Great Gray Owl Reprise!

Year 11

Actually, this is the third time in 9 days … thus the word “reprise” may not be correct as I think it means repeat for a second time. Anyhow I drove north of Duluth yesterday morning. I felt the combination of heavy rains overnight combined with dry conditions and light winds after sunrise might make Great Grays hunt during the day. In addition, parent owls are feeding their juveniles less and less, and given the youngsters are lousy hunters, hunting after daybreak becomes more common.

When my friend and I found the owl it looked drenched, and for the first 45 minutes of our visit, the owl was just trying to dry off. Eventually it flew over to a tree only 10 yards from where I was standing. The key attribute of this tree was it was more open to the breeze. You could tell the Great Gray Owlet really just wanted to get dry.

Anyhow … from yesterday (video link for email subscribers)

Sleeping then Preening

I have NO IDEA at what the owl was looking!

Take-Off (landed right next to me … only 10 yards away!)

Birding the North Shore from Duluth to Two Harbors

Year 11

Yesterday the Cedar Waxwings were at it once again, with flocks containing hundreds of birds working their way south. The magic spot for the morning shortly after sunrise were the Mountain Ash Trees and their berries near McQuade Harbor. Before I provide images of yesterday’s beauty, here are my favorite spots with Google Maps links for the Autumn Migration between Two Harbors and Duluth. Generally bird these spots first thing in the morning driving towards Duluth which puts the sun behind you. This list presents my favorites in that direction.

And here are just a few of the Cedar Waxwings which were gorging themselves yesterday morning on mountain ash berries 300 yards up Scenic 61 from McQuade Harbor.

North Shore Migration Cedar Waxwings

Year 11

While there were not a lot of different species of birds migrating down the North Shore yesterday, there were hundreds and hundreds of Cedar Waxwings. While inland from the big lake the wind was out of the south (poor for fall migration), as is often the case down at Lake Superior the wind was from the NE. Birds understand these weather patterns and one will often see migration next to the lake, but almost no birds 3 to 5 miles inland where the winds are not favorable.

Apparently some crows that were also at Stoney Point (about midway between Duluth and Two Harbors) took major umbrage with all the waxwings … see these first set of images. Other crows had started their dive bomb runs, which is why the waxwings are scattering.

Stoney Point (GPS Coordinates) is a most excellent spot for birding during the fall migration. The point (lava lows from ancient volcanoes) sticks out into Lake Superior, which means birds tend to fly by the point. Make certain you spend significant time on Alseth Road (dirt road between Stoney Point Drive and Scenic 61). This road tends to get most of the bird action.

More Stoney Point Cedar Waxwings

A Broad-Winged Hawk Hunts Early in the Morning (just uphill from Two Harbors)