A Slow but Fun Start to Another Year of Birding

I’m sure at some point the phrase “the xth time’s the charm” loses its meaning. This blog started about 2 years ago, after branching away from other social media sites to expand my artistic outlets. A blog seemed the best approach: It affords endless space to create lengthy posts, interspersed with many of my bird photos. Well, what should be mentioned before one starts a blog is the time commitment. I usually wait until late in the evening to begin the initial process of drafting and photo editing, but all too often, I decide to can it and go to bed, or focus on something else.

I hope to change that going forward this year. I don’t see myself writing every day—that strategy hasn’t worked yet. What I do want to do is write on a consistent basis, at least once or twice a week, depending on how much inspiration strikes me before sleep.

Without further ado, let’s begin!

To start off the year, I made the trek from Milwaukee to Door County in search of a White Wagtail that had been frequenting a slim piece of real estate along the Lake Michigan shore north of the canal by Sturgeon Bay. Although this bird can be found in western Alaska in summer and infrequently as a vagrant in the lower 48, this was the first recorded visit of this species to the Badger State. I was expecting more visitors to Portage Park, but only a handful of hardy birders stood along the shore to view the Wagtail.

Portage Park, Door County

It took no time to find the White Wagtail!

What makes seeing this Wagtail even more intriguing is that it is a different subspecies from those I had seen previously. I had seen this bird in China and Iceland, but those were, respectively Motacilla alba leucopsis and Motacilla alba alba/dukhunensis. (There are, apparently, several others which I will not go into at this time.). This one is the Motacilla alba ocularis subspecies, which lives predominantly in Siberia. Unlike its summer plumage, with a prominent black patch on the throat, the winter plumage sports a clean throat.

I spent a further 30 to 60 minutes photographing and enjoying the sight of a “mega” ABA 5 code bird within mere feet of where I was standing. The bird was inquisitive, walking up and down the small canyons of rocks lining the Lake and picking at vegetation. True to its name, it would bob or “wag” its tail with each step it took. The bird was also silent, and would only emit a “chissik” or “tzit” call only when flying along the shore. Once it flew further south towards the Coast Guard building, I packed up and headed home.

Two days later, I began another road trip, this time to Duluth, Minnesota, six hours away from Milwaukee. I planned to bird the Sax-Zim Bog for at least one day to look for owls and other boreal species. Saturday in the bog was, to put it succinctly, slow. This may have been due to the weather, with temperatures barely exceeding zero degrees Fahrenheit. I did, however, see Canada Jays and White-winged Crossbills. After birding, I drove back into Duluth for dinner and a warm bed.

I had been following eBird for a couple of days before my arrival in the Northwoods, and had seen reports of Boreal Owls. While they venture down into the USA via the Rocky Mountains as far south as Colorado, their presence in Minnesota is transient. A better description is irruptive; they will come down from the bordering Canadian provinces into the Northwoods for food or living space. When one appears, it is guaranteed to attract an audience.

Sunday, on the morning of departure, I drove about 30 minutes northeast towards Two Harbors to check out a site where a Boreal Owl had been seen over the week. Once I got there, however, no owl presented itself. I should say there were no cars or people walking along a highway looking for it in the trees. After 10 minutes of driving slowly up and down a remote road in Minnesota, a local birder drove up to me and told me about another Boreal Owl seen by the side of the road approximately 15 minutes north near a local pie shop. To add even more excitement, there was a Great Gray Owl along the same strand of trees! I quickly abandoned my cruising among empty pines for the promising owl-filled forests…and perhaps a piece of pie.

It didn't take too long to find the group of 15 birders and photographers watching the Great Gray Owl as it hunted for voles along the ditch. It was not at all perturbed by the crowd: It continued to pick off rodents hiding below the snow and dry grass.

This was a truly magical experience! I often refrain from describing such encounters in melodramatic, hyperbolic terms. Standing there along an even more report highway in Minnesota, minutes away from Lake Superior, freezing my fingers and toes, I was in awe of this owl, the true phantom of the north.

After thawing out from awe, I remembered there was a Boreal Owl in the trees. A friendly local birder pointed the sleeping raptor in the evergreens.

Such amazing luck to see two amazing birds of prey at the same place at the same time! I definitely earned myself a piece or two of pie at the local shop, Betty’s Pies of Two Harbors. After filling up, I made the long but now enjoyable 7 hour drive back home. (The extra hour is due to having traveled to Two Harbors, which is about an hour roundtrip from Duluth.)

Although I have not been birding as much so far this year, this was a promising start for me. I had been hoping to at least do a Milwaukee County Big-ish Year this year. Maybe I still can! Let’s see where the birds take me.

Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for more posts soon.