Late this afternoon a flock of 50-60 Tundra Swans flew over Crosby Park, headed SE. The usual winter-resident woodpeckers were all in evidence, including a small-looking (relatively!) Pileated who was working a tree above the west end of the paved trail along the river. A walk through the evergreen stand flushed a Barred Owl from an area where, two weeks ago, there had been a Great-horned Owl; the Barred had been perched at a fairly low elevation, and flew to a higher perch close by, so perhaps it was already on a hunt. Brown Creepers were vocalizing, though they were not seen. Tree Sparrows and Juncos were pretty active as well, but the rest of the "regulars " were rather quiet.
A couple of cautions: Crosby Park will be closed Mon.-Wed. for a deer hunt Saturday night's brief but rigorous winds produced some major tree damage along the river-bank trail. Many trees, some of them large, were snapped off at the trunk, and lie across the path. Linda Whyte ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
