My kind of southern birding would still be considered “way up north” for most folks, but for me I had driven 180 miles south out of the Boreal Forests near Duluth to the Minneapolis area. Leaving Lake Superior also means the temperature rises significantly, and without the severe winters of northeastern Minnesota, I was surprised to discover leaves were already budding. Greenery is still one month away in my neighborhood.

Obviously this habitat change means different birds. Given the weather was gloomy yesterday afternoon, I decided to adjust my efforts. Great Egrets rarely make it up to the Duluth area; thus I took a hike around some ponds in the Plymouth area. Although it was Sunday afternoon, the poor weather meant I had the trails to myself. I guess you would have to be “bird brained” to be outside. Oh well, I enjoyed my time. The low light actually meant it was much easier to photograph birds with white plumage without the feathers looking blown out by the light.

Great Egrets