From snoeowl at aol.com Wed Apr 3 23:37:09 2024 From: snoeowl at aol.com (Allen Batt) Date: Wed, 3 Apr 2024 23:37:09 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] Freeborn County References: <1765A12B-5724-46C4-AEC1-1568A7F27747.ref@aol.com> Message-ID: <1765A12B-5724-46C4-AEC1-1568A7F27747@aol.com> I tossed some millet onto the ground for the native sparrows. Juncos enjoy that seed, and their gray and white bodies covered the seedy ground. Between the snowbirds and the American Tree Sparrows, there was little room for anything else. A couple of Song Sparrows, a few Purple Finches and House Finches, and one more species. I watched the double-scratch behavior of a handsome Fox Sparrow. It used a backward kick it performed simultaneously with both feet to find food in the leaf litter. I?d like to give that a try, but I?m afraid I?d fall beak first into the scattered millet. ?Each time I see Fox Sparrows, I want to do for them what the Trashmen did for Surfin? Birds. During the last couple of snowfalls, I?ve put raisins and bits of suet out for the robins. They sampled those products but were more interested in eating the millet. I took photos to make sure that?s what they were eating. Mourning Doves like millet, too. Good birding, y?all. Al Batt From snoeowl at aol.com Sat Apr 6 21:51:44 2024 From: snoeowl at aol.com (Allen Batt) Date: Sat, 6 Apr 2024 21:51:44 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] A shrike References: <61119539-70D4-4A48-BED4-6C86FA224C41.ref@aol.com> Message-ID: <61119539-70D4-4A48-BED4-6C86FA224C41@aol.com> A friend in Freeborn County sent me a photo of a shrike that had met its demise by colliding with a window this week. A shrike in the summer is a loggerhead, and one in the winter is a northern. This time of the year, who knows? They?re often called ?butcher birds? and are both a songbird and a predator of songbirds. The shrike?s facial band tells the tale as far as ID goes. I couldn?t see where the mask met the bill in the photo. A loggerhead shrike has a thicker eye band. A northern shrike has a noticeably thinner eye band that doesn?t extend over the eyes or above the bill. The Lone Ranger wore a mask to keep his identity a secret. Not being able to see a mask kept this shrike?s identity a secret. Al Batt Hartland -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From birds at moosewoods.us Tue Apr 9 13:01:09 2024 From: birds at moosewoods.us (linda whyte) Date: Tue, 9 Apr 2024 13:01:09 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] spring arrivals, Lilydale, Dakota C Message-ID: There were some FOYs to brighten the exercise walk this morning: Ruby-crowned Kinglet heard in full song, Golden-crowned Kinglet both heard and seen, and a flock of active Yellow-rumped Warblers by Pickerel Lake, foraging in the small, budding trees by the boat ramp. Linda Whyte -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From birds at moosewoods.us Thu Apr 11 16:59:29 2024 From: birds at moosewoods.us (linda whyte) Date: Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:59:29 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] Vesper Sparrows, Dakota C. Message-ID: A brief visit to the 140th St marsh (RIP) turned up some very melodic Vesper Sparrows, foraging along the roadside bushes, and the roadside itself, on the east end. Their presence gave pause -and hope - for the thought that this and other species may find the hilly grasses of the landfill worth considering, at least for a stopover. It seemed to appeal to the American Tree Sparrows (and one White-crowned) this past winter. Linda Whyte -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From snoeowl at aol.com Mon Apr 15 10:24:45 2024 From: snoeowl at aol.com (Allen Batt) Date: Mon, 15 Apr 2024 10:24:45 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] Starlings and suet References: Message-ID: From Mary Oliver?s poem ?Invitation?: ??it is a serious thing just to be alive on this fresh morning in this broken world. I beg of you, do not walk by without pausing to attend this rather ridiculous performance?? A birdie with a yellow bill hopped upon my suet feeder. There are days when starlings dominate the suet feeder. They feed with gusto. There are starling-resistant suet feeders. I purchased an upside-down suet feeder meant to challenge starlings, but the starlings hang upside down and feed. No worries. It?s going to the gym and eating lunch for a starling. The rather ridiculous performance was all on my end. Al Batt -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From seidelkevin25 at gmail.com Mon Apr 15 10:45:10 2024 From: seidelkevin25 at gmail.com (kevin seidel) Date: Mon, 15 Apr 2024 10:45:10 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] Starlings and suet In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <65ED3E33-47B2-461E-8563-B8A27887BA80@gmail.com> Cool post ? Thanks Al ~Kevin Seidel Onalaska WI Sent from my iPhone > On Apr 15, 2024, at 10:25?AM, Allen Batt via Mnbird wrote: > > ? From Mary Oliver?s poem ?Invitation?: ??it is a serious thing