Last night I ran my Frog & Toad Survey route in the Frontenac area. The moonless sky was an awesome star showcase distraction. I was out late enough that traffic was sparse away from Highway 61, although the constant train traffic often assaulted my straining ears. temperatures, which were as comfortable as in my house, dropped as low as 50 degrees as the clear star night sucked away the heat.
Frogs and toads were either quieted by the cooler temperatures or experiencing an off year. While you could hear them everywhere in the distance, their density was low when you approached their ponds. Some of my historically most reliably active sites were quiet. Although one site, Frontenac Lake was a symphony. The most active frogs were gray treefrogs, green frogs, and spring peepers. The last are usually mostly finished by this time of year. I had Whip-poor-wills calling vigorously at three of my ten stops, which is typical of migration. I had Marsh Wrens and Swamp Sparrows actively vying for my attention, although no rails were heard. I did call for a King Rail, but did not get a response. At one stop a Spotted Sandpiper took off and flew down the stream calling as it headed downstream for what might have been a mile before fading away. More stunning was the Snipe that winnowed directly overhead northwest of Frontenac Lake. Steve Weston On Quigley Lake in Eagan, MN [email protected] ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
