This morning began with another look at the Varied Thrush in Roseville. It was spotted briefly at 10:20 among the robins in the crab-apple trees, on the NW corner of Co2 and Merrill. It disappeared for a half hour, returning around 10:50 for 10 minutes or so, before flying into evergreens to the west. Jed Askari found it later, at around 2 PM, moving with the robins on the south side of Co2. Perhaps the birds were exercising some caution, as he had also seen a Cooper's Hawk at the intersection when he arrived.
After the noon hour, a hike at Bass Ponds yielded lovely looks at a Red-shouldered Hawk on the holding pond with the fishing dock, located between the largest of the old ponds and the newest pond, next to the Cedar/77 bridge. We first spotted it flying north over the pond, whereupon it landed conveniently in a tree at the water's edge. It sat for a long time, and obliged us with both rear and frontal views, before taking off directly over the road we were on, and landing in front of us in a tree on the river side. Upon our approach, it rose up, gliding past us at tree-top height. After perching once again on the river side of the road, it circled behind us, passed over the same pond, and re-alighted in its original tree. It seemed to be checking out the open water at the edge of the pond, which gave us ample time to note its tail stripes, its many white "speckles", its gorgeous russet colors blending to blond in the lower regions, and the contrasting borders on the trailing edge of the wings. For good raptor measure, we were rewarded with a hunting show by a Rough-legged Hawk, over the marsh grasses to the south side of the river. Along the way, we had also noted a pair of pileated woodpeckers, flying east toward the farm on the bluff; pairs of downies, hairies, and red-bellieds; and what may be a nest cavity, with evidence of new excavation in the form of fresh wood chips on the path. Spring can't be far behind. Linda Whyte, with Curt Rawn and Sue Plankis ---- Join or Leave mou-net:http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives:http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
