a 3rd time in just one day!

Last Day of May

I took a couple of extra days off from work following Memorial Day so I was able to squeeze one more visit in for the month of May. Seems like this month is going by fast and a lot of the new birds I spotted earlier in the month are already disappearing, likely heading further north for the season. I did see another Flicker on the north side but had a tough time getting a photo against the bright sun. Shortly after, a lone Doe appeared among the tall grass, almost like a gopher popping it's head out of a hole -as that was all I could see. I thought maybe she might have had a fawn with her but as she crossed the trail later, nothing was behind her. I saw a pair of Red-tailed Hawks from a very long distance and didn't have any close bird encounters until I spotted this Cardinal just off the trail. He was quite close and I was excited about the potential photos I would get. I don't know what it is about Cardinals but I just can't seem to get a crisp, detailed photo of one no matter how close I get. I'm starting to thing their red color somehow throws off my camera or something. Just kidding. As I made my way around the park I was noticing how green and thick things have become over the month. Plants are growing and filling in every place that isn't routinely walked through.

Startin' to snow again

Once again, all the talk has been about how much snow we're supposed to get in the next couple of days. And as usual, the predictions just keep increasing. The last one I heard before arriving at the park today was 13 inches! The paved trails were still clear and dry but the overcast sky certainly did look like change is on the way. On the west side there were lots of Cardinals bouncing around in the trees. I love how bright red they are -especially on days like today- so I'm constantly trying for a better photo of one. They were pretty active today so the best photo I got was this one from the back. When I got to the north side, the snow started falling lightly but gradually picked up as I went on. The park was quiet all around until I heard a familiar sound of a Pileated Woodpecker on the north east side. The more times I hear them, the more I think of a Chicken or Rooster or something. Maybe I'm just imagining that. I finally did spot her, quite far away and high up in a dead tree. It's hard to tell from this far but I'd say it's a female due to the black "moustache." Since my first sighting of a Northern Shrike, I think I've actually spotted them a couple more times. It's hard to say for sure because again, I'm seeing them at great distances. However, from this, I may have learned a characteristic to help clue me in. In almost all my possible Shrike sightings, I usually spot them perched at the very tip-top, highest possible point of the tree -even if that's on the tiniest twig. I would imagine this helps their vantage point for hunting. So when I saw a bird in this position again today, I snapped a couple of pics before he flew off. Again it's hard to tell from such a distance but he sure looks similar to my photo from the 5th of February!

Dreary Day in January

I had an extra day off from work today this Monday and got in a visit around 2:00 pm. It was already gloomy and overcast but with temps nearing 28º there was almost a "haziness" to the air today. After crossing the foot bridge on the north side, I spotted some movement in the woods to my left and saw three deer headed the opposite way. I turned around to get ahead of them, then stopped and knelt down on the trail where I figured they'd come out. Indeed a trio of Doe and two fawns popped out of the woods right in front of me. Someone has been leaving out apples near the trail this whole winter and the Doe stopped to gobble one up quickly. I watched one of the fawns cautiously sniff one, then jump back suddenly as if it smelled something completely out of the norm. Neither of the fawns ate the remaining apples and continued following mom toward the bridge. I couldn't believe it but I watched all 3 cross right over the bridge! I've seen tracks over the bridge before but this was the first time I've actually seen Deer walk right over it. Later I spotted a Bald Eagle and then another Great Horned Owl. Both were very far away and I did not get any worthwhile pictures for this post. Later on, I finally noticed some other birds near the east side including Nuthatches, Starlings, Robins and about 10 Cardinals. The male Cardinals were so bright against the overcast sky but this is the best photo I got. As often as I see Cardinals, I'm still striving for a better photo.

Rare Sun and Warmth

Today was seriously the nicest day I think we've had so far this December. The sun was out in full blast and the temps (in the sun) shot up to slightly over 40 degrees! Considering how crummy this December has been, it was a breath of fresh air. I ended up taking just a couple of pics by the time I was well past the bridge on the north side. I thought I'd heard an Owl down another paved entrance to the park so I went to check it out. Instead I found this male Cardinal that was holding so still I actually thought he was fake for a second. As I wandered further down the new trail I spotted 3 or 4 Deer through the woods near some houses on the edge of the park. It looked like there were at least a couple of Fawns and Does who found something of interest near the edge of the woods. Later I spotted a couple more down in the valley of the creek/drainage ditch that I could only view with my binoculars. As I was watching them, a much larger Deer with a 6 or 8 point rack walked through my long distance view! They were much too far away for a photo but I thought it was cool to see a Buck again regardless. By the time I got back to the parking lot it was nearing 4:30pm and the sun was starting to cast an unfamiliar orange glow on the tree tops. I stopped for one last photo of icicles hanging from a Pine tree -another reminder of how warm it was today.

