Big Year # 3

 I have decided to start my third Big Year today, April 17, 2021.  In my previous Big Years, I have spotted 93 and 132 birds respectively.  I plan to exceed both those records in the coming year.

A Big Year is an event in which participants try to see as many bird species as they can in one calendar year.  It can be tied to a specific area (back yard, county, state, United States, North America, or Earth.  I'm planning to travel around the United States (and hopefully Canada) in the next year a bit, but I do not have enough time or deep enough pockets to do a full out North American or larger Big Year

A Big Year keeps you in shape mentally and physically.  You have to be able to identify a bird very quickly, and you end up putting a lot of miles on your feet and in a canoe and kayak.  I look forward to seeing many of my previous species, as well as adding some new ones to my life list.

The honor of my first bird of the new Big Year goes to the red-breasted nuthatch.  He was singing loudly in a nearby tree when I let my dog Ellie out this morning.  The nuthatch even stayed around to have his picture taken.

I say the following birds today:

1. Red-breasted Nuthatch - Gunflint Lake, MN

2. Red-winged Blackbird - Gunflint Lake, MN

3. Common Grackle - Gunflint Lake, MN

4. Brown-headed Cowbird - Gunflint Lake, MN

5. Dark-eyed Junco - Gunflint Lake, MN

6. Common Redpoll - Gunflint Lake, MN

7. Purple Finch - Gunflint Lake, MN

8. Black-capped Chickadee - Gunflint Lake, MN

9. Common Raven - Gunflint Lake, MN

10. American Crow - Gunflint Lake, MN

11. Pileated Woodpecker - Gunflint Lake, MN

12. Downy Woodpecker - Gunflint Lake, MN

13. Common Loon - Gunflint Lake, MN

14. Ruffed Grouse - Gunflint Lake, MN

15. Mallard Duck - Gunflint Lake, MN

16. Ring-necked Duck - Moose Pond Landing near Saganaga Lake, MN

17. Trumpeter Swan - Moose Pond Landing near Saganaga Lake, MN

18. Canada goose - Moose Pond Landing near Saganaga Lake, MN

19. American Robin - Trail's End Campground, MN

20. Spruce Ground - Trail's End Campground, MN

21. Bufflehead - Seagull Lake, MN

22. Common Merganser - Gunflint Lake

I decided to start my Big Year today in honor of my grandmothers.  My maternal grandmother, Viola, was born on this day in 1915.  My paternal grandmother, Sylvia, seeded my love of birding when I was very young by teaching me bird calls and taking me on birding hikes.  Both grandmothers inspired me in many ways in our shared lives.

Bird of the Day - Trumpeter Swan

 Happy Easter!

The bird of the day today is the trumpeter swan.  This amazing bird was almost extinct in the early 20th century.  They are making a wonderful comeback in recent years, and they have been commonly seen in much of Minnesota.  Although they are more concentrated in the hardwood forests, they have also started to make appearances in the boreal transition forests of north-eastern Minnesota.

To identify the trumpeter swan, look for a large white bird (60-inch length).  There is a distinctive “V” on the forehead, with the edges of the “V” coming up to the eyes.  Unlike the similar tundra swan, there is no bright yellow in the bill.

Bird of the Day - Ruffed Grouse

The bird of the day is the ruffed grouse.  I was walking past some feeders today when I heard a relatively large bird fly past me and land in a nearby aspen tree.  It proceeded to start eating the numerous buds coming out of the branches. 

The ruffed grouse is one of two grouse species common to the Gunflint Trail.  Spruce grouse also live on the Gunflint Trail.  The ruffed grouse is often lighter colored, has a mohawk-like crest, and drums with its' wings to attract a mate.  Spruce grouse are generally darker colored, and the males have rufous-tipped tail feathers, and a red spot superior to the eye.

This March, I have spotted the following bird species on the Gunflint Trail:

1. Ruffed Grouse

2. Northern Shrike

3. Red-breasted Nuthatch

4. Black-capped Chickadee

5. Common Redpoll

6. Hoary Redpoll

7. Common Grackle

8. European Starling

9. Bald Eagle

10. Blue Jay

11. Canada jay

12. American Crow

13. Raven

14. Pine Grosbeak

15. Dark-Eyed Junco

Bird of the Day - Canada Jay

 

The bird of the day today is the Canada jay.  It is also known as the Perisoreus canadensis, gray jay, whiskey jack, moose bird, and camp robber.  The official common name was Canada jay up until the 1950s when the American Ornithological Union voted to change the name to gray jay.  They further insulted Canada by using the American form of gray.  Recently, they voted to change it back to Canada jay.

Canada Jay (Left) and Blue Jay (Right)

The Canada jay is in the Corvidae family, which includes the jays, magpies, nutcrackers, crows, and ravens.  It is a family of very intelligent birds, and the Canada jay is no exception.  They are nicknamed camp robbers because of their exceptional ability to procure food from people.    Peanuts are one of their favorites, but they will come in for a variety of foods.

I've found that they will swoop down towards people with food, but will waive off instead of landing right away.  Then they sit in a tree and study the person.  If they decide the person is not a threat, they will land on the person's hand, and take the food.

There are also times that they will sneak in and grab food when the person is not paying attention.  I met a person who was trying to put a cracker in their mouth, and it disappeared before it got there.

The Canada jays spend so much time caching food in the winter, that they have historically been able to survive the nesting season without having to do any additional gathering.  Unique among the corvids, they have a saliva that acts like a glue to stick cached foods into great hiding places.

The caching has been a disadvantage in their southern ranges as the climate warms, because a lot of their perishable food has gone bad during nesting season.  For many years, I saw flocks of three birds in the winter (two parents and the dominant offspring), but now I usually only see one or two at a time.  With the food spoilage, not as many young are surviving to maturity.

The range of the Canada jay covers most of Canada and Alaska, the Arrowhead region of Minnesota, the Rocky Mountains, and part of the Pacific Northwest.  There are six subspecies in North America, which differ slightly in markings.  The subspecies in Minnesota is the albescent.

Bird of the Day - Pine Grosbeak

 The bird of the day today is the pine grosbeak.  This beautiful bird has joined on us the Gunflint Trail for almost every winter since 2002.  Last winter was the only exception due to a strong seed crop throughout the region.

In the last week, I have noticed that the numbers of pine grosbeaks are dwindling, which means they have probably started their migration back to the Arctic.  There are no known birds of this type who nest in Minnesota; they just come to Northern Minnesota for the winter.

Male pine grosbeaks have significant red coloring after the first year.  Females have some yellow coloring after the first year.  Males and females in their first year can be russet colored.

Female Pine Grosbeak

Male and Female Pine Grosbeaks\

Male Pine Grosbeak

Bird of the Day - Evening Grosbeak

I was thrilled this last week to see a whole flock of evening grosbeaks.  My first couple of years on the Gunflint Trail, we had large irruptions of these beautiful birds, but they have been quite sparse since about 2003.  

Often I only see 2 - 6 of these birds over the course of a whole year.  This was a flock of about a half dozen individuals.  Hopefully, they will stay around for the winter!

Male Evening Grosbeak

Male Evening Grosbeaks

Male Evening Grosbeak

Male Evening Grosbeak

Male Evening Grosbeak

Female Evening Grosbeak

Bird of the Day - Bohemian Waxwing

 I saw these beautiful Bohemian waxwings last week at the Pincushion Mountain Overlook Trailhead above Grand Marais, Minnesota.  It is really fun to see the unique species of birds that come through during migration.