Common Minnesota Birds

Sunday morning was another cold day and I took just a handful of pictures. Surprisingly enough, after reviewing my field guide, 2 of the 3 bird's I'd photographed were new species (as per listed on the right hand side of my blog). This first one high up in a tree I took for another Downy Woodpecker. Fortunately for me, another Woodpecker was hammering away down below at the bases of some cattails. Only because I'd photographed both of them within minutes of each other did I notice the subtle difference later. The larger one up in the tree clearly had a much longer bill, tipping me off that he was in fact a Hairy Woodpecker. Later, I spotted an odd looking bird sitting right alongside a Robin up in a tree. Though almost the exact same size, he was dark and spotted on the breast. Based on the photo in my field guide from Stan Tekiela, I believe it might be a European Starling. There was not a whole lot more to see other than this lone Crow who was cackling loudly up ahead on the trail. Though one of the most common birds I see, I rarely get a decent photo of one as they tend to stay far away. I will have to get a better photo soon.

Winter Hunger

As I started my walk this Saturday afternoon I stumbled upon the aftermath of a fight between two large birds. Or maybe it was between just one bird and something else. Regardless there were feathers everywhere and it looked like maybe an Owl. I took a few pics but they didn't turn out real well. Towards the north side I finally saw a group of 4 deer. It was already starting to get dark but I managed a couple of photos that show just how deep the snow is now. In previous winters I've watched Deer plunge their snout into 5 or 6 inches of snow to reach the ground but that seems like less of an option for them now. This Fawn was up to it's knees as it wandered around in search of food. Only minutes later up the trail I noticed something odd laying up along the banks of one of the drainage ditches. With all the Deer I see in the park I've always thought it odd that I've never seen a dead one. Well, here indeed was the first dead Deer I've discovered. It had clearly been eaten away at for several days at least as there was barely anything left but the 4 legs and head. It was kind of strange that the spine was whittled down to almost nothing and showed almost no signs of any attached vertebrae. I tried to make out whether it was a Doe or Fawn but I really couldn't tell. As I was examining the teeth marks on the spine, another guy walked up and told me that Coyotes had got this one and one other Deer in the past couple of weeks. They must have had a feast. As it was nearing dusk I was tempted to hang around and wait to see if any other Coyotes would come back but I was only half way back to the parking lot so I headed off. Shortly after I noticed an odd break in the overcast winter sky. I actually ran back to the south side just in time to catch a very brief winter sunset. It's such a treat to see as it accentuates the colors on the ground and makes the snow cover seem almost a blue color in comparison to the sky.

Big Winter Birds

Today ended up to be a great visit to the park although it started off slow. I arrived at about 9am and it was about 7º above zero. This was not too bad considering the last few days have been below zero in the mornings! Picture opportunities were slim for the first half with just a couple Woodpeckers and 3 or 4 Blue Jays. Then on the northeast side I scared up a Pheasant who flew upwards to roost high up in the trees. This was actually the first time I've seen a Pheasant up in a tree before. This Rooster flew waaaay up in a Birch tree so I decided to off-road it through the snow for a better angle. In the process I scared up a couple of Deer -on both sides of the trail. I think both were pairs of Fawns who were bedded down in the snow. As I neared the south side near Shingle Creek, I noticed another large bird high up in a large Oak Tree. There were 5 or 6 Crows surrounding him and squawking relentlessly. Even from a long distance I could tell that it was a Bald Eagle. I watched the Crows roost within only feet of him and squawk loudly at him. As I neared closer for a photo, the Eagle took off with all of the annoyed Crows following behind him. With all the ruckus of the Crows, I could kind of make out where they landed just up the trail a ways. As I walked closer I could again hear the loud squawking and I figured I might be able to get another, better picture of the Bald Eagle. Again I ventured off the plowed trail but this time found myself knee-deep in 2 to 3 foot snow drifts! Heading towards the sound of the Crows, I trudged stupidly through the deep snow, only to find no signs of any Eagle. Though I could now see the Crows only half way up in the tree tops, I was dumbfounded as I could not spot the large Eagle. Then right there in front of me was a gray shape, large but almost invisible against the white and gray background. -the first Owl of the season, a Great Horned Owl! I am always excited to see them as they normally are only apparent in the winter time and are one of the few birds who will sit nice and still for my camera. Aside from his huge yellow eyes, you might never know this bird of prey was even there. Apparently the Crows knew he was there as the stopped bothering the Bald Eagle in favor of him.

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.