Red Wing Nature Notes

July 23, 2010

More than Twins

Filed under: John's Posts, Phenology, all posts
John Tittle
John Tittle @ 10:45 am

We are well into summer. It’s like a rainforest out there. Tree limbs hang low with moisture from frequent rains. Vines of woodbine and wild grapes grow thick and lush. I know this mainly because I see it from the window of my car as I drive down the gravel road from our house and eventually  to work.  Country living is a stark contrast to life in the “cities”.

Friends took us to the Twins game a couple of nights ago in the new stadium. Not being a big sports fan I wondered if my attention would wander and if I could make myself sit for several hours. I shouldn’t have worried. The new stadium, with it’s capacity of 30,000 is beautiful in it’s own way. When we first walked in I looked around and wondered what it would be like if everyone had to get out of there in a hurry. 

There is a big screen that, at times, shows what is going on with individuals in the stands – we actually saw one guy propose to his girl friend. He got on one knee and you could see his lips move “will you marry me”. Twenty thousand people participated in her teary eyed acceptance. It was sports and reality TV all wrapped into one. At one moment the big screen zoomed in on a Falcon perched somewhere in the stadium watching the game — why would it do that? Commerecial jets carrying hundreds of people crossed the sky high above. I wondered if they could see us. Mauer bunted – what?

It occured to me as we sat in that stadium we could set our eyes on at least twice the number of humans as the entire population of earth 10 to 20 thousand years ago. Because of the level of DNA similarity between any two humans scientists are sure our population dropped to just several thousand souls sometime before the last glaciers receded. There is evidence that massive volcanic eruptions spewed ash into the air that caused an unforgiving “nuclear winter ” planet wide, killing much life on the planet earth. How would we deal with that today? — just a thought.

I spend a lot of time in my job driving around Dakota County checking on foreclosed homes. Yesterday I found myself  making random turns, driving down long gravel roads in the Umore Park area never meeting another car. I theorize no one drives those roads because they don’t want their cars to get dirty. I discovered gravel road driving is a good thing to do if you want to see hawks. I saw several big ones that must have been immature red tails. One was so large I thought it must be an eagle. I saw many, many small hawks sitting on wires or swooping over roads and fields. I forgot I was working as I wandered without destination down gravel roads for an hour or so. I wandered towards Farmington but never got there.

Eventually I made my way to the roller coaster highway between Highway 52 and Red Wing.  It climbed and dropped repeatedly as I drove  through the glacial morrain left behind 10,000 years ago.  Close at hand were healthy brown fields of grain waivng in the wind punctuated by fields of deep green leaves of healthy corn fully tasseled.

The view was to my right, farm fields following the countour of the land as the hills soften to flatter land in the distance.  No matter how many times I drive that road I feel like a tourist. And every time I drive it I think of the economic development meeting I attended a couple years back where a business man, like me, said it was important to flatten that road and make it four lanes so that Red Wing can survive and compete. I am afraid someday the “improvement” will happen.

Quintuplets:

When I got home and let the dog out I noticed the air was filled with more swooping, bug eating birds than normal. Some seemed so slow and awkward  I was worried the dog might snap one out of the air. As evening came I saw five of the  birds lined up on our retractable closeline with an adult swallow swooping in to stuff bugs in their mouths. Just after I pulled out cell phone to snap a photo of the line up they scattered to the wind.

July 14, 2010

Mid-Summer Colors Along Wacouta’s Rattlesnake Bluff Trail

Filed under: Bruce's Posts, Phenology, all posts
Bruce Ause
Bruce Ause @ 9:09 pm

The recent abundant rains have not only produced a bumper crop of hungry mosquitoes in our yard, but on the positive side an abundance of colorful wildflowers and butterflies along the new trail.  When fighting with mosquitoes becomes too much of a challenge, I opt out for a bike ride on the nearby trail.  Part of the enjoyment derived from that experience is observing the new prairie wildflowers that seem to be showing up on a daily basis. 

The only exception is the white daisy fleabane which has been blooming for several weeks and will continue throughout the summer.

Shortly after the trail was constructed, the shoulders were seeded down with a mixture of various colorful prairie species.  Some of these prairie plants require a couple years before they begin to reveal themselves.  I have included photos of the four most colorful and abundant of these new prairie plants ; Black-eyed Susan, Gray-headed coneflower, Orange coneflower and Upright prairie coneflower.

Other colorful wildflowers not included in the seed mix, but still providing interest along the trail include the wild bergamot a native plant in the mint family which has just started to bloom in the past couple days.  Native Americans used this plant for flavoring meats, making beverages and several medicinal uses.

