Ring-billed gull

It is hard to imagine that in the early 1900s, Ring-billed Gulls were almost persecuted to extinction. Populations have since rebounded into the millions and continue to increase (Pollet et al, 2012). These authors report that “Ring-billed Gulls are opportunistic feeders that mostly eat insects, earthworms, fish, rodents, and grain.”

I found a flock of several dozen Ring-billed Gulls feeding and loafing at a small pond near Faribault, Rice Co., Minnesota, on 7 March 2017. If you look closely, you can see the black rings on their yellow bills.

Bald Eagle

I took this second-year Bald Eagle photo on 7 March near Faribault, Rice Co., Minnesota. I almost deleted the image from my camera. The bird was far away. I hoped that I would get some interaction between the eagle and the crow; or, at least, the eagle taking flight. But the eagle paid little or no attention to the crow. As eagles do, this bird strolled along the shoreline, consuming dead fish.

When I got home, I noticed the eagle’s bulging crop. Bald Eagles gorge on large amounts of food. They are then able to fast for many days. Eagles avoid foul-tasting prey. I shouldn’t think that fish stored in a crop would be tasty. Fortunately, they have little sense of smell. In any case, captive eagles have gone without food for up to 32 days (Buchler 2000).

Cackling Goose

Canada Geese were always known to show remarkable size variation. DNA studies indicate small Canada Geese are quite different from larger ones. Recently ornithologists declared that the smaller ones are a separate species named Cackling Geese. One problem is that larger Cackling Geese are about the same size as smaller Canadas.

Birders and ornithologists have always been confused by goose races. An recent study proposed splitting Canada and Cackling geese into six species and 200 subspecies. This study, however, remains controversial. In any event, this photograph is definitely of a Cackling Goose. It is about the same size as nearby Mallards. I took the image at the Superior Drive Pond in Northfield on 4 March 2017.

American Coot

Because American Coots look ungainly on land and can’t swim without rocking their heads back and forth, some people say that coots are evidence that God has a sense of humor. Evolutionary biologists suspect that coots are derived from gallinules that became adapted for diving (Brisbin and Mowbray 2002). In any event, on Saturday, while searching for new birds of the year, I spied two coots on the Superior Drive Pond in Northfield. 

Common Grackle

My first Common Grackle of the year—on 4 March along the Superior Drive Pond here in Northfield. The bird squawked and puffed its feathers. Although I did not observe them, other males must have been nearby.

Common Grackles are common. They thrive in a variety of habitats and are not particular in their feeding habits. Their numbers have increased as eastern forests were cleared for agriculture. Their range moved west as shelterbelts were planted across the prairies. Only recently have populations declined after persecution for being pests. They damage sprouting corn and other crops (Peer and Bollinger 1997). They are not always welcome at bird feeders either. They are voracious consumers of seeds and sometimes kill and eat small birds.

American Goldfinch

I banded a goldfinch on Friday. I have ringed very few birds this year. This goldfinch shows a hint of spring to come—note the black crown splotches. More interesting are this bird’s bright yellow shoulders. Goldfinches take two years to acquire this color. Second-year birds sport dusky shoulders. This bird, then, is aged ASY—After Second Year. See also my 2010 post on aging and sexing goldfinches.

Eurasian Collared Dove

On Friday, I checked the town of Dennison in western Goodhue County for Eurasian Collared Doves. I’ve seen these birds there in previous years. Dennison is a tiny hamlet, dominated by its grain elevators. Grain, whether spilled from elevators or offered at bird feeders, accounts for the collard dove’s survival.

The birds originate from the Middle East and Europe. The first birds appeared in Florida, after being introduced to the Bahamas. Multiple releases cloud the origins of other North American collared doves, now found across much of the United States. Little seems to exist to halt their continued range expansion, and, in may areas of the United States, the species is abundant.

Tufted Titmouse

This photo is one of the strangest I have ever taken. The bird is a Tufted Titmouse. It flew to a Rice County bird feeder on 1 March. The titmouse grabbed a sunflower seed and flew away. Never have I seen a bird look so much like a four-legged creature.

The secondary wing feathers sweep in side view along the bird’s flanks. These feathers are attached along the ulna of the forearm. (The humerus is hidden beneath the body feathers; the radius lies along side the ulna.) Beyond the ulna lies the carpometacarpal bone—fused and elongated carpals and metacarpals homologous to the bones in our wrists and palms. The primaries are attached here and to the remnants of two of the bird’s three fingers. The primaries are being forced downward to generate upward thrust as the bird fled the feeder. I have never seen such a gap between primaries and secondaries.

Bald Eagle

This Bald Eagle watched ducks with me at Wells Lake, just west of Faribault, Minnesota, last Sunday. It is hard not to be impressed with these large raptors, and I have posted accounts of these eagles on many occasions. The dark splotches on this bird's head indicate that it is just over 4 years old. In the next year, the head will molt into bright white heads and the body will become black.

Suffice to repeat here that the recovery of our Bald Eagles is one of our most successful conservation stories (Buehler 2001). After being listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, populations have dramatically increased. During this time, DDT levels have dropped and human persecution has decreased. They now breed in all Canadian provinces and every American state except Rhode Island and Vermont.

Lapland Longspur

As I reported yesterday, a few days ago I discovered a mixed flock of Lapland Longspurs and Horned Larks. Here are two of the longspurs. Both species fed on roadside weed seeds. Males (below) and females (above) can be difficult to identify. Note the chestnut wing patches of both sexes. The flanks are heavily streaked. Both sexes also have a dark line surrounding their ear patches. Males have faint chestnut collars and their heads and breasts become blacker as spring approaches.

Lapland Longspurs breed across arctic Canada. Like the Horned Lark, these longspurs are holarctic. They winter across most of the United States, except Florida, and the Southwest. They get their name from their elongated hind toe. Such toes are often typical of ground-walking birds.