Drove down to Pool #8 south of La Crosse yesterday with three novice
birders hoping to see thousands of Tundra Swans and make an
impression. It worked.
-Saw a reported 12,000 Tundra Swans that I guess-timated to be more
like 20K - heck let's make it 120K for bragging rights - after all I
don't competitively fish or watch much football.
-Saw a large flock (30-40) of white pelicans sitting in their midst
-Great Blue Heron
-Belted Kingfisher
-Goldeneyes
-Pintails (lifer for me)
-Black Duck (lifer for me)
-Many Bald Eagles along way and at the site
-Hooded Mergansers
-Mallards
-Green-winged Teal
-Gadwalls
-Many other birds flying in and out - too busy to see them all.
Seeing these various birds is one thing but watching them behave,
interact and feed was even better. They were right in front of us.
The viewing area south of Brownsville has two excellent permanently
mounted spotting scopes, a wonderful railing and info area. A
delightful volunteer answered questions and showed us the arrowroot
bulbs the swans were eating. There were between 20 to 30 visitors
there throughout our time there with plenty of room for all. Highly
recommend a day-trip and a stop at perhaps a casino dinner buffet on
the way back. Yum! (cigarette smoke was a bit much but we have a
washing machine for our clothes.) A rich, fulfilling and belly filling
day was had by all. Day started out sunny and cool but ended cloudy
and chilly or we would have stayed hours at the viewing area. As it
was, 45 minutes was plenty of time.
Thomas Maiello
Angel Environmental Management, Inc.
Maple Grove, MN
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