just to be alive on this fresh morning in this broken world. I beg of you, do not walk by without pausing to attend this rather ridiculous performance?? > A birdie with a yellow bill hopped upon my suet feeder. There are days when starlings dominate the suet feeder. They feed with gusto. There are starling-resistant suet feeders. I purchased an upside-down suet feeder meant to challenge starlings, but the starlings hang upside down and feed. No worries. It?s going to the gym and eating lunch for a starling. The rather ridiculous performance was all on my end. > > Al Batt > > > _______________________________________________ > Mnbird mailing list > Mnbird at lists.mnbird.net > http://mail.lists.mnbird.net/mailman/listinfo/mnbird_lists.mnbird.net -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From cdrussin at centurylink.net Mon Apr 15 16:45:11 2024 From: cdrussin at centurylink.net (DONALD GRUSSING Owner) Date: Mon, 15 Apr 2024 14:45:11 -0700 Subject: [Mnbird] Starlings and suet Message-ID: <1C12XVF2TMU4.Z8GC6DO31Z832@luweb02oc> I feed suet in a wire feeder designed to be attached to the trunk of a tree.All the usual suspects including Brown Creepers and Crows feed from it, but not Starlings. Even Yellow-Rumps and others, and a few thrushes and the occasional turkey eat the morsels that drop to the ground from the activities above. Starlings home in on shelled peanuts and the meal worms in the "hot" bird mix I put out occasionally when the deer want to eat all the untreated golden safflower in one night. I always wonder what happened when a Starling song includes the calls of Bluebirds. Don Grussing Minnetonka On Mon, 15 Apr, 2024 at 10:50 AM, Allen Batt via Mnbird wrote: To: mnbird From Mary Oliver?s poem ?Invitation?: ??it is a serious thing just to be alive on this fresh morning in this broken world. I beg of you, do not walk by without pausing to attend this rather ridiculous performance?? A birdie with a yellow bill hopped upon my suet feeder. There are days when starlings dominate the suet feeder. They feed with gusto. There are starling-resistant suet feeders. I purchased an upside-down suet feeder meant to challenge starlings, but the starlings hang upside down and feed. No worries. It?s going to the gym and eating lunch for a starling. The rather ridiculous performance was all on my end. Al Batt -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From birds at moosewoods.us Tue Apr 16 10:41:32 2024 From: birds at moosewoods.us (linda whyte) Date: Tue, 16 Apr 2024 10:41:32 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] White-throated Sparrows, St. Paul Message-ID: Several White-throated Sparrows blew, (probably literally), into our yard this morning, a worthy distraction from breakfast preparations. They're sharing ground space with our current Juncos, who are fewer in number of late, and granting lovely looks at their bright crown stripes and yellow lores. Linda Whyte -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tvogel at wrcmn.org Tue Apr 16 15:25:21 2024 From: tvogel at wrcmn.org (Tami Vogel) Date: Tue, 16 Apr 2024 20:25:21 +0000 Subject: [Mnbird] Afton FOYs Message-ID: I don't know when it happened, but spring has sprung. The trees are noticeably a bright green, my wild ginger and violets are blooming, and overwintering butterflies are abundant. A welcome burst of sunshine on a dark day - FOY pine warblers showed up today. If, after a quick scan of your feeders, your brain says, "huh, a goldfinch on my suet?" take another look - it is likely a pine warbler. Still waiting on the horde of yellow-rumpeds. Soon I won't be able to keep suet feeders filled. FOY chipping sparrows showed up the other day and today the first white-throateds are filling my yard with song. Loads of purple finches and siskins remain, maybe 2 dozen juncos left. It has definitely been a year for finches. The lovely evening song of robins fills my house daily. Ahhh, the joys of living somewhere with changing seasons. Does a soul good. Wishing you all fun springs signs - Tami in Afton -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From snoeowl at aol.com Fri Apr 19 11:35:58 2024 From: snoeowl at aol.com (Allen Batt) Date: Fri, 19 Apr 2024 11:35:58 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] Juncos gone? References: <106DB37B-6056-4278-ACB5-E4CDB21014F4.ref@aol.com> Message-ID: <106DB37B-6056-4278-ACB5-E4CDB21014F4@aol.com> It was a cool and damp morning. Some might have called it cold and wet. The yard that was covered with juncos and sticks yesterday was now covered only by the sticks shed by the yard?s trees. I gathered those sticks while listening to robin, cardinal, redwing, dove and rooster pheasant voices. A Vesper Sparrow sang ?Oh-oh-my-my, its-such-a-beautiful day.? from an elevated perch. My farming father loved to hear that. The vesper sparrow sings at any time of the day but gets its name from its evening hymns (vespers), ?Listen to my evening sing-ing-ing-ing.? White-throated Sparrows whistled as I watched an Eastern Phoebe pursue flying insects I couldn?t