Tag Archives: MN North: Sax-Zim Bog

Birding Updates

Year 11, , ,

Some quick birding updates …

  1. The large pine blocking USFS Road #813 (Greenwood Creek Bird Feeders) has been cleared … a combination of my efforts and the forest service
  2. The trailcam at the Greenwood Creek Bog photographed some timber wolves. I have again slightly shifted the camera’s location as I better learn the preferred game trails.
  3. The Lester / Amity Owl family is doing fine. A few mornings ago I found all four owls, even Poppa (he tends to be harder to find). Some recent pics of the owl family included below.
  4. I took photos of the Lakewood Elementary School Wetlands. They are posted below, and will also be added to the post describing that birding location. See my Northeastern Minnesota Birding Locations web page.
  5. The Grassland Birds are busy trying to find mates. This is a good birding excursion, and the wildflowers are beginning to bloom (see images bellow of Bobolink and Killdeers recently seen at Sax-Zim)
  6. Believe it or not, the Red-Headed Woodpecker is still hanging out at the Park Point Recreation Area. Red focuses upon the flowering fruit trees just off the parking lot (next to road).

All images taken within the past seven days on various birding excursions …

Lakewood Elementary School Wetlands

Standing in the middle of the bridge … pics show both directions

Grassland Birds of Sax-Zim (Bobolinks and Killdeer)

Note: I obviously stumbled upon / got near a nest (broken wing display)

Red!

The Lester / Amity Owls (Momma and Owlets)

Day 65: (Momma winks, Owlet learning to hunt

Day 67: Poppa pulls the crows away

Day 69: Owlet being harassed by Robins

Day 70: Various events!

Day 71: Momma taking a break in the afternoon

Birding the Color Yellow!

Year 11

I did not start out yesterday morning to find yellow while birding, but heck … yellow found me. At this time of year, I very frequently start looking for grassland birds, if Boreal Birds up in Sax-Zim Bog are not performing for me, and they were not! Make certain you see my map at the end of the post. It defines the small area in which I was birding, and what I normally see / hear in the region.

A Sandhill Crane Couple seen in a sea of (??) wild mustard.

An Eastern Meadowlark Singing to find a Mate

Map of my Birding Region (descriptions of 3 regions beneath map)

  • Region 1 – Wild Mustard Field: The Sandhill Cranes like this field, and I often see various hawks perched on the edge of the field hunting.
  • Region 2 – Racek Road: Bobolinks and Dickcissels are my favorite finds. You will find other grassland birds. In the morning I drive from the east with the sun behind me.
  • Region 3 – Dart Road: Eastern Meadowlarks and Bobolinks. Sometimes I see Northern Harriers hunting the fields … mainly after their young have hatched.

There are obviously other Sax-Zim areas where one might see these birds , but these regions are very close together and easily birded. From Owl Avenue to the Mustard Field, look for warblers on the north side of the road. If the bugs are not to0 bad, I hike the trail next to the drainage ditch leading to the west at the southern most point (90 degree turn) of Owl Avenue (land owned by the Friends of Sax-Zim Bog)

Rain Birds

Year 11

The back country is wet, which does not encourage one to go off trail. Twice in the past three days I have visited Sax-Zim Bog and the water next to the dirt roads is amazingly deep. The reason for my visits is we are now entering the time period when both Great Gray Owls and Barred Owls have their owlets hatch, which means both species often hunt well after sunrise. While I have not seen any Great Grays (bummer) I have found the same exact Barred Owl twice. At this point I do not know if it is a younger owl that did not mate this year, or whether a nest is in the vicinity. Regardless here are a few pics from Sunday morning when the yellow globe came out briefly.

Barred Owl at Sax-Zim Bog

In the sun …

The clouds returned …

Who Cooks for You (the video … link for email subscribers)

I also watched this Chestnut-Sided Warbler (and a whole bunch others) near my home

Here is a timeline for Great Gray Owls which I put together. It assumes a nesting date of May 1st (adjust earlier or later based upon your own sightings). Shortly after hatching the views of Poppa GGO with the need to hunt increase.

Nesting Date: May 1

  • Incubation Time: 30 days (End on June 1st)
  • Time in Nest: 28 days (End on June 28th)
  • Exploring on Ground or Snags near nest: 7 to 14 days (End on July 4th to 11th)
  • Flight (Start July 4th to 11th … mid July)
  • Independent by late Summer