Of Owls, Woodcock, and Rusty Blackbirds

A pair of Great Horned Owls who-who-whoo'd in their high and low pitch at my house before I got up this morning.  It was the third time I'd heard them this winter, but the first time I'd ever heard the strange, somewhat doglike sound accompanying their hoots.  I found it later as the third sound in my Sibley app: "Female Calling".

About two hours later Charlie DeWitt observed an American Woodcock near the inner gate at the end of Messinger Road at the State Game Area headquarters west of DNR headquarters.  

An hour later our March field trip began at that location.  Among the 23 species that nine of us found on our walk along the Maple River were 18 Rusty Blackbirds!  Later we drove around the Wastewater properties finding 33 bird species.  

Pictures and a more complete report are posted on our homepage.

Still later, after our trip ended, Rich and Shirley Shadle drove around the Wastewater properties.  They saw and took these photos of a yawning Snowy Owl and an apparently healthy Trumpeter Swan.  I had seen one that appeared to be near death this morning.  If this is the same swan, perhaps it had eaten something that didn't agree with it -- that can happen at the Wastewater.

- Ric