discern. It was far from 50 degrees. Maybe some insects were wearing wool. Al Batt Freeborn County -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From johnson-miller at msn.com Sun Apr 21 17:43:14 2024 From: johnson-miller at msn.com (Miller Johnson) Date: Sun, 21 Apr 2024 22:43:14 +0000 Subject: [Mnbird] Let the Games Begin, Nesting Season Message-ID: Today I saw Northern Flickers copulating. The Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are up to their breasts in a nest hole. Interestingly, it's a red-capped female using the same aspen as last year. Unfortunately, her male was wooed away by the black-capped female that was his partner the prior year; the red-capped female was seen around the yard periodically all summer. Will the black-capped female re-appear this year? A male Downy Woodpecker is up to his breast in a nest hole. It's in a really dead aspen that has many nest holes started by chickadees and downies over the past couple of years. The wood always looked pretty spongy in the previous holes. This hole looks firm; it's at the base of a dead branch so it may be a winner! A saw a Black-capped Chickadee inside a Gilbertson tube box. Later I looked and it appears the little fellow was chipping off teeny pieces of the floor. Better hope he stops before he breaks through to the outside. Bluebirds have deposited grasses into two of our nest boxes: one a Gilbertson, the other a more standard wooden box. Both have hosted bluebirds in past years. A male Cardinal is patrolling our windows, and still has time for chasing and mate-feeding his female friend. May we all have good birding stories to share this year! Molly Jo Miller Inver Grove Hts Dakota Co. From snoeowl at aol.com Thu Apr 25 07:57:40 2024 From: snoeowl at aol.com (Allen Batt) Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2024 07:57:40 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] Dr. Bob Holtz References: Message-ID: An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: a18ba5bd2900b496c5dac422a90ea22b_b54d99597826cfb98f117832706dd9c4.png Type: image/png Size: 91240 bytes Desc: not available URL: From tvogel at wrcmn.org Thu Apr 25 12:26:34 2024 From: tvogel at wrcmn.org (Tami Vogel) Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2024 17:26:34 +0000 Subject: [Mnbird] FOY Tennessee- Afton Message-ID: I did a double take yesterday when I got home from work. It wasn't the pine warbler at my suet feeder but a FOY Tennessee warbler. This may be the first time there has been a Tennessee on suet (need to check my phenology). Not a new yard bird but fascinating to see it join the yellow-rumpeds and pine eating suet. Should be a great bird weekend - maybe even hummingbirds! I wish you all a fun weekend. * Tami in Afton -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From kenjeanroyer at yahoo.com Thu Apr 25 13:22:34 2024 From: kenjeanroyer at yahoo.com (Ken Royer) Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2024 18:22:34 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Mnbird] FOY Tennessee- Afton In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <623898816.2089004.1714069354990@mail.yahoo.com> Sounds good!? On Thursday, April 25, 2024 at 12:27:58 PM CDT, Tami Vogel via Mnbird wrote: I did a double take yesterday when I got home from work. It wasn't the pine warbler at my suet feeder but a FOY Tennessee warbler.? This may be the first time there has been a Tennessee on suet (need to check my phenology). Not a new yard bird but fascinating to see it join the yellow-rumpeds and pine eating suet.? Should be a great bird weekend - maybe even hummingbirds! I wish you all a fun weekend.? - Tami in Afton? _______________________________________________ Mnbird mailing list Mnbird at lists.mnbird.net http://mail.lists.mnbird.net/mailman/listinfo/mnbird_lists.mnbird.net -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From birds at moosewoods.us Thu Apr 25 18:30:03 2024 From: birds at moosewoods.us (linda whyte) Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2024 18:30:03 -0500 Subject: [Mnbird] FOY Tennessee- Afton In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Some of us going on the Salt Lake weekend will need your wishes for good weather, too, LOL! But the birds will no doubt be there! Linda Whyte On Thu, Apr 25, 2024, 12:27?PM Tami Vogel via Mnbird < mnbird at lists.mnbird.net> wrote: > I did a double take yesterday when I got home from work. It wasn't the > pine warbler at my suet feeder but a FOY Tennessee warbler. > > This may be the first time there has been a Tennessee on suet (need to > check my phenology). Not a new yard bird but fascinating to see it join the > yellow-rumpeds and pine eating suet. > > Should be a great bird weekend - maybe even hummingbirds! I wish you all a > fun weekend. > > > > > > - Tami in Afton > > > > _______________________________________________ > Mnbird mailing list > Mnbird at lists.mnbird.net > http://mail.lists.mnbird.net/mailman/listinfo/mnbird_lists.mnbird.net > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: