I set out with high hopes this afternoon to try to find White-winged Crossbills in Wright, Meeker, and McLeod Counties. The first stop I made was at Bendix Elementary School in Annandale (Wright County), where I found 3 birds in the line of spruces between the school and the adjacent football field. The school is on the east side of Hwy 24 on the north side of town. Buoyed by my instant good fortune, I then headed to Hutchinson (McLeod County) and after a few unsuccessful stops arrived at the large cemetery on the east side of Hwy 15 midway through town. Almost immediately a flock of 25 crossbills flew towards me, circled around and headed for the south part of the cemetery. I eventually re-found them next to a park just south of the cemetery, feeding on what I believe are White Spruces - the cones they were feeding on appeared to be larger than the birds! I then headed north to Litchfield (Meeker), but before I arrived there, I came across a nice grove of White Spruces that I felt had to have Crossbills in them. Sure enough, after 10 minutes of scanning I found a small group there. This location is a few miles south of Litchfield along Hwy 22, just north of 230th St. The birds were feeding in the 2 trees that are south of the driveway. Look for house numbers 23094 and 23086. Since I was on a roll, I decided to try my luck in Kandiyohi County also. I searched the towns of Atwater and Kandiyohi, and the Clover Leaf Cemetery just east of Willmar northeast of the intersection of Hwy 12 and CR9. I was not able to find any birds, but I found indications they had been there by the cones on the ground at all three places. Herb Dingmann St. Cloud
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