The wild red raspberry is now ripe and follows on the heals of the black raspberries which were a couple weeks early and very numerous.

The final wildflower photographed was the musk mallow a member of the hibiscus family in which the seeds are used in making perfumes.  In addition, this plant yields fibers which are used locally for clarifying sugar.

On this morning’s bike ride, I observed three different species of butterflies feeding on nectar from the pink blooms of a single Canada thistle.  There butterflies included the well known monarch as well as the painted lady and clouded sulphur butterflies.

I also observed numerous dragonflies which no doubt are having a banner year given the fact that their primary source of food is mosquitoes.  Dragonflies are ancient insects and look very much like they did 300 million years ago, except much smaller.

As a follow-up to my last post on the Peregrine falcons, I would like to report that this past Saturday morning I observed my first young falcon chick at the Rattlesnake bluff nest site.  It was fully grown and the only easy indication it was a young bird were the numerous downy feathers that were still fluttering in the breeze.

I will conclude this post with a colorful sunset at the head of Lake Pepin taken over the holiday weekend.  In addition to the lake providing a spectacular ending for the day it also coughed up a massive hatch of mayflies.

June 27, 2010

Amazing Success Story

Filed under: Bruce's Posts, Phenology, all posts
Bruce Ause
Bruce Ause @ 9:19 pm

Can you imagine observing a bird of prey diving through the air at speeds approaching 220 mph. and plucking a duck or pigeon out of midair?  That experience might have been possible along the Mississippi river in the Red Wing area until the 1950’s or early 60’s.  During that period of time, the widespread use of the insecticide DDT caused the populations of bald eagles and Peregrine falcons to drop dramatically.  In fact by 1965, no Peregrine falcons were fledged in eastern or central United States.  Beginning in 1982, captive bred chicks were released from cliffs, towers and tall buildings where they were monitored and given assistance while learning to fly and become independent.  The chicks that fledged and survived from these hack sites were the beginning of a wild generation of Peregrine falcons.  Bob Anderson of the Raptor Resources Project was one of the leading biologists to initiate a nesting effort in the Red Wing area.

According to Chuck Bremer, manager of Red Wing Grain Elevator, this effort started in 1992 when a nesting box was lowered about ten feet from the top and attached to the side of the structure at a height of 200 feet above the ground.  For eight years, falcons were observed near the nest box but no nesting was initiated.

So in 2000, the box was removed from the side and placed directly on top of the elevator.  Immediately a pair of falcons accepted the box and started nesting.  Since that time, 21 Peregrine falcon chicks have successfully hatched.  This past Friday morning I accepted the invitation of Chuck to accompany him to the top of the elevator for an up-close observation of the falcons.

This spring there were two chicks that hatched, but because of a malfunction of a video cam it is not known if they have fledged yet.  Given the reception that Chuck and I received when we crawled out onto the very top by the mother falcon, I would guess they are still in the nesting box.  She would fly around us and come in from behind us and dive at our heads.  In fact, once she hit the top of my head with an impressive force.  Thankfully I was wearing a hardhat.

The few minutes we were on top I did manage to snap a couple photos.  However the image that will be imbedded in my mind for a long time happened as I was descending down through the trap door.  As my head reached the level of the top of the building, I glanced up for one final look and was stunned to see her hovering five feet directly overhead.  It was as if this majestic bird with wings outstretched was suspended in midair.  What an incredible moment and sight.

For regular readers of Red Wing Nature Notes, you might recall from my April 3rd post that I reported seeing two Peregrine falcons hunting overhead as I was on top of Barn bluff early one morning.  More than likely, they were the same birds that I had just encountered.

As Paul Harvey used to say “And now for the rest of the story.”  On June 6, 2010, Jacquelyn Fallon of the Midwest Peregrine Society discovered an active falcon nest on the face of Rattlesnake bluff in Wacouta.  The nest on a ledge of sandstone rock is called an eyrie is easily observed with binoculars from the white excrement staining the rock.  According to Fallon, Peregrine falcons have been seen in this area in recent years, but not until year have they nested successfully.  She indicated that both adults have been previously banded, but she was unable to read the bands to determine where they originated.  Three chicks in the eyrie/nest ledge two male and one female were banded on June 11th.  Fallon estimated that at the time of banding, the chicks were 19 to 20 days old and will probably fledge by July 1st.  Fortunately, once the chicks fledge, they will typically stay around until September when they migrate to an unknown location.
This past week Kathy and I have biked on the new Wacouta trail to an observation area near the base of the bluff to try and see the falcons.  All but one evening we were fortunate to see and hear the adults flying off and around the face of the bluff.  In fact on Wednesday evening, we observed something quite impressive.  A mature bald eagle evidently flew a little too close to the nest and immediately was greeted by an angry defensive diving female falcon eventually driving the eagle away.  I would highly recommend this outdoor adventure to anyone interested in falcons and witnessing firsthand a most incredible milestone in the recovery of a most amazing bird of the Mississippi river valley.  In light of the tragic human caused environmental disaster unfolding before our eyes in the Gulf of Mexico, it is uplifting to realize that the species Homo sapiens can have a positive influence upon their natural environment.

At this time, I would like to acknowledge and thank Chuck Bremer for the opportunity to visit the falcon nest on the Red Wing Grain Elevator and Jacquelyn Fallon for providing the photos of the falcon chicks as well as sharing information about her exciting discovery and efforts.  For further information on Peregrine falcons, I highly suggest going to the Midwest Peregrine Society website at www.midwestperegrine.org or the Raptor Resource Project at www.raptorresource.org.

June 14, 2010

Nature’s Beauty and Reality Continued

Filed under: Bruce's Posts, Phenology, all posts
Bruce Ause
Bruce Ause @ 9:29 pm

Since the first of May, there has been a remarkable symphony of beautiful bird calls emanating from our backyard.  Actually beginning April 30th, that musical gift has been led by a short series of rich, clear, whistled notes of the Baltimore Oriole.  For many years, we have encouraged their participation by providing sugar water syrup and grape jelly at our feeding station.  For the most part, we have two pairs of orioles that frequent our sweet treats.  An added bonus that attracts these colorful birds to our yard is the presence of two very large mature trees, one cottonwood the other a silver maple.  For many years, oriole hanging nests have been constructed in each tree.  Try as hard as we might, we can never locate the nests until the leaves drop with the coming of fall.  There well camouflaged nests are usually built at the ends of slender twigs to discourage visitors such as red or gray squirrels.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, every evening I retrieve all our bird feeders and bring them in so as not to be frustrated by pesky raccoons.  Sleeping with our windows open, my day usually is greeted at daylight with oriole calls at the feeding station.  I can only imagine them saying “bring out the syrup and jelly.”  This past Friday morning, we experienced a fairly substantial rainfall punctuated by about twenty minutes of gale force east winds.  Later that morning as we were working out in the yard, we discovered three full sized flightless oriole nestlings dead in the lawn below the cottonwood tree.  I learned  Saturday that at the same time the fierce wind was bringing down the oriole nestlings, it also blew down a large bald eagle nest in Frontenac State Park.  This nest contained two black feathered eaglets that were at least two to three weeks away from fledging.  Yes, nature can be cruel.  Fortunately in the case of the eaglets, park staff were able to construct a temporary platform (nest) ten feet off the ground and replace the uninjured birds.  As of late Saturday afternoon, the parent eagles were attending to their eaglets.  Hopefully that will continue until the young birds fledge.

Due to the fact that last Saturday was open house day for Frontenac State Park, I was asked to conduct two interpretive hikes for park visitors.  The first hike was on the trails through the wooded area adjacent to the picnic grounds.  Highlights of that hike included observing the fairly rare Indigo Bunting and the colorful red flowers of the wild coffee plant.  As I posted last fall, the mature ripe orange berries that develop from these flowers can be dried and roasted and used as a coffee substitute.

As we were nearing the end of our hike, we observed a Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker working it’s way down the side of a dead aspen tree.  Upon closer examination, it had a nest in a cavity of this tree filled with young birds clamoring for their next meal.  Standing quietly along the trail, we were able to observe the parents returning to the nest with beaks full of insects.  After our hike concluded back at the picnic pavilion, I returned to the nest site for further observation of the sapsucker activity.  During my twenty minute stay in which I stood  fifteen feet away from the tree, I discovered something quite interesting.  The male flew directly to the tree at least six times with food while the female would fly back and forth from tree to tree and never once reveal the location of it’s nest.

The second hike of the day took place in the open prairie area just north of Frontenac Pond.  Observations on this hike included wild roses and blanket flowers blooming.  Along this trail are several bluebird nesting boxes.  Most of these boxes are being used by tree swallows.  It is very easy to distinguish swallow nests from those of the bluebird.  Swallows have white eggs while the bluebird has blue.  Another interesting characteristic of a swallow nest is the use of feathers in building the nest.  In nests constructed near water, feathers of waterfowl are frequently used.  Nests I have examined in the park, many times possess wild turkey feathers.  These feathers are used to provide added insulation for the young nestlings.

I will conclude this post with a photo I took this morning from our kitchen window as I worked on this writing.  It is of the very rare Red-Headed Woodpecker that surprised me with a short visit.  Fortunately, my camera was close at hand.

