Final Big Year List

My Big Year has been over for close to a month now.  My final total is 132 species spotted from April 30, 2017 - April 29, 2018.  It was a fun year, and I saw a lot of species that I had never seen before.  The following is the species list in its entirety, and the locations of first sightings:

1. Red-winged Blackbird - Gunflint Lake, MN
2. Common Grackle - Gunflint Lake, MN
3. Dark-eyed Junco - Gunflint Lake, MN
4. White-throated Sparrow - Gunflint Lake, MN
5. Song Sparrow - Gunflint Lake, MN
6. Pileated Woodpecker - Gunflint Lake, MN
7. Downy Woodpecker - Gunflint Lake, MN
8. Black-capped Chickadee - Gunflint Lake, MN
9. Golden-crowned Kinglet - Gunflint Lake, MN
10. American Crow - Gunflint Lake, MN
11. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - Gunflint Lake, MN
12. Bufflehead - Ham Lake, Cook County, MN
13. Mallard - Ham Lake, Cook County, MN
14. Winter Wren - Ham Lake, Cook County, MN
15. Turkey Vulture - Ham Lake, Cook County, MN
16. Blue Jay - Gunflint Lake, MN
17. White-breasted Nuthatch - Gunflint Lake, MN
18. Hairy Woodpecker - Gunflint Lake, MN
19. Chestnut-sided Woodpecker - Gunflint Lake, MN
20. Ruffed Grouse - Gunflint Lake, MN
21. Common Merganser - Lonely Lake, MN
22. Northern Flicker - Gunflint Lake, MN
23. American Tree Sparrow - Gunflint Lake, MN
24. Clay-colored Sparrow - Gunflint Lake, MN
25. Common Loon - Gunflint Lake, MN
26. American Robin - Gunflint Lake, MN
27. Herring Gull - Grand Marais, MN
28. Bald Eagle - Lake Superior near Grand Marais, MN
29. Ring-billed Gull - Duluth, MN
30. Chipping Sparrow - Duluth, MN
31. Horned Grebe - Duluth, MN
32. Red-breasted Merganser - Duluth, MN
33. Rock Pigeon - Duluth, MN
34. American Woodcock - Lake Superior, MN
35. American Kestrel - Gunflint Trail, MN
36. Purple Finch - Gunflint Lake, MN
37. House Finch - Gunflint Lake, MN
38. Pine Siskin - Gunflint Lake, MN
39. Red-necked Duck - Centennial Trail, MN
40. Savannah Sparrow - Gunflint Lake, MN
41. Vesper Sparrow - Gunflint Lake, MN
42. Belted Kingfisher - Grand Marais, MN
43. Canada Goose- Grand Marais, MN
44. Long-tailed Duck - Grand Marais, MN
45. Spruce Grouse - Bingshick Lake, MN
46. Yellow-rumped Warbler - Bingshick Lake, MN
47. Common Snipe - Magnetic Rock Trail Head, MN
48. American Black Duck - Gunflint Lake, MN
49. Brown-headed Cowbird - Gunflint Lake, MN
50. American Goldfinch - Gunflint Lake, MN
51. Black-throated Green Warbler - Gunflint Lake, MN
52. White-crowned Sparrow - Gunflint Lake, MN
53. Canada Warbler - Gunflint Lake, MN
54. Rusty Blackbird - Gunflint Lake, MN
55. Bonaparte's Gull - Gunflint Lake, MN
56. Common Yellowthroat - Lonely Lake, MN
57. Rose-breasted Grosbeak - Gunflint Lake, MN
58. Northern Cardinal - Roseville, MN
59. Cerulean Warbler - Roseville, MN
60. Baltimore Oriole - Roseville, MN
61. House Sparrow - Roseville, MN
62. Tree Swallow - Roseville, MN
63. Hooded Merganser - Gunflint Lake, MN
64. European Starling - Roseville, MN
65. Cedar Waxwing - Roseville, MN
66. Mourning Dove, Roseville, MN
67. Wood Duck - Roseville, MN
68. Cooper's Hawk - Roseville, MN
69. Broad-winged Hawk - Roseville, MN
70. Gray Catbird - Roseville, MN
71. Yellow Warbler - Roseville, MN
72. Eastern Phoebe - Roseville, MN
73. Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Roseville, MN
74. Great-blue Heron - Roseville, MN
75. Great Egret - Roseville, MN
76. Barn Swallow - Roseville, MN
77. Northern Harrier - North Branch, MN
78. Ovenbird - Gunflint Lake, MN
79. Merlin - Gunflint Lake, MN
80. Spotted Sandpiper - Grand Marais, MN
81. Osprey - Gunflint Lake, MN
82. Swainson's Thrush - Hungry Jack Lake, MN
83. Northern Parula - Gunflint Lake, MN
84. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher - Gunflint Lake, MN
85. Semipalmated Plover - Grand Marais, MN
86. Semipalmated Sandpiper - Grand Marais, MN
87. American Redstart - Devil's Track Canyon - MN
88. Veery - Sweatheart's Bluff, Grand Marais, MN
89. Hermit Thrush - Hungry Jack Lake, MN
90. Common Nighthawk - Gunflint Lake, MN
91. Indigo Bunting - Gunflint Lake, MN
92. Black and White Warbler - Gunflint Lake, MN
93. Red-eyed Vireo - Gunflint Lake, MN
94. Nashville Warbler - Gunflint Lake, MN
95. Northern Waterthrush - Gunflint Lake, MN
96. Scarlet Tanager - Gunflint Lake, MN
97. Magnolia Warbler - Gunflint Lake, MN
98. Peregrine Falcon - Twin Cities, MN
99. Red-bellied Woodpecker - Roseville, MN
100. Double-crested Cormorant - Two Harbors, MN
101. Gran Jay - Pine River, Ontario
102. Red-tailed Hawk - Thunder Bay, Ontario
103. Philadelphia Vireo - Kakabeka Falls, Ontario
104. Wild Turkey - Near Neebing, Ontario
105. American White Pelican - Near Neebing, Ontario
106. Red-necked Grebe - Gunflint Lake, MN
107. Least Sandpiper - Grand Marais, MN
108. Green Heron - Roseville, MN
109. Golden Eagle - North Shore of Lake Superior, MN
110. Sharp-shinned Hawk - Hawk Ridge, Duluth, MN
111. Franklin's Gull - Second Crow Wing Lake, MN
112. Palm Warbler - Buffalo River State Park, MN
113. Connecticut Warbler - Buffalo River State Park, MN
114. Brewer's Blackbird - Moorhead, MN
115. Harlequin Duck - Grand Marais, MN
116. Lapland Longspur - Kadunce River confluence with Lake Superior, MN
117. Horned Lark - Gunflint Lake, MN
118. House Wren - Superior Hiking Trail, MN
119. Sedge Wren - Superior Hiking Trail, MN
120. Bohemian Waxwing - Grand Marais, MN
121. Black-backed Woodpecker - Gunflint Lake, MN
122. Redhead - Grand Marais Harbor, MN
123. Common Redpoll - Gunflint Lake, MN
124. Hoary Redpoll - Gunflint Lake, MN
125. American Coot - Lonely Lake, MN
126. Pine Grosbeak - Gunflint Lake, MN
127. Great-horned Owl - Roseville, MN
128. Eastern Meadowlark - Gunflint Lake, MN
129. Evening Grosbeak - Gunflint Lake - MN
130. Snowy Owl - Grand Marais, MN
131. Tundra Swan - Highway 35 near North Branch, MN
132. Boreal Chickadee - Gunflint Lake, MN

