Superior Warblers

Gone are the days of spring migration when the Warbler blitzkrieg causes hordes of Warblers of nearly 30 species to descend on our little patches of woods, putting us birders on the defensive as we scramble to see them all before the invasion is over.  Chasing a specific Warbler sighting during migration is a fool’s game of which this fool has partaken way too often only to crash and burn. Now in summer, though, it is the time for the offensive Warblering, the deliberate Warblering, the better Warblering–IF you are in the right location.  And that I was when I was vacationing on Wisconsin’s Madeline Island in Lake Superior.  Close to 20 species of Warblers call the northwoods of northern Wisconsin and Minnesota home.  Seeing Warblers on their breeding territories is the best way to see Warblers in my opinion.  You get the full Warbler experience – their incredible looks, their robust songs, and their species-specific habitats.  With migrants and vagrants you are often getting just 1/3 of the true Warbler experience.  It is inferior Warblering to be sure.  The Warblering on Madeline was far from inferior and provided this birder much entertainment.  So let’s get to it.

Starting off this parade of Warblers will be my spark bird, the bird that caused me step foot on this slippery slope of birding: the Chestnut-sided Warbler.  I was very pleased to, pleased to meet him too.

Chestnut-sided Warbler

Chestnut-sided Warbler

Chestnut-sided Warbler

Chestnut-sided Warbler

I also took my annual Yellowthroat shot on this trip.  It fits in a mega Warbler post but rarely anywhere else.

Common Yellowthroat

In my exploration of Madeline Island, I found a “habitat island” of Red Pines along the beach at Big Bay Town Park and Big Bay State Park. Most of island is mixed deciduous forest. I wanted to check out the pines in the hopes of finding Pine Warblers or lifer Red Crossbills.  I was successful with the former as this patch of woods held several of those drab but likeable Pine Warblers.  This thin strip of pines with Lake Superior on one side and a lagoon on the other has a great boardwalk running the length of this point which is over a couple miles long.

Evan Madeline IslandKudos to Big Bay Town Park and Big Bay State Park for this awesome boardwalk and kudos to the PIWA for having the best habitat preference of all the northwoods Warblers.

Pine Warbler

This bird was a lifer as recently as a year ago.  I do not take my PIWA sightings for granted.  Their trill is similar to a Chipping Sparrow’s, but much richer and more musical.

Pine Warbler

Pine Warbler

Pine Warbler

Another Warbler I’m quite fond of is the Black-throated Green which was the second-most common Warbler on the island behind Ovenbird.  Despite the many “Teacher! Teacher! Teacher!” calls of the 30+ OVENs I heard one morning, I didn’t pay them any mind.  It is summer after all, and this teacher was off duty.  The Black-throated Green was a much better bird to watch anyhow.

I really like this Warbler.  Perhaps this is because it was once an actual target bird a couple years ago.  In 2013, we were inundated with them on a camping trip to Temperance River State Park along the north shore of Lake Superior.  I have fond memories of my kids imitating their catchy, buzzy song.  To whom such things matter, the Madeline Island  Black-throated Greens who sang zee-zee-zee-zoo-ZEE outnumbered those who sang zoo-zee-zoo-zoo-ZEE by a ratio of 8 to 1.  It was a bit of a letdown as I prefer the latter version.

Black-throated Green Warbler

Black-throated Green WarblerNot only did the Madeline Island Black-throated Greens have a preference for the lesser song, but they also preferred the lesser light, always perching underneath the leaves’ shade and casting them in weird, greenish light. Black-throated Green WarblerBlack-bearded Green Warbler would probably be a more appropriate and much cooler name.

