Prairie birds are returning to the Carleton Lower Arb (Northfield). Today I had Eastern Kingbirds, Sedge Wrens, Eastern Meadowlarks, Common Yellowthroats, and lots of Clay-colored, Song, and Field Sparrows. I haven't seen the resident Henslow's Sparrows yet, but strong winds today made it hard to hear, and not many birds were perching up. Nor did I see the Red-headed Woodpeckers that nested along the edge of the prairie last year. In fact, the dead tree that they nested in has mostly fallen to the ground.
Yesterday morning I birded the Upper Arb. Notable birds were a dozen Swainson's Thrushes, a Yellow-throated Vireo, and several Blue-headed Vireos. The only warblers I was able to find were Black-and-White, Yellow, Palm, and Yellow-rumped. Two Barred Owls have returned and are probably nesting in the area. Gerry Hoekstra Northfield ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