June 7, 2010

Last year – around now

Filed under: Phenology
John Tittle
John Tittle @ 8:29 am
I haven’t been so good about writng blog posts, but I caught this rooster pheasant running through the back yard the other day and thought he was worth sharing. I also saw a brood of very small turkeys that could already fly this weekend. The fireflies are out in increasing numbers every night. A couple other expieriences this past week that tickled me follow…
 
Last year around this time I awoke at three in the morning to the sound of our husky/germanshepard mix pacing the floor and whining. Something outside in the dark was upsettting her. I flicked on the outside lights to see a racoon balancing on the deck railing as he emptied the bird feeder. I opened the door with the dog right behind me and yelled at the coon. He paused to look in my direction and went on with his work. I was shocked that he didn’t run a way. Thinking I would really scare him I let the dog out onto the deck. The coon saw the dog coming, even though he was half the dog’s size, he didn’t run. He dropped down onto the deck and faced her. The dog towered over the coon, neck arched, tail stiff and held high.
 
I regretted my choice. I don’t know who struck first but the two began to brawl on the deck. They moved around the deck, fur literally flying. The coon was holding it’s own and I worried for the safety of my dog. There was a break in the fight and the dog backed off a little, the coon snarling defiantly. I called the dog and she came to me. The coon sat in the middle of the deck staring at me  as if to say “bring it on”.  I brought the dog in and closed the door. The dog was roughed up but thrilled, evidentally wanting more. The coon limped away and we haven’t seen him since.
 
Last week on a windy night  I woke to the whining and pacing of the dog again. I turned on the deck light fully expecting to see the coon. There was nothing, just the birdfeeder and the plants swinging in the wind. I turned the lights out and the dog started to pace and whine again. Finally I opened the door to the deck allowing the dog out to see there was nothing. She rushed out and then turned in a circle as if confused nothing was there. I let her in and turned out the lights. She stood by the slidng glass door looking out into the dark and whining. I got on my hands and knees and put my head next to hers and peered into the dark with her.
 
There I saw, unmistakably, the shape of a racoon swinging around by the railing and the birdfeeder.  I flicked the light on again to reveal a flower basket swaying in the breeze.  I walked the dog out to the flower basket in the dark and she jumped at it. I let her sniff it and walk around, I petted her and reassured her, but as soon as the lights went out the whining and pacing would start again. The only resolution I could find was to take the flower basket down.
 
Every night now one of has to “take the racoon down” at bed time. Should we forget, the dog wakes us at three am to remind us.
 
Last Spring I posed a question on this blog, “What bird has a call that sounds like a pebble being dropped in the water?” As happens sometimes no one answered. I googled every search I could think of and found nothing helpful. As the season wore on I stopped hearing the call and forgot about it.
 
Then last week as I stood in the driveway I heard it again. The call was seemingly near, but there were no bushes or underbrush nearby where the bird could be hiding. I looked around and saw nothing but two starlings watching me from the peak of our house. Defeated in locating the source I went on with my work. The sound was not repeated, later I wondered if I had heard it at all.
 
Then Yesterday I was between the chicken coop and the garage and I heard it again, loud and distinct, “gloop, gloop”. Such a satisfying sound, I wanted to hear it some more. It was the kind of sound I would imitate if I could.
 
I looked around – at the peak of the garage roof sat two starlings. One looked at the other as if to say “what?, who me?” and the sound was not repeated.
 
I don’t know for sure that the starling made the noise, but he has been present the last two times I have heard it. I googled “starling calls” and learned starlings are a realtive of the talkative minah bird. They imitate many other birds including the cry of a red tailed hawk. In the list of the many different calls of the starling was the description “liquid sounds”.
 
Turns out some folks are quite fond of starlings because of their vocalizations. Mozart owned a pet starling that could sing parts of the composer’s compositions. He had a funeral for the bird when it died.
 
But I will blame Shakespeare, not Mozart for the harassment I have suffered at the hands of the starlings. They are not a native bird. We would not have the pleasure of their company were it not for a group of Shakespeare enthusiasts in the late 1800’s who made it there goal to realease in New York’s Central Park, every bird that appeared in a work of Shakespeare.
 
In Shakespeare’s Henry the IVth the character Hotspur is forbidden by the king(so I read on the internet) to speak the name “Mortimer”. Hotspur suggests they train a starling to speak the name as a means of un-nerving the king.
 
This brief mention lead to the release of two hundred starlings in Central Park who are the ancestors of the birds that kept me searching for a year.
 
It is not the name “Mortimer” uttered to confound me, but the sound of a stone falling in water when there is no water. Shakespeare seems to get his fingers into everything.
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