I am seeing lots of Horned Larks in the farm areas especially in Dakota County, but also in western Hennepin County.
A Northern Flicker has been coming to my feeders all winter. One or two Pileated Woodpeckers are also regularly coming to the suet feeder. I usually hear them pounding on the suet, rather than seeing them flying. Today I checked the south side of the Science Museum in St. Paul for the fourth time without seeing the Solitaire. I hope I am able to follow this with a successful fifth visit. Yesterday I found an interesting buteo along Highway 55 in Eagan near I-494. At first I thought this dark hawk was a Rough-legged, but after a look from the other side and watching it fly, I ID'd it as a juvenile Red-tail. It had a very dark belly band. Its wings were almost as long as its tail, indicating that this was a western sub-species. Its plumage was a close match to an illustration in Sibley that agreed with that ID. Steve Weston on Quiggley Lake in Eagan, MN sweston2 at comcast.net