Series of Strange Events

On my way to the park today, only blocks from my house I stopped to pull a car out of the snowbank. The brand new hybrid car was completely cemented into the deep and hard packed snowbank and I couldn't begin to comprehend how in the heck the driver managed this feat with the roads as clear as they are. Regardless, my tow strap did the trick and delayed my arrival to the park by only about 20 minutes. I'd brought my snowshoes today and was excited to go off my normal path. Shortly after crossing the creek tributary on the west side I headed out towards the middle of the park, planning to cut all the way across. To my surprise my snowshoes became more and more useless the further out I got. They worked OK while in the cover of the woods, but out in the open I was sinking abruptly into 3 foot snowdrifts. The snow was just too light and fluffy to support any weight. As an added bonus to my struggling, the deep snow easily concealed all kinds of logs and branches underneath that I was tripping on left and right. More than once, I fell full-bodied, limbs flailing wildly into the deep snow. I didn't know whether to laugh or swear but I eventually opted for the latter. There was no way in hell I was gonna make it across the entire park this way so I headed back to the paved trail, frustrated and sweaty. As I'm sure I scared away every living thing in the park, I figured I'd better settle for a photo of this Nuthatch near the northwest side. Despite seeing a good variation of birds, including an Owl, Hawks, Cardinals and Blue Jays, I was always too far away and too late for any photos. My mood became increasingly more grumpy as my cell phone was chiming in with both emails and phone calls the whole way. Eventually I was summoned back home by a work related circumstance. Fortunately I'd stowed my laptop in my back seat this morning -something I only do when my backup person is not available. Just as I was setting up and logging in, I noticed a man standing right behind my truck, looking out over the middle of the park. I figured maybe he was looking at a Deer or something and turned my attention back to my laptop. From my rear view mirror I saw him shift closer and thought I'd better see what was going on. As I opened my door, the man said "you see that Fox out there?" Out loud I screamed "Shit!" and scrambled back in my truck for my camera. I knew even before he got the words out of his mouth that a Coyote was out there somewhere and I caught a quick glance of him through my windshield about the same time I'd finally located my camera. I bolted out of my truck and in a fervor uttered just one word "Coyote!" back to the man behind me. I snapped a first photo much too quickly before the camera had even focused as I thought I'd never get the chance again. Luckily the Coyote was going the full distance across the frozen water, giving me multiple chances for a photo. He was a long ways out but I didn't care in the least as he was clearly visible and was going to be for at least another 30 seconds. As far out as he was, he was keenly aware of myself and the other guy watching stupidly from the parking lot. He paused only a couple of times before coming all the way over to the southeast side and back into the woods on the southeast side. The same area I've spotted them in -only twice in 5 years. Later, I'd realized that if I hadn't hurried back to the truck and decided to flip open my stupid laptop, I would have missed him by just minutes! For me, it was an early Christmas present!

Mid December Blizzard

Towards the latter part of this week the weather forecasts were predicting a major snowstorm so I thought it would be fun to visit the park. Despite 7 to 8 inches of snow I got to the park fairly easily but by the time I was about 1/4 mile in, I was having second thoughts. Strong winds were driving icy snow sideways right into my face and glasses. It was building up so fast that even the Ducks in the pond were starting to get covered up. I actually walked backwards at times where the path would cross an open field. I couldn't wait to get into the woods just to avoid the sideways snow. The first 1/3rd of the path was actually plowed but the rest wasn't. The latter 2/3rds was terrible walking and I found myself sweating under all my layers of winter clothes. Deer were not moving at all today but I did see one Pheasant early on. Later I spotted a group of 4 or 5 Cardinals eating berries up in the shrubs. I walked off the path to get closer to this female and soon found myself in snow up to my knees! Everything was so white that it was hard to tell where the trail even was at times. The snow kept on piling up as I went and showed no signs of letting up. This is about the closest to a real "Blizzard" the Twin Cities area has gotten in years and they are already comparing it to the Halloween Blizzard of 1991. When I finally got back to the parking lot, snow drifts were already creeping up the tires of my truck.

