Photos from Sax-Zim Bog
My Trip to Sax-Zim Bog
This Saturday, like I mentioned in my last post, I went up to Sax-Zim Bog for the day. I went last year, and it was awesome! During that trip, I found some great new birds- Canada Jay, Black-billed Magpie, and Ruffed Grouse- but not a single owl, unusual in the bog, which is known for its great owls; so I was hoping to find one that day! My goal was to see three new species, a tall order seeing as I’d already seen some of the common ones last time, and I did that- no more, no less! I’d rather see more than three, but the ones I found were awesome.
We arrived at about one PM, which sounds late, but we left as early as we could- the place is really far from where I live! Almost as soon as we entered the bog, we found a bunch of cars parked on the side of the road. At Sax-Zim, that’s a sure sign of an owl sighting, so we pulled over too and went to see what it was. What we found was a Great Gray Owl- new species number one, and we’d barely been here five minutes! Of course we got plenty of pictures, and stayed to watch the gorgeous owl as long as we could. I could’ve stood there all day, looking through binoculars at the big owl, which was pretty close to the road and gave me great views. He didn’t even seem to notice us, just swiveling his head to look at something off in the woods now and then. Maybe he heard something we didn’t! Eventually, we had to leave, so we got reluctantly back in the car.
Our next stop, of course, was the Welcome Center. Normally, you can go inside to talk with one of their great volunteers or watch the feeders outside from the comfort of the heated center, but due to Covid, it was closed, so instead we wanted to check out the feeders and hike one of their trails. Once we pulled in, I saw a flock of birds at the top of a tree in the parking lot, so I grabbed my binoculars and took a closer look. They turned out to be a species I’d wanted to see for years- Evening Grosbeaks! Bam, second lifer, ten minutes after the first one! You see why I love this place?
There didn’t seem to be anything but chickadees on the feeders in front of the center, so we went to the back to check out the tray feeder and deer carcasses (yeah, super gross, but do you know a better way to draw in Canada Jays?). As we headed that way, I looked up at the trees and saw a really tall one at the edge of the woods with a single bird at the top. I looked at it through my binoculars, and couldn’t make out what kind of bird it was, but I had a feeling, from the shape of the beak and the reddish color it seemed to have, what it might be. I started to say my suspicion aloud, but before I could, we came to the feeder, and what to my wondering eyes should appear but a whole flock of that same species- Pine Grosbeak! Lifer three, just like that! I love Pine Grosbeaks, with the males’ strawberry-pink color and the females’ yellowish and gray one- they’re so pretty, and all around awesome, of course. I took lots of photos of them and the flock of Evening Grosbeaks, which decided to try out the feeder as well; then we took one of the short trails near the Welcome Center, which didn’t yield any new species but was still really nice. We had to be careful not to bump into any trees and send down a flurry of snow from their branches!
After that, I wanted to try the Admiral Road feeders, which the map calls ‘the best place in the state to see and photograph Boreal Chickadees’. We didn’t find any of those, but we did see some Canada Jays, a Hairy Woodpecker, lots of Black-capped Chickadees, and another flock of Pine Grosbeaks, which I got some good shots of. The chickadees had a habit of deciding they’d eaten enough and whizzing right past someone’s ear to the trees on the other side. It was funny, but definitely startled me if they caught me off guard!
Next we tried Warren Woessner Bog Boardwalk, which is 900 feet long and lined with feeders. There, we didn’t find a lot, since it was getting dark, but we did see some chickadees, a Red-breasted Nuthatch, a Downy Woodpecker, a Brown Creeper, and a Common Raven flying overhead. After that, we headed home, since before long it would be too dark even for owls!
Much shorter than I’d like, but I really enjoyed the day! My favorite new bird would have to be Great Gray Owl- so beautiful, especially since it’s my first owl I’ve seen at Sax-Zim. I hope to make these trips a yearly thing, but we’ll see!
New species: Great Gray Owl, Evening Grosbeak, Pine Grosbeak
Other species: Black-capped Chickadee, Canada Jay, Hairy Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, American Crow, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Common Raven
Winter Waiting
These days it’s so cold out I have to really bundle up just to fill the feeders, but even those little five-minute trips have some interesting sightings. Today I saw a Mourning Dove, which isn’t very common in my yard. I’ve also seen lots of Northern Cardinals at the feeders, and yesterday I found a flock of twenty House Sparrows out my window, eating seeds off the ground. I even saw a Common Grackle, a species which has usually migrated by now, eating fallen seeds below my feeder this morning! And of course, there are always plenty of Black-capped Chickadees, which make me smile no matter how cold it is.
Winter can be pretty dull for a birder, since so many birds have gone south- only a few hardy species join us humans in toughing out the winter here. I haven’t seen any winter finches this year, which is a disappointment, but luckily or unluckily there’s still a lot of winter left for that to happen!