Black-throated Green WarblerBlack-throated Green WarblerThe Black-throated Greens were nice, but they really just whet my appetite for a much, much better Warbler with a black throat.  Because of its stunning beauty and scarcity, the Black-throated Blue Warbler was one that I was yearning to see again since my initial viewing in 2013.  It was one of my two main birding goals for the trip with the other being the Piping Plovers. I tried real hard to find one on the under-birded Madeline Island.  Area birder Nick Anich had described the very particular habitat choice this species likes:  mature Maple forests with a high canopy, a fairly open midstory, and a thick understory full of saplings. I’m not sure what it is they like about the Maples, but that is the same type of habitat where the Black-throated Blues are found on Oberg Mountain in Minnesota. Schoolhouse Road on Madeline Island seemed the best I could find to match this habitat description, but I just couldn’t pick out a zoo-zoo-zoo-zoo-zee from the zee-zee-zee-zoo-zees or the zoo-zee-zoo-zoo-zees of the Black-throated Greens.

The search for the Black-throated Blues would have to take place on the mainland after our trip.  Nick Anich and Ryan Brady had given me some places to try.  Like in Minnesota, this bird is far from an easy find.  Though I had a few options for trying for them, I put all my money (or my family’s time, rather) on one bet: Jammer Hill Road west of Bayfield a few miles.  As I drove down the gravel road, it suddenly made a turn for the worse–there was a section of very large, jagged gravel. I’m not exaggerating when I say the rocks were about the size of my fists.  No way was I going to pop a tire looking for a bird, so I decided to give up on the Black-throated Blue search and turn around.  The problem was there was no place to turn around, so I had to keep inching forward.  Turns out this jagged gravel section ended shortly afterward and we were back on smooth, packed gravel again. And a minute  later: zoo-zoo-zoo-zoo-zee!

Black-throated Blue WarblerJust as presidential hopefuls are emerging left and right declaring their intentions, I, too, am now making a bold announcement: the Black-throated Blue Warbler is my favorite Warbler.  Though I was hooked by the Chestnut-sided, though I’ve stood in awe of the Blackburnian, and though I’ve been dazzled by Painted Redstarts at my feet, the Black-throated Blue is simply the best in my book.  I have yet to see the Red-faced, but I don’t even think that beauty could change my mind.  My wardrobe is disproportionately blue after all.

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Black-throated Blue Warbler

So with that major target achieved, this should be the end of this post.  This is how I wanted to end this post.  But the Warblering went on.  I’m not talking about lame Tennessees and Nashvilles either; I’m talking about some really good stuff.  On our way home it worked out rather conveniently that we had a non-birding errand to run in St. Louis Park, a Minneapolis suburb. It was convenient because while on vacation on MI, a birder had found a Hooded Warbler on territory at Westwood Hills Nature Center in St. Louis Park.

Hooded Warbler sign

Hooded Warblers nest in small numbers in the south metro at such strongholds as Murphy-Hanrehan Park and Lebanon Hills.  It seems, though, that more and more have been popping up this year in new locations, Westwood Hills being one of those.   Evan and I hiked the trails at Westwood Hills to see the HOWA while Melissa and Marin waited in the car.  We both heard it real well, and I even had some quick fly-by views.  Overall though, it was just a bugger for showing itself.  Even still, Evan decided that hearing it was good enough to add it to his life list.  For me it was a nice addition to the year list.

The HOWA wasn’t the only non-MI Warbler causing angst while I was away.  Wifi on an island is a double-edged sword providing birding help while on vacation but also creating birding anxiety back home.  Joel Schmidt had notified me that a Blue-winged Warbler was reported at Sibley State Park.  He had then tracked down the info from the original finder and saw the bird himself.  We are at the very fringes of the Blue-winged Warblers’ range.  In other words, it is a very good bird for Kandiyohi County that was not yet on my county list.  At dawn that very morning after we got home from vacation, I zipped out to Sibley.  Warblers on territory–so fun, so incredibly reliable.  Getting the 3/3 experience at home with a great Warbler was a fitting way to cap off a great trip full of Warblering in the northwoods.

Blue-winged WarblerBlue-winged WarblerThere are more Warblers on the horizon as I have since made two post-MI trips to northern MN with a third one coming this weekend.  But first, what could make a Woodpecker chase so compelling?

