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BirdingBirding Resources in the Midwest || Birding Links || Birding on Refuges || Bird Checklists || Where to Find Birds The popularity of bird watching has recently grown by leaps and bounds and there are many areas the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service administers that are great for bird watching. The Refuge system has over 500 Wildlife Refuges that are set aside just for wildlife. Be sure to visit the Refuges portion of this Region's website to learn about a Refuge near you. Birding Resources in the Midwest
The classic state bird book resource is the two volume set The Birds of Minnesota by T. S. Roberts published in 1932. This book is rich in the history of Minnesota birds from the perspective of a man active in the field for over 40 years in the latter part of the 19th and first part of the 20th century. Nothing modern has replaced this epic work but R.B. Janssen's Birds in Minnesota (1987 (University of Minnesota Press) has an annotated checklist and generalized range maps but no bibliography. The earlier 1975 Minnesota Birds: Where, When, and How Many co-authored by Janssen and J. Green is dated but still useful. The Minnesota Ornithological Union has an excellent website, interactive sightings page, an annual scientific meeting in December at the Bell Museum in Minneapolis, a photo gallery, and more at http://moumn.org/ The state bird journal is the highly respected The Loon published quarterly. The state has proposed to initiate a breeding bird atlas project beginning in 2009. Several birding guides exist for the state. Most frequently utilized is K. Eckert's A Birder's Guide to Minnesota (now in 4th edition) which has county by county entries. The excellent Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' Traveler's Guide to Wildlife in Minnesota by C. L. Henderson, A. Lambrecht, et al. (1997) highlights many state and federal areas including maps and notes why each area is special for birds and other natural history. Aitkin County Naturally is a recent (2007) birding and outdoor guide written by local experts Cindy and Kim Risen, Michelle McDowell, and Warren Nelson and is available for a nominal fee from Friends of Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge by calling 218-768-2402. A Guide to Birding Ramsey County (St. Paul) put out by the Ramsey County Parks and Recreation Department in 2006 is available from St. Paul Audubon Society at http://saintpaulaudubon.net. A Birder's Guide Cook County, Northeastern Minnesota is a birding pamphlet describing 37(!) sites to visit in this Canadian border county and available by calling the Grand Marais Area Tourism Association at 218-387-2524. Bogs to Rocks (Birding in Far Northern Minnesota) is a pamphlet covering Koochiching and northwestern St. Louis counties and the western edge of Voyageurs National Park. This is available from www.rainylake.org or Minnesota State Colleges and Universities at www.rrcc.mnscu.edu. The first birding map in the United States was the Great Birdingin the Mississippi Flyway highlighting birding in the Winona area. This may still be available at the Winona Convention and Visitors Bureau at visitwinona.com. Available from the Lake City Tourism Bureau, 1515 North Lakeshore Drive, Lake City, MN 55041 is Lake City Birds which covers the Lake City, Lake Pepin, and Frontenac areas along the Mississippi River. Audubon's The Great River Birding Trail Guide covers the Mississippi River from Lake Itasca to the Iowa border. Audubon's The Minnesota River Valley Birding Trail guide is very extensive and well done and covers the entire watershed from the Twin Cities to eastern South Dakota tributaries. This is also on the web at www.birdingtrail.org. Audubon's The North Shore Birding Trail covers the Lake Superior shoreline from Duluth to Grand Portage with brief notes on the Superior National Forest. Order these booklets from adventurepublications.net. Finally, the Pine to Prairie Birding Trail guide covers northwestern Minnesota from Fergus Falls to the Canadian border near Warroad. Contact www.mnbirdtrail.com or Chambers of Commerce along the route (Warroad, Detroit Lakes, Fergus Falls, Roseau, Thief River Falls). A booklet A Birding & Wildlife Guide covers the Iron Range of St. Louis County and nearby Lake Vermilion (call Iron Trail Visitors Bureau at 1-800-777-8497 for a copy). Top 10 birding sites: Hawk Ridge and the Duluth city limits: fall for raptors, 3 species of loons, passerines, grebes, other waterfowl, shorebirds; spring for shorebirds, passerine migration, gulls, grebes, waterfowl, eagles, falcons. Park Point, the longest sandbar in the Great Lakes, is not to be missed during migrations. Bird the forested southeastern end and the park area near the end of the road.
Upper Mississippi National Wildlife and Fish Refuge spans the Mississippi River from the south end of Lake Pepin to the Iowa border and attracts continentally important numbers of diving ducks, Tundra Swan, White Pelican, breeding wetland birds, and large numbers of migrant passerines. Cerulean Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, and Red-headed Woodpecker breed in adjacent forests. Superior National Forest: located in northeastern Minnesota has large areas of boreal and mixed forest and 120+ species of breeding birds including Black-backed Woodpecker, American Three-toed Woodpecker, Boreal Chickadee, crossbills, and 20+ warbler species. The forest encompasses the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, a wilderness gem where many loons, mergansers, and boreal finches breed. Lake Superior shoreline: favored spots include Grand Marais harbor and town, Grand Portage National Monument and adjacent reservation, Two Harbors, and Knife River vicinity. Most birders comb the shoreline and harbors in April-May and again from mid-August through November for vagrants and rare northern species. Winter trips can prove productive or just plain cold and nearly birdless depending upon the vagaries of a particular year. Summer visits to the various state parks such as Tettegouche, Gooseberry Falls, and Grand Portage will produce many species of breeding thrushes, vireos, and warblers. Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge and Lac Qui Parle State Wildlife Area in west central western Minnesota have huge migrant waterfowl concentrations, prairie grouse, numerous raptors in migration, and oftentimes notable shorebird concentrations. Interesting birding from early spring through early winter. Mille Lacs in the center of the state is noted for Bonaparte's Gull and loon concentrations in fall, rare passerines along the shoreline in spring and fall, breeding Red-headed Woodpecker and Purple Martin, and occasionally large waterbird concentrations and is best visited spring or fall. Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge located in the remote northwest has summering pelicans, Western and Red-necked Grebe, 10+ species of breeding waterfowl, Franklin's Gull, LeConte's and Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrows, and many boreal breeding passerines