Today I observed a Northern Shrike at one of my bird feeders (about three miles west of Grand Marais). It then flew around the house to another feeder, and quickly dispatched a Pine Grosbeak, which had been feeding on the ground. After a couple of attempts, it managed to fly off with the grosbeak. I quickly pulled on my boots and followed it into the woods. I found the bloody grosbeak in the middle of a footpath, with the shrike perched in a nearby tree, so I left it to its meal. Quite a nice surprise, as today is the bird count for the Grand Marais area.
Bruce Stahly