Only The Best For Long Islanders

Ask any serious birder the first thing he or she thinks of when the circumstances of life necessitate travel outside of the locality where he or she resides. Chances are good that this birder will instantly start analyzing the new region’s birds and assessing how those findings mesh with needs and wants for this list or that.  I’m guilty of this. The trip to Madeline Island was no different except….northern Wisconsin is practically a carbon-copy of northern Minnesota.  It does not bode well for exciting new bird finds.  However, I dug deep and came up with two birding goals that, if achieved, would make Wisconsin birding genuinely thrilling.  The first was the possibility of a Black-throated Blue Warbler.  Of the oodles of breeding warbler species shared by MN and WI, the Badger state has more than its fair share of the BTBWs, a bird I’d only seen once before since they are very limited in range in MN.  But this post isn’t about the BTBW and instead concentrates on my second and more important birding goal of seeing the endangered Piping Plovers.

In preparation for that ill-fated 2013 Madeline Island trip, I had discovered that Piping Plovers nest on Long Island which happens to be right next to Madeline Island.  These birds are part of the Great Lakes population of PIPL.  This particular population is endangered as only 70 or so pairs nest along the shorelines in the entire Great Lakes region.  The other two main populations of PIPL, Atlantic/Gulf Coast and Northern Great Plains, are a little more well off but still considered threatened. Long Island, which is really a long, skinny peninsula comprised of remote sandy beaches, annually hosts 3-5 pairs of the Great Lakes population of PIPL.

Long Island

In my naivete, I looked at the map and thought Madeline and Long were super close.  Yep, I’d rent a kayak at La Pointe and paddle across the channel and along the narrow Long Island shoreline to scan for Plovers.  We’d take the kids for a little ride.  It would be fun.  It would be perfect.

Long Island

Or not.  When we took the ferry to MI, I could see just how far away Long Island actually was, not to mention how much shoreline there was to search there.  Even sans kids, the prospect of crossing that water in such a craft was daunting. The Piping Plover plans flew out the window or off the ferry, rather.  As you can see from the map, reaching them by the mainland is not feasible either.  But thanks to all the modern conveniences on Madeline Island, particularly the  wifi at the cabin,  I started researching other possibilities and discovered there are several water taxi services that will take kayakers, hikers, campers, photographers, etc to any place they need to go in the Apostles. Sweet! Then I saw the price.  Not so sweet.

Not only would it be expensive, but I had no idea if there were any Piping Plovers out on Long this year.  The most recent eBird data was from 2013.  However, it is a pretty inaccessible place which could explain the lack of data.  Nick Anich, one of the region’s top birders, told me that Piping Plovers breed every year on Long. It was somewhat assuring, but I got the security I wanted when I got in touch with Julie Van Stappen with the National Park Service.  Julie assured me that there were, in fact, five pairs of Piping Plovers and two active nests on Long Island this year.  The probability for a successful mission was now very high… just like the price.  The only hindrance now was me.  After much hemming and hawing and wishing and washing, I pulled the trigger in the eleventh hour, going out just before dark on our last day of vacation.

Evan Marin madeline island This was definitely the most I’ve paid for a single life bird. Other trips, like Arizona, are much more expensive, but the huge numbers of lifers down there makes the cost per bird pretty reasonable.  In any birding trip, though, you just can’t put a price on the side-benefits, like a family speed-boat ride on Lake Superior.

Evan Melissa Marin

Once we were on the boat it was time to get to Long island to begin the search as we motored along the shore. But where would we look? Long Island is, well, long. Several miles long, in fact.  Thankfully we had a boat captain that was somewhat familiar with the nesting area.  He even pulled up his smartphone, looked up some group on Facebook associated with the Plovers, and from the profile pic that showed the nests, he knew exactly where to go.  Nothing but the best.

In no time I spotted one of the nests.  Ryan Brady, another top birder from the area, gave me a great tip for finding the nests.  Ryan told me that they fence them off every year to keep out predators.  Needless to say, the nests are actually pretty easy to find if you can get to this remote location.

Piping PloverHere’s a cropped view of the above photo showing the male Piping Plover taking his turn on the nest. IMG_4527The remoteness of Long Island coupled with miles of perfect beach habitat make this an ideal place for the Piping Plovers to set up shop.  Even still, the NPS takes no chances.  Since Long Island (a peninsula really) is only accessible by boat, the psychological fencing is placed right at the water’s edge to ward off any beaching watercraft.

Long Island

Because of the sensitive nature of this nesting endangered species, we kept a very respectful distance from the shoreline so as not to disturb the birds.

Evan

Being in this place and seeing where these birds call home was a cool experience.  Sure, I might see one during migration in Minnesota with better views some day, but it’s just not the same.  This is the real deal here; this is where the next generation of PIPL is made.  In all my recent travels, I’ve developed a preference for seeing birds where they belong.  Vagrants and migrants are fun, but seeing them in their preferred habitat can’t be beat.

That said, it was not the easiest to view the birds in this manner.  The distance combined with the rolling of the boat in the waves made it extremely challenging to do any photography.  I would snap some photos of the nest, then zoom in on my pictures to see the bird.  As I was doing this, Melissa hollered out, “What are those birds running on the shore?”  There was only one realistic possibility–Piping Plovers!  Now everybody could clearly see the birds even though they were a bit distant.  It was pretty neat to have a pair of them in view.  They really blend into the sand.

IMG_4534

Piping PloverMy photos are not the best, but honestly, I’d be an irresponsible birder if I did show you great photos from this outing because it would mean I was close to them.  The well-being of these birds–the well-being of a species–comes first.  And these guys need a lot of space to do well.  Even so, I got some bloggable shots of both sexes.  Ladies first.

Piping Plover female

Piping Plover female

Piping Plover female

And the male.  Note the jewelry on the legs.

Piping Plover male

Piping Plover male

Piping Plover male

With the water-taxi meter ticking and with a few photos in hand, it was time to head back.  It was a fun and short trip.  I don’t even want to talk about the price-per-minute.  Chartering a boat to get an endangered species lifer on its turf was pretty neat experience, though.  Oh, and that kayak idea? Yeah, we logged 14 miles round-trip.

For the final Madeline Island post, we’ll be back on land with some much better bird photos.  Coming up we will see Warblers up close and personal in the best way possible–on breeding territory.

A Return to Madeline Island–The Mourning is Over

Madeline Island

Madeline Island, the largest of the 21 Apostle Islands on Lake Superior’s south shore in Wisconsin, has become a reunion destination where my parents, siblings, and respective families all gather together. Our first trip four years ago was fun and memorable.  We had high hopes to repeat those feelings in 2013 on a return trip.  But even as we were packing up and getting ready to join the family, Marin came down with a devastating case of Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease.  This disease is both highly contagious and was extremely painful for Marin.  With great heartache for all of us, the Madeline Island trip was over before it started.  The rest of the extended family went on without us.  We stayed home…and moped.  We got out birding a little at home and even picked up a couple lifers, but they were pathetic, insufficient consolation prizes.  We were wishing we were somewhere else.

Madeline Island

The good news is that it’s not 2013 anymore, and last week we were able to board that ferry to gather once again with family at Madeline Island.

Evan Marin

It felt really good to get back to this place–this place of beauty.

Madeline Island

This place of lupine-lined roads.

Madeline Island

This place of serenity.

Lake Superior SailboatThis place of adrenaline.

David

This place where the ice-bucket challenge ain’t got nothin’ on Lake Superior in June.

Evan Marin

This place of expensive gas.

Madeline Island Ferry

This place of very large, obtrusive Herring Gulls.

Herring Gull

This place of birds who were made to live in Wisconsin.

"Free beer!" -Alder Flycatcher

“Free beer!” -Alder Flycatcher

This place of four breeding Catharus species.

