If you are looking for a place to bird, I suggest Lake Byllesby in southern Dakota County between Canon Falls and Randolph. The birding yesterday was spectacular.
We counted some 30 species of waterfowl, not counting the 400 - 600 Tundra Swans in the fields a mile or so to the north and east of Randolph. We did have incredible views of the Cinnamon Teal, which was one of the closest birds, but also had 2 Red-necked Grebes, White-fronted Geese, Ross's Geese, Snow Geese, and hundreds of Horned Grebes. There were also about a hundred cormorants, some displaying their crests, dancing Sandhill Cranes, and courting Buffleheads. The only waterfowl under represented were Mallards, Cackling (missing) and Canada Geese. At one point, I commented that I did not see Mallards, but they were just not attracting attention. I was convinced that we had Eared Grebes, but was unable to isolate any amoung the hundreds of Horned. Also we had four species of gulls and terns, including a couple of Common Terns and four species of shorebirds, not including Killdeer, which were in the near by field. I suspect that if we were not under a time constraint that we could have teased out more. Directions: 1) Goodhue Co. boat launch: from Randolph continue south on Hwy 56 to Scotia Trail, turn left (east) and follow until the road T's and turn left (north) and follow until it ends. 2) West Bylessby: from Hwy 56 and 292nd St. go east until the first turn off toward the lake. This is just just a short pull off to a red gate. Park and walk down to the lake. This is the best location to view the mud flats for shorebirds. 3) East Bylessby county park (the developed park): continue east on 292nd St. and follow the signs at Harry Avenue. There is open water near the dam. This is where the winter duck were (mergansers and goldeneyes). I also suggest a walk in the cedars across the road from the camp ground. 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
