Today was one of those rare days where the weather feels PERFECT for being out birdwatching at midday--warm but not hot, a thin veil of clouds to keep the sun's warmth in check and a breeze to waft the fresh air along. Over a few hours and miles at Hankinson Hills, I was treated to two life list species: two black-billed cuckoos and a pair of yellow-throated vireos, plus a host of other photo-friendly birds, bugs and other critters.
Just after Big Day, my feeders received their first goldfinches.
Visits to the park and archery range saw several first-of-year birds, and I happily added the awesome Magnolia Warbler to my life list!
The eighth of May was marked as Cornell Lab's annual spring Big Day for 2021, and the day of fundraising and birdwatching was made the focal point of this month's eBird challenge.
For myself, Big Day began at 2:00am, when I roused myself and drew a travel mug full of cappuccino before hitting the highway for Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge. I arrived at the refuge just as the sun began to peek from the horizon and was greeted by a pack of deer and an ensemble of wrens, blackbirds and trumpeter swans. Another bird making itself heard from the reeds, was the Sora with its downwardly-winding call. Amidst the acrobatics of the local barn swallows, I craned my head and waited in hopes of spotting one of the typically shy Soras. As luck with birds can go (particularly when you're not the most patient), the one Sora who broke from cover was standing, unnoticed by me, just beside the short step bridge to the observation deck. This would have been a beautiful opportunity to see the bird in the open, but as I turned for my car, the Sora quickly vanished. Still, with plenty of ducks, sparrows, and some black-billed magpies, it was a satisfying start to the day.
Next up, Oakland Park in Thief River Falls. Looping around the park's frolf course, I was able to watch a Great Blue Heron fishing along the riverbank and had a short conversation with a friendly, bird-knowledgeable man; his son and their nice, very sheddy dog.
Gary Pines was my third target and quite a surprise. I was expecting a speck of pines and play area, but a cool labyrinth of trails reached back a nice ways and provided a great pitstop for migrating warblers and natives.
My original plan for the day would have seen me making stops at Felton Prairie and the sewage settling ponds of Fargo, but weariness took me straight down MN-32. I reached the trail to the archery range in Wahpeton slightly after three o'clock. Several firsts of the year making appearances:
Relieved to be home, I spent the afternoon watching qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix and going through the day's photos and notes to compile my checklists.
The first day of May brought the heat with temperatures reaching into the upper 80s. Well before the temperature peaked, I struck south for the Hecla Ponds for some sunrise birding. It would prove to be a fruitful venture. Among the masses of coots, blackbirds, Franklin's Gulls and cormorants, a Black-crowned Night-heron peeked up from the reeds, and I spotted a pair of Hudsonian Godwits to add to the life list.
After a few hours poking around the ponds, I headed back northeast, encountering a few more Franklin's Gulls on the way.
While not as fruitful as Hecla, Hankinson Hills handed me a few first-of-year birds including Eastern Bluebird, Vesper and Clay-colored Sparrow. It also gave me a chance to experience the heat in unabated fashion, and after a couple miles of hiking and a short nap on the grass, I was comfortably tuckered out and ready to head home. But the day had more to give, as my feeders hosted their first (to my knowledge) clay-colored and savannah sparrows. All in all, a fun and rewarding day of birdwatching!