Hermit Thrush

Of the Veery, Wood Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, and Hermit Thrush that all breed here, the latter three are annoyingly similar-sounding. I thought I had a Wood Thrush when Melissa finally helped me get visuals on this Hermit. I’ve only ever had to learn the WOTH song as that’s our only breeder of the three in west-central MN.

This place that Sandhill Cranes call home.

IMG_4381

Sandhill Crane

And raise babies.

Sandhill Crane

But for me, this is a place of photo redemption for many bird species. I saw birds and crushed birds that I have never seen well before, photographed at all, or crushed.  Common Raven is of the latter-most category.

Common Raven

The very common Double-crested Cormorant is finally making its long overdue debut on ABWCH.

Double-crested Cormorant

Contrary to what I’d thought my whole life, DCCO are actually kind of cool-looking.

Double-crested Cormorant

One bird, which has the best sound of the northwoods, I have heard a few times and seen briefly once.  On this trip to Madeline Island, I have now seen the Winter Wren well while it sang.  Truly, this was one of my highlights of the MI trip, a trip that even included seeing an endangered species lifer.

Winter Wren

Don’t know the song? Listen to it right now; this is the Information Age after all. #beatsanywarbler

Winter WrenI’m human, I make mistakes. Awhile back I prematurely declared on this blog that Canyon Wren is the best Wren.  I now retract that statement.  Sorry, AZ friends, but I’m declaring WIWR the best Wren now.

Winter Wren

Finally seeing the little ball of chocolate and seeing it well, coupled with the incredible song, wooed me.

Winter WrenThe WIWR was a huge highlight, but perhaps even more thrilling because of the bird’s vibrant colors was finding a Mourning Warbler.  Unlike the Wren, I have seen MOWA well before but always briefly, certainly never long enough to photograph.  That changed on this trip.

Mourning Warbler

By the way, who’s ever heard of a Warbler perching on a wire?

Mourning Warbler

Sometimes, to get the full effect of a Mourning Warbler’s colors, you need a stunt-double, a second bird.  A much, much, much more cooperative bird and the only other MOWA I found on the island.

The Mourning Warbler gets its name from its black bib--a symbol of mourning.

The Mourning Warbler gets its name from its black bib–a symbol of mourning.

Previously I’ve only ever managed one head-less photo of a Mourning Warbler.  Therefore, this photo session felt sooooo good.

Mourning Warbler

Mourning Warbler

Mourning WarblerIt felt good to get back to the island…so good after the disappointment of 2013. The last time I was at Madeline Island in 2011 I wasn’t even a birder.  I didn’t even know what a Warbler was.  This return to MI was incredible in many regards, but especially for seeing birds and photographing them. For the next post I honestly can’t decide what to share with you first–the high seas outing to get an endangered species lifer or the meatiest, crushiest mega-Warbler post I’ve ever done.  Wait and see, I guess.

Beyond the Book–Birding with the Legendary Bob Janssen

I have long known that Bob Janssen, author of Birds in Minnesota, was hard at work on another birding book with the tantalizing title Birds of Minnesota State Parks.  As a birder and a huge fan of our state park system, I was stoked about this book.  I first learned about it from Bob himself when I spoke with him on the phone one time in an attempt to help him finally get his Meeker County Snowy Owl.  Every birder has his own cross to bear.  Bob’s is a Meeker County Snowy Owl.  This one has eluded the godfather of 87-county-listing in Minnesota. I believe Bob made seven such attempts on my numerous reports in the last two years but still could not see SNOW in Meeker.

Not only did I know about Bob’s book, but I recently found out that Bob was doing a book talk at a handful of state parks with the first talk at our own Sibley State Park! As luck would have it, our schedule was clear on June 8th allowing Evan and me to go.  I hadn’t yet picked up a copy of Bob’s book, so I planned to do so at the park that evening before the talk.  Evan asked if he could have the book.  I told him I was buying it, so it would be mine.  He still seemed put-off, so Melissa consoled him by telling him the book would be his after I was dead.  Gee, thanks, Melissa.

