(Posted by Jason Frank <[email protected]> via moumn.org)
After living in the Lac qui Parle/Yellow Medicine area for 8 years, I have never seen so many Red-Headed Woodpeckers in so many different locations. Here are coordinates for sightings I've logged since early May, suggesting some probable nesting activity. My criteria for inclusion are: sightings of at least two birds in the same area on the same day, and repeatedly seeing at least one bird in the same area on subsequent days. 44.906798, -96.360060. An abandoned farm SW of Prairie Marsh Farm, Lac qui Parle County. This site is private property, but easily visible from the road. I have seen 2 adults at this location repeatedly. There's a big dead tree with lots of holes in it; I've seen one of the adults perching on the trunk, so it's a probable nest site. They also like to feed on the telephone poles adjacent to Prairie Marsh Farm. 44.910847, -96.329378. A savanna along the Florida Creek, mixture of private and public land. They could be the same birds from the first location. Lots of feeding activity here. 44.877735, -96.306627. Minimum Maintenance road, Florida Creek/Antelope Hills WMA. Lots of gnarly old trees with holes in them. Verified nesting site in past years. The grove stretching southward along the creek is especially good. 44.791296, -96.283089. A pair of poplar windbreaks, private property. Frequently seen flying between the poplars and telephone poles. Saw one adult last week fly into the poplars with a mouthful of insects, so a probable nesting location. The abandoned farmsteads just to the west are also probable nest sites. They are private and posted as such. 44.747092, -96.404968. Wooded stretch of the Florida Creek near tiny town of Burr, oaks present. In other news, There is a great Purple Martin colony in Gary SD, just over the border, with a dozen houses filled to capacity. I spotted 3 Hungarian Partridges along the road in the Mound Spring Prairie WMA/SNA complex earlier this week. Haven't seen any young Pheasants or Turkeys yet; I'm guessing the cool weather and 7 inches of rain we had in late May must've coincided with the hatch. Most of the Canada Goose pairs that nested around here are conspicuously devoid of goslings. My guess would be a surplus of Raccoons. Jason Frank Lac qui Parle ---- Join or Leave mou-net: http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives: http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
