3/26/06 Greetings All:
As much as I have enjoyed the numerous posts surrounding user fees and such, I thought I might tell you all a story about a tale of two shrikes seen yesterday (Sunday) in Wabasha County. Brother Chris and I birded our way from Rochester to Whitewater WMA, south to Weaver Bottoms and Minnieska, then north to Weaver Dunes/McCarthy Lake area, Wabasha, Read's Landing, Lake City, Frontenac (Old and New), topped off by a stop at SUBWAY and a stroll around Hok-si-la Park. It was Chris's keen instincts (sense of smell) that took us to the Weaver Dunes in Wabasha County. Suddenly, we were at the bridge and we simultaneously heard a chip that turned out to be our first SWAMP SPARROW of the season. We were charged and pressed forward. We slowly drove the road looking for a record-early lark sparrow when Chris pointed me toward a bird, seen in poor light, that I initially thought was a bluebird. It was that small. Upon further investigation, we studied a bird that had a small, stubby bill, darker gray back, heavy mask encompassing the eye, lack of a prominent hook, and noticeably smaller frame. Guess what? A pretty early LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE! Charged had now turned to pumped (!) and we situated ourselves in Chris's car (he drives on weekends) to press on, when Chris said, "I see another shrike on the other side of the road." Expecting another loggerhead (note: a pair of loggerhead shrikes atleast attempted to nest in this exact location last Spring), we were both very surprised to see a much larger, thinner masked, larger billed/beaked, lighter gray backed, and hook at the end of the bill NORTHERN SHRIKE! I'm not sure what follows "pumped", probably a combination of ecstatic and dumbfounded, but we spent another 1/2 hour looking for either shrike to ease our disbelief (o.k. my disbelief) but could not find either species. We were so happy. A wonderful brother moment. Both shrike species in the same county on the same day within 500 feet from one another. Listing supplement material, baby!!!! I really love birding. And, I really love birding with my brother, Chris! To ensure many more of those moments in the future, I would be happy to pay for a hundred duck stamps, user fees, or whatever it takes so that future generations (my kids, me with kids!?) will be able to enjoy what I was able to share with my brother, Chris, on this beautiful day, the 26 of March 2006! Good Birding! John Hockema Rochester, MN
