A Boy Who Cried Heron

Given that the recent material on this blog has covered events from over a month ago, you may begin to think that the birding has stopped. Any birder will tell you the birding never stops. Since returning from Montana, there has been a lot of local action as I’ve tried to keep up with migration while blogging, holding down a job, being a dad/husband, etc. Anyhow, here is post that will largely be pictorial with some commentary as needed. The birds pictured will follow the taxonomic order of how birds are listed with ornithologists unions, eBird, etc. This is not an exhaustive run-down of all the birds I’ve seen this spring, but rather just the more photogenic ones. Some are migrants; some are residents who have returned for the breeding season.

Waterfowl

Trumpeter Swan

Wood Duck

Mallards

Blue-winged Teal and Wood Duck

Greater Scaup

Lesser Scaup

Lesser Scaup and Greater Scaup

Herons, Ibis, and Allies

About a month ago, I traveled to Miller-Richter WMA in Yellow Medicine County to join forces with my birding friend, Garrett Wee, to look for my lifer Willet and Short-billed Dowitcher. Willets had been popping up left and right, but somehow I was always in the middle. This day with Garrett would prove to be the same. As we studied the shorebirds on Miller Lake, Garrett and I got talking about White-faced Ibises. He was telling me how it was probably his favorite bird. He’s seen them in southern states but never here in Minnesota. White-faced Ibis is a rare-regular bird for MN. He missed the group of five last year in his home county at Black Rush Lake because he was at prom. Fair enough I suppose.

Our next stop after Miller-Richter was Spellman and Miedd Lakes. Right away at Miedd, Garrett spotted some birds faraway on the opposite shore that looked different. I zoomed my camera to the max and snapped a crummy photo so Garrett and I could see what they were. Even though it was super blurry, we could tell by the coloration and sheen on the wings that they were Ibises! We immediately hoofed it nearly 3/4 of a mile around the shoreline to get a closer view. And there were eight birds in all! It was awesome that Garrett got his Minnesota White-faced Ibises on the very day we talked about it. As a bonus, no one has ever submitted an official MOU record of White-faced Ibises for Yellow Medicine County.

White-faced Ibises

Shorebirds

Spotted Sandpiper

Least Sandpiper

Pectoral Sandpiper

Long-billed Dowitcher

Wilson’s Phalarope

Owls

Great Horned Owl

Kingfishers

Belted Kingfisher

Vireos

Yellow-throated Vireo

Gnatcatchers

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Catbirds, Mockingbirds, and Thrashers

I’ve been on very good terms with Brown Thrashers this spring. It’s a balm of sorts for the Sage Thrasher burn.

Brown Thrasher

Wood-Warblers

Don’t let the lack of photos fool you; I’ve seen a great variety of Warblers this spring. They just haven’t been very photogenic. Best non-pictured species included Golden-winged, Canada, Magnolia, and Northern Parula. American Redstarts are resident this far south in the summer, and they have been especially ubiquitous during migration.

American Redstart

This next photo is included only because it is a photographic first and only the third time I have seen a Bay-breasted Warbler. Thanks for the call, Steve.

Bay-breasted Warbler

Sparrows and other Emberizids

Field Sparrow

Savannah Sparrow

Harris’s Sparrow

Blackbirds

Baltimore Oriole

Other Cool Stuff

Snapping Turtle

There are two special birds I have left out of this post. Both are big birds and both are BIG birds. One was just a county bird; the other was a county/life bird. These birds will either be combined in the next post or each have their own post. Stay tuned!

Not only do we tell you about our birding adventures on this blog, but we also use it from time to time as a platform for public service announcements. So here it is – if you want to see orioles in your yard, get your oranges and grape jelly out NOW! Don’t worry about taking down those Christmas lights – I know I didn’t.

It’s very simple to get started: cut an orange or two in half and set them out on a deck railing, tree branch, etc. Then put out a bowl of grape jelly. YOU DO NOT NEED FANCY FEEDERS. Don’t wory about it. The orioles don’t.

I saw radar maps of migrating birds that showed today would be a banner day. So before I turned in for the night last night, I followed my own advice and put out the oranges and grape jelly. And right away this morning I was rewarded with two Baltimore Orioles.

Baltimore Oriole

I might be out chasing birds, but Melissa makes sure the ones here on the ranch are taken care of. She bought lots of jars of cheap grape jelly and this cool, mess-free feeder. I know, I said you don’t need a fancy feeder. It’s true, you don’t. Welch’s will not like the following statement either: you don’t even need name-brand jelly.

If you have kids I firmly think you should have a bird feeder of some sort. They are pretty exciting for everyone to watch. As Evan is in Cub Scouts and into birding, I’ve often thought that a great Eagle Scout project would be to erect and maintain bird feeders at a nursing home. If he’s still into both those activites in 10 years, I’ll suggest it.

Watching feeder birds is fun for the whole family.

If you want a LOT more birds than just orioles, throw out some black-oiled sunflower seeds on a feeder or your lawn and watch the magic happen. Our yard list is getting closer and closer to the century mark for number of bird species. Right now, the sparrows are ruling the roost. The White-throated are the most abundant, and their song always reminds us of our home in northern Minnesota.