My goal now is to increase the size of my Life List.  Since the end of my Big Year, I have already added numerous species when I took a road trip out west.  I'll probably try another Big Year in the future, but plan to wait a while first.

Happy Birding!

Tundra Swan and Black-capped Chickadee

The bird migration has begun, but is still not in full swing in northern Minnesota.  On the Gunflint Trail, the winter birds (Pine Grosbeaks, Common Redpolls, and Hoary Redpolls) have departed for lands to the north.  The birds that have returned to the Gunflint Trail for the summer are: the Common Crow, American Robin, and Red-tailed Hawk.  I also spotted a Snow Bunting on its way north.

On March 15th, I saw species 131 of my Big Year, the Tundra Swan (Cygnus columbianus).  I was driving on Highway 35, just north of North Branch, MN, when several of these beautiful birds flew in front of me.  Unfortunately, I could not get a picture (since I was driving at 70 mph.) but did get a good enough look for identification.

Earlier this month, I did get a series of rapid shots of a black-capped chickadee, which are featured below.  In this series of pictures, it is breaking into a sunflower seed:

Beginning of Migration

The bird migration on the Gunflint Trail has officially begun.  On my walk today, I saw the first Bald Eagle of the season at Gunflint Lake.  I've also heard numerous reports of American Crows returning as well.

The winter birds are still present.  Three of the species will be heading back to the Arctic in the next few months, and others will be staying here for the summer.

Female Pine Grosbeak
These birds will head back to the Arctic for their breeding season.

Female Common Redpoll
These birds are Arctic breeders.

Male Common Redpoll
Hoary Redpolls are also present at this time.

Male Pine Grosbeak

 The birds below are here throughout the year:

Downy Woodpecker

Black-capped Chickadee

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Black-capped Chickadee and Red-breasted Nuthatch

Blue Jay

Hairy Woodpecker

Also spotted this month are the Gray Jay, Common Raven, and Pileated Woodpecker.