Anyhow, after purchasing the book at the contact station, we made a quick check on the Mt. Tom road to see if the Cerulean Warbler had returned this year.  I didn’t hear anything, but to be fair, I was rushing since we were nearly late for the book talk at the Interpretive Center. We did arrive a minute late and quickly assumed seats in the back row and began listening to Bob’s talk.

Bob Janssen

Bob talked about how the State called him up in the 90s and asked him if he knew anybody that would be willing to do bird surveys in all of Minnesota’s state parks.  Bob immediately jumped at the opportunity by suggesting himself.  It is because of Bob and all his work that we have those awesome bird checklists for every state park.  One of Evan’s favorite things to do whenever we go to a state park is to collect that park’s checklist.

Minnesota State Parks Bird Checklists

Eventually the state wanted Bob to do a book from the result of all his work that would provide an overview of the birding at each state park.  Genius idea.

Bob Janssen books

Part of Bob’s presentation included a slideshow with pictures of various birds that are associated with various state parks around the state.  Bob put up the first picture of a bright yellow bird with a big black eye and slender black bill.  Then he asked the audience of about 30 people if anyone knew what the bird was.  Evan’s hand shot straight into the air immediately.  Bob called on Evan who correctly and enthusiastically responded, “Prothonotary Warbler!”

I don’t remember Bob’s exact words, but he was surprised and said something to the effect of “Very good young man! That’s impressive.” That set the pattern for the next several minutes–a bird picture would go up followed immediately by Evan’s hand.  Bob would again call on Evan who would again get the correct answer.  Two things were clear: the audience wasn’t made up of serious birders besides us, and Bob was getting a kick out of the young man who knew his birds.

"Blue Grosbeak!" -Evan

“Blue Grosbeak!” -Evan

One time after a correct response, Bob looked at me and asked, “How does he know all these?”  The dad in me was proud; the teacher in me cringed that my kid was showing off and loving it.  To be fair, Evan did miss a couple of IDs of birds that aren’t the easiest to ID.  I had to chuckle to myself when Evan guessed Caspian Tern incorrectly for a picture of a Forster’s Tern–this is funny because when we got our Caspian lifer a couple weeks ago, Evan turned down my offer for better looks at them. “What, are they those white things over there? Na, I’m good.”  If only you looked Evan, you’d have gotten another question right on Bob’s quiz!

Sensing that the rest of the audience may not have been as enthused as the three of us about Evan’s responses, I whispered to Evan that he should let other people answer. He complied even when a fastball came in right over the center of the plate–a picture of a Rose-breasted Grosbeak. With Evan silenced, the others were now emboldened and started throwing out answers. “Ruby-throated Grosbeak! Ruby-throated Grosbeak!”  Sorry, Evan, I should have let you continue to lead the pack.

Here are some fun things we learned from the talk:

1) The best state park for seeing the most birds is Frontenac State Park along the Mississippi River.

2) Bob has been in every city, town, and named place in Minnesota.

3) Crane Lake was the last town he visited to complete his checklist of towns.  Crane Lake is very close to where I grew up in Orr.

4) Bob has been in every township in Minnesota except one.

5) Bob’s favorite bird is the Turkey Vulture of all birds.  Shocker.  First runner-up is Spruce Grouse. Not a shocker.

6) Bob’s wife doesn’t go birding with him.

Once the talk was done, people made their way to Bob to visit and get their book signed.  After waiting for our turn, I re-introduced myself to Bob.  I have spoken with him on the phone a couple times and run into him twice in the field before, once at Le Sueur over a Rufous Hummingbird and once near Granite Falls when we were both looking for Blue Grosbeaks.  When I handed Bob the book we just purchased, he asked if he should make it out to Evan (apparently Evan really made an impression). That wasn’t the plan as I had told Evan earlier it was MY book, but I thought I’d look like a royal heel if I said to make it to me instead of my kid, so I faltered in my response, “Umm, uhh, yeah.”  I suppose it’s appropriate, since the kid will get MY book after my DEATH. Oh, well, at least I brought my copy of Birds in Minnesota which Bob signed to ME.

Bob Janssen bookAfter the signings, we had a nice little chat about Snowy Owls and Blue Grosbeaks.  There were others waiting to see Bob, though, so we moved on shortly.  When we were upstairs in the Interpretive Center and Evan was checking out all the exhibits, I got thinking that I really should go back downstairs and pick Bob’s brain about birding at Sibley State Park and Kandiyohi County in general.  Maybe he could reveal some secrets I didn’t know about.

Back downstairs, there was now only one other man talking with Bob.  I overheard them mentioning Wood Thrushes.  I had to butt in and ask if they’d seen one at the park because that would be a good find.  It turns out that Bob was explaining to the gentleman that the Wood Thrush is a bird he still does not have for Kandiyohi County.  Talk about serendipity because **news flash** I finally laid eyes on a Wood Thrush for the first time in my life just the day before thanks to a recent report by Andrew Nyhus.  I told Bob this and he excitedly started writing down directions.  Then I got thinking–it was only 7:00 with lots of daylight left, so I suggested to Bob that he could still get the Wood Thrush tonight on his way home to the Twin Cities. I told him I’d even lead him to the exact spot.  He seemed to like this suggestion as he started packing up his things a little quicker.

So that’s how we ended up birding with a Minnesota birding legend. Bob followed our car down to Lake Elizabeth.  Things started off a bit tense once we got on site, though.  The three of us were standing on the gravel road when all the sudden a man appeared from a trail in the woods holding a rifle at the ready! I naively thought he was hunting something, but then he nervously started laughing and telling us about how his camper in the woods had been robbed recently.  Through more nervous laughter he told us we obviously weren’t the thieves.  Well, thank God he realized that! Then as quickly as he appeared, he disappeared back into his lair in the woods.  It was bizarre, unsettling, and very memorable.

Back to birding, I wasn’t hearing the Wood Thrush.  I walked the road down a ways and then I finally detected the faint sound of the WOTH deep in the woods.  Bob then heard it too, and he finally got his Kandiyohi County Wood Thrush, county bird #21,071!

Bob Janssen at the site of his latest county bird, a Kandiyohi County Wood Thrush

Bob Janssen at the site of his latest county bird, a Kandiyohi County Wood Thrush

Bob leads the state in most county tics. Bob’s numerous misses on Meeker Snowies has weighed heavily on me, so this felt like redemption to help him get a new county bird.  We tried for the longest time to get good visuals on the bird.  My life look the day before was nothing more than a bird flying over the road.  This outing would prove no different.  At least Evan did get a brief life look at the Wood Thrush now too.  As we walked and talked, Bob told us that his favorite bird song was that of the Wood Thrush.

Evan birding with Minnesota birding legend, Bob Janssen

Evan birding with Minnesota birding legend, Bob Janssen.  Also, this is the infamous path from which the “hunter” appeared.

Bob also detected a Scarlet Tanager singing, but we couldn’t get visuals on it.  However, I was able to get incredible looks at another Scarlet Tanager on the other end of this road just the day before.  Both of these Scarlet Tanagers are different than the one I blogged about previously.  That’s three SCTA in a week’s time!

Scarlet TanagerIt was an even bigger thrill than my Wood Thrush lifer.

Scarlet TanagerThis is ten minutes from home. Ten minutes!

Scarlet Tanager

Listening to Bob talk about his book was a special opportunity, but going birding with Bob and helping him achieve a long-time personal birding goal was a huge thrill.  I never saw that one coming.  It was pretty amazing to hear Bob say that the Wood Thrush made his day. I’m sure that Evan will remember this night much better than he remembers his Terns.  A huge thanks goes out to Andrew Nyhus for 1) pointing us to our Wood Thrush lifer on the home turf and 2) providing the info that made this memorable, spontaneous outing possible.

The Real Fun Starts After Dark

This past spring I got a taste of nighttime birding in Arizona and was eager to go after some of our nocturnal birds back home, namely Owls and Eastern Whip-poor-wills.  Steve Gardner and I made a couple failed attempts at owling, and then the talk of nighttime birding died down.  That is, until Joel Schmidt brought it to the forefront again, telling us all that he’s always wanted to check out a road near Granite Falls for Eastern Whip-poor-wills.  His desire was amplified when there was a report this spring from this road of several Whips. Unable to go because I was on the Colorado trip, Steve and Joel went after the Whips and were wildly successful, tallying six of them!

A call was put in to Randy Frederickson to see if he wanted join Evan and me for a nighttime birding foray.  He was in.  So late in the evening on Friday, June 5th, Evan and I finished up our week of vacation Bible school and met up with Randy.  Nearly an hour later, we got down to Co. Rd. 40 just east of Granite Falls as darkness was setting in.  This beautiful road follows the Minnesota River Valley with the river down to our right and the heavily wooded ridge of the valley to our left.  With no traffic, we had the blacktop to ourselves and cruised along slowly with the windows down enjoying the cool air and the sound of birds everywhere. Even in the twilight the birds were still calling voraciously. Great Crested Flycatchers, Indigo Buntings, Northern Cardinals, a Lark Sparrow(!), and a doggone Wood Thrush could all be heard.  I’ve never seen WOTH.  I’ve heard them, and since this bird is local and can be found annually, I have abstained from counting it until I actually see it.  This would be yet another heard-only WOTH.  Another sound we heard were the buzzes of FOY Common Nighthawks overhead which is a fond sound from my childhood days in southern Minnesota.  Looking up we could see them flying overhead with their distinctive white wing bars. Despite this cacophony all around us, we weren’t hearing the Whips.

Getting frustrated with not hearing our target bird, I called Steve to get more info. I think I got a few words out before an Eastern Whip-poor-will was loudly calling out my window! And then the fun began.  We got out of the car and tried to get a visual of this bird.  I had bought a high-powered flashlight for just such a birding occasion. Randy played the tape, and sure enough, the Whip came in.  I was able to track him in the air the whole time with the beam of my light.  It was so cool to finally see this nightjar for the first time and see how similar it looked to the Common Nighthawk. A flight view was the extent of the visual experience since it landed out of sight.  This scene would play over a couple times–great flashlight beam visuals in the air, no visuals of a perched bird.  I needed a perched bird for a photo.  When I realized in Arizona that photographing birds in the dark is possible and a lot of fun, I was dying to do so again with these birds.  Try as I might, we just couldn’t make it happen.  And it wasn’t for lack of Whips.  As we walked along the road we heard Whip after Whip after Whip.  It was insane and one of the coolest birding moments I’ve experienced.  We estimated at least five in this one short stretch of road.  Even veteran birder Randy was amazed at the population density we were witnessing; he had only seen a couple before in his life.

So much for a peaceful night.  All we heard were the Whips calling their name over and over: whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-hip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-hip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will-whip-poor-will.

Now I’m no Randy Travis fan, but you gotta give props to a man who can love someone longer than the song of a Whip-poor-will.

Since there were nearly a half dozen Whips in close proximity to each other, it was hard to even pick out a single one to track down.  Eventually we got in the car and drove on, hoping to find a more cooperative Whip that we could see perched. Right near the Yellow Medicine/Renville County line, we heard a solitary Whip.  It was close to the road, but I couldn’t pick it out with my flashlight.  Randy played the tape. Almost instantly it came in and I had the beam on it.  It hovered for a second seemingly wanting to come in the vehicle where Randy was, and then…it flew away far from the road.  Doggone it.  There would be no Whip pictures tonight to show you all. I’m starting to feel Laurence Butler’s pain with photographing those equally annoying nightjars in the southwest, those Common Poorwills.

So, sorry for a photo-less post, but regardless the live experience in-person was tremendous fun. Perhaps an overnight camping trip to Upper Sioux Agency State Park is in order.  We shall take another crack at the Whip.  And hopefully, we’ll whip it good.