2007 Southwestern Minnesota MBWeekend

"Blowin' in the Wind"

Note: There have been several other late spring - summer MBWs in Rock County and vicinity; for additional information about these, contact eckertkr@gmail.com.

SOUTHWESTERN MINN MBW SUMMARY / May 26-27-28, 2007

If the wind had stopped blowing, it looks like that Black-necked Stilt would probably have fallen over. And that pretty much sums up the two biggest highlights of the MBW: a 13th state record (spotted by Linda), and two out of three days with high wind difficulties. But at least the weather on Sunday was just about ideal, and we came up with a respectable 128 species (plus 4 more added by Craig and 8 of the participants at Williams Nature Center near Mankato late Monday afternoon: Blue-winged and Kentucky warblers, Ovenbird, and Eastern Towhee).

Besides the wind, the disappointments for me were that my beloved Blue Mounds wasn't able to produce any real rarities or waves of migrants, and that Great Horned Owls appear to have eliminated my screech-owl spot which had been so consistent since the 1970s. But these setbacks were more than offset by our nice list of shorebirds (especially at Hills!), Gold 'N Plump's Cattle Egret (they probably taste just like chicken!), some remote, beautiful, but longspur-less pastures in Pipestone Co, Herb's Great-tailed Grackle spot, that handsome and cooperative young male Blue Grosbeak at Blue Mounds, and other highlights.

Thanks to David Smith at the Luverne Chamber of Commerce & the Gold 'N Plump folks for arranging access to those ponds; thanks to Nelvina for coming along on Saturday, for calling to arrange permission to enter Pipestone's sewage ponds, and for hosting us on Monday; thanks of course to Craig for his able assistance (I only had to fire him once); and thanks to all of you for your patience with the slow service at the Magnolia Steak House (but still an hour & 20 minutes short of my all-time record, and the dinner at the Pizza Ranch worked out just fine), and for being a part of another unique MBW!

- Kim (please note new e-mail address: eckertkr@gmail.com)

R = seen/heard in Rock Co (mostly on May 26)

P = seen/heard in Pipestone Co (mostly on May 27)

M = seen/heard in Murray Co (mostly on May 28)

Canada Goose RPM

Wood Duck RPM

Gadwall PM

Mallard RPM

Blue-winged Teal RPM

Northern Shoveler RPM

Green-winged Teal R

Redhead PM

Lesser Scaup P

Hooded Merganser M

Ruddy Duck RPM

Gray Partridge PM (seldom seen any more on MBWs)

Ring-necked Pheasant RPM

"Wild" Turkey P (well, I'm counting it as new on MY Pipestone Co list!)

Pied-billed Grebe P

American White Pelican M

Double-crested Cormorant RPM

Great Blue Heron RPM

Great Egret M

Cattle Egret R (quite unexpected at the Luverne/Gold 'N Plump ponds)

Green Heron P

Turkey Vulture RM

Bald Eagle R

Northern Harrier PM

Broad-winged Hawk RP

Swainson’s Hawk PM

Red-tailed Hawk RPM

American Kestrel RPM

Virginia Rail PM (seen by Craig's group on Monday; also heard by all on Sunday)

American Coot RPM

Killdeer RPM

Black-necked Stilt R (#348 for the all-time MBW list)

Lesser Yellowlegs R

Spotted Sandpiper RPM

Upland Sandpiper RPM

Hudsonian Godwit R (2 back-lit birds in the puddle below the escarpment)

Sanderling R (quite uncommon there)

Semipalmated Sandpiper R

Least Sandpiper RP

White-rumped Sandpiper R

Baird’s Sandpiper P (3 late migrants)

Pectoral Sandpiper R

Stilt Sandpiper R (with the other Stilt at Hills)

Wilson’s Phalarope RP

Franklin’s Gull PM (also seen in Nobles Co)

Forster’s Tern PM

Black Tern RPM

Rock Pigeon RPM

Mourning Dove RPM

Great Horned Owl R (subsisting on screech-owls?)

Common Nighthawk RPM

Chimney Swift RP

Belted Kingfisher RP

Red-headed Woodpecker RPM

Red-bellied Woodpecker R (seen by Audrey & Nancy on Monday at Blue Mounds)

Downy Woodpecker RPM

Hairy Woodpecker M

Northern Flicker RPM

Olive-sided Flycatcher R (seen by Nelvina & Diana at Blue Mounds)

Eastern Wood-Pewee R

Alder Flycatcher RM (vocalizing late migrants)

Willow Flycatcher RP (best looks & listens at Blue Mounds)

Least Flycatcher RPM

Eastern Phoebe RP

Great Crested Flycatcher R

Western Kingbird RPM

Eastern Kingbird RPM

Warbling Vireo RPM

Philadelphia Vireo P (seen by a few at the Monument)

Red-eyed Vireo RPM

Blue Jay RPM

American Crow RPM

Horned Lark RM

Purple Martin RPM

Tree Swallow RPM

Northern Rough-winged Swallow RP

Bank Swallow R

Cliff Swallow RP

Barn Swallow RPM

Black-capped Chickadee RP

House Wren RPM

Sedge Wren RPM (good looks)

Marsh Wren PM (ditto)

Eastern Bluebird RP

Veery P

Swainson’s Thrush RPM

American Robin RPM

Gray Catbird RPM

Brown Thrasher RPM

European Starling RPM

Cedar Waxwing RPM

[Blue-winged Warbler / Williams Nature Center]

Tennessee Warbler P

Nashville Warbler P

Yellow Warbler RPM

Chestnut-sided Warbler RP

Magnolia Warbler P

Blackburnian Warbler P

Black-and-white Warbler M

American Redstart RPM

[Ovenbird / Williams Nature Center]

[Kentucky Warbler / Williams Nature Center]

Common Yellowthroat RPM

Wilson’s Warbler P

Canada Warbler P

Scarlet Tanager P (seen by Craig's group)

[Eastern Towhee / Williams Nature Center]

Chipping Sparrow RP

Clay-colored Sparrow RP

Field Sparrow RP

Vesper Sparrow RPM

Savannah Sparrow RPM

Grasshopper Sparrow RP

Song Sparrow RPM

Swamp Sparrow PM

Northern Cardinal RP

Rose-breasted Grosbeak M

Blue Grosbeak R (the blue-headed immature male was seen especially well)

Indigo Bunting RM

Dickcissel RP (also seen in Nobles Co)

Bobolink RPM (also seen in Nobles Co)

Red-winged Blackbird RPM

Western Meadowlark RPM

Yellow-headed Blackbird PM

Common Grackle RPM

Great-tailed Grackle P (thanks to a tip from Herb Dingmann)

Brown-headed Cowbird RPM

Orchard Oriole RP

Baltimore Oriole RPM

House Finch RP

American Goldfinch RPM

House Sparrow RPM