Unexpected sights

I skipped the wood chip trail today in favor of the pavement as it's seriously just too wet and muddy lately. On a part of the paved trail I would have normally passed, I noticed this odd looking, down covered bird high up in a tree. The only thing really recognizable was the fat, red beak which means it must be an adolescent Cardinal. I still can't tell whether male or female, though there was a hint of red in it's wings. Though it wasn't raining today, everything is saturated with moisture from our persistent rainy weather. I don't know why but water droplets seem to stay nice and neat on the tall wild grass even long after a rainfall. On the south side I stopped to take some more pictures of another squawking Catbird when I noticed a little fur-ball scurrying around on the wood chip trail. It was winter time when I'd last seen a Vole so it was kind of cool to see another in late Spring. Like last time, I was able to quietly walk right up to him and get some closeups as he quietly munched upon some dead oak leaves from last season. I get the feeling they hear or sense movement better than see it. Just reading in my Mammals of Minnesota Field Guide by Stan Tekiela that there are at least 3 kinds of voles -and this is likely a "Meadow Vole."

Signs of Spring

Was another warm, beautiful day on Sunday and I saw -and heard- a little bit of everything. Though most everywhere is still drab and brown, things are slowly but surely turning green. I would have missed this budding tree had I not practically walked into it while watching out for deer. On that thought I wondered about my chance of finding any shed antlers so I detoured into the woods on the southwest side. I'd walked through almost the same area last March with no luck, but you never know. The soil here is pitch black and mushy, but not necessarily muddy. It's kind of weird like foam or something, probably from the constant falling leaves and rotting wood. The first thing to catch my eye was a bit of red feathers, likely from a Cardinal. As I was taking a few close ups, I heard some sirens going by in the distance. All of a sudden there was this flurry of high pitched howling coming out of the cattails. It was louder and more distinct than I'd ever heard before and I figured they must have been really close to me. I got pretty excited that I might actually catch a glimpse of a Coyote but no such luck today. I'm thinking of possibly learning how to "call" them just to see these elusive critters for more than a split second. Shortly afterward I was keeping my eyes on the ground and noticed a 10 inch stick that seemed too white. It was "balled" on the end and was obviously a bone of some sort -maybe a leg? I hunted around the same area for a while before finding a second, shorter version and then finally a very small fragment only a couple inches long. I decided to prop them up against a tree for a pic just because I'd found them.

Back to Winter

After the warm temps melted a fair amount of snow and ice, it's turned cold again with evenings dipping slightly below zero. There's barely any open water now compared to just last week. Saw a group of 6 or 7 deer on the west side but they were too far back in the woods for a photo. Since I highly doubted I'd see any more deer after that I figured I'd try some bird shots. Birds are so much tougher as they don't sit still for long. Some, like this Chickadee are gone a half a second after you snap the shutter. Shortly later I ran into two guys at the bridge. One guy had some nice camera equipment and the other was holding a large deer antler. I stopped to talk to them and they said they had found the shed antler out in the woods while photographing birds. It was in near perfect shape. As I counted the 5 tines on the antler, I wondered if it was from the 10pt Buck I saw just last week. I still had the pics on my camera and I showed them as we speculated as to whether or not it may have belonged to the same deer. They also had a nice photo of a Great Horned Owl which spurred a good conversation about the various birds we'd all seen in the park. Birds seemed to be the theme of the day, though I also saw a few squirrels and rabbits out enjoying the sun.

Christmas snowstorm aftermath

The Christmas snowstorm of 2009 has dumped over a foot of snow followed by a nice freezing rain on top of it, making for a tough -and very loud- walk today. I doubted I'd see any deer as they'd hear me coming a mile away, and I was right. The only thing that stuck out of the white scenery was this Cardinal. Since there was really nothin' else to see today I tried again to capture some snowflakes where the path was covered with interesting looking ice crystals. Don't think my camera is completely cut out for this close of a shot but I'm gonna keep tryin. On the west side I noticed that the recent heavy snows have just squashed large areas of cattails creating new views of the lake that did not exist before.