One of the only things for me to look forward to this winter, as far as birding goes, is the trip to Sax-Zim Bog I’m hoping to make. I went last year, and it was a blast! This year, I’m hoping to find some owls- the bog is known as a hotspot for owl sightings, but last year I didn’t see a single one. I only wish I could visit during the annual Winter Bird Festival, which is canceled this year due to COVID-19. Still, I’m really excited just to be there and hopefully rack up some new species! In the meantime, I’ve been lurking on their website, which is awesome and even includes some video birding trips for those of us who can’t wait to visit.
So until that happens, I’ll be filling the feeders and watching out the window- got to save up all the warmth I can before I brave a day in the cold!
A Frosty Day
This morning, I looked out the window and saw that a beautiful frost had descended over my yard! Days like this have always been among my favorite parts of winter – not counting the part where it ends!
Winter blues aside, I couldn’t wait to go out and see what birds I could find and photograph against that gorgeous, glittery backdrop! As soon as I could, I dashed outside with my camera.
It was so quiet out there, and everything was white. Tiny flakes of ice were floating in the wind as if it were snowing, even though the sky was perfectly clear and an airy blue. The lighting was excellent for photography, especially compared to how cloudy and grey everything normally is during the winter. I didn’t see many birds, but I could hear perfectly whenever one called, because it was so quiet and muffled by the snow. It was too cold to stay out for too long, but it was amazing to see my yard transformed into this little wonderland, literally overnight! Here’s what I found:
A male Ring-Necked Pheasant that’s been hanging around for a few weeks. This time, he was perched in a crab-apple tree, but flew away before I could get close enough for pictures. Failed to photograph.
An unidentified white/light grey raptor I couldn’t identify (and neither could Audubon Bird ID), soaring overhead. Perhaps a goshawk? Feel free to comment if you have an idea what it could be, I could use some help! Failed to photograph.
A few chickadees. Got one or two photographs, but no winners.
Four Northern Cardinals, three males and a female. Very active and zipping around chasing each other for the most part. Got mostly poor photographs.
A Northern Flicker, zipping past my head. Failed to photograph.
Unknown woodpecker species. Failed to photograph.
A male White-breasted Nuthatch braving the cold to search for lunch on a tree.
Okay, so not very interesting. But still, it was worth the cold just to get out and see all of the beautiful trees and plants, fluffed up with frost! I’m happy that I was able to go out and see it before it all melted, which had happened by ten o’clock. Whether the birds liked it or not, I couldn’t tell. They certainly appreciated me filling the feeders first, though!
In conclusion, a beautiful day to help me enjoy winter while it lasts! I’m still looking forward immensely to springtime, though. Thanks for reading!
Enjoying Winter Birds
Welcome to the debut post of this blog! I hope to continue it for many years as I expand my birding skills and experience all sorts of new things in the pursuit of birds! I’m Sydney, the MN Birdwatcher herself! Welcome to my brand-new blog abut my adventures in birding here in central Minnesota – I can’t wait to share them with you!
My yard certainly doesn’t look like a very interesting place to go birding right now; outside my window there’s snow, ice, and not much else. But my feeders have a steady stream of common birds a lot of birdwatchers might be tempted to ignore- dozens of Black-capped Chickadees; foraging House Sparrows; the occasional flock of American Goldfinches, colorful Northern Cardinals, or American Tree Sparrows – it can seem dull at first glance, but when I have the patience to sit, wait, and observe what there is, I remember how fascinating the winter residents of my yard are. Though they aren’t as flashy or colorful as the spring migrants or summer nesters we all remember so fondly around this time of year (forgetting, remarkably, about the rain, heat, bugs, and whatever else tries to prevent us from going out and birding for most of the year), I love my winter birds!
For example, whenever I come out to fill the feeders, a flock of chickadees will start to make noise around their favorite feeder, and one or two will remain while I fill it. When I’m done, the rest of the chickadees will all swoop in as soon as I’m a safe distance away, and dig in!
And that’s just one example of the wonderful birds I share my yard with, even in winter. I’ve also been seeing a Brown Creeper (a cute brown bird that climbs around on tree trunks, like a nuthatch – I recommend looking it up online if you’ve never seen one) on the trees in my yard for the past few days, which is great because not only do I love watching them, I also didn’t know until then they even lived here during the winter. I also saw a pair of Yellow-shafted Flickers (my favorite woodpecker!) eating hackberries from a tree in my backyard yesterday. It seems like all sorts of birds love those – I’ve seen cardinals, robins, and Cedar Waxwings, as well as Downy, Hairy, Red-bellied, and even Pileated woodpeckers eating them in the past. I’m happy my yard can be a safe home for so many amazing birds, summer and winter!
Thanks for reading! I’m so excited to continue sharing stories from my backyard and things I’ve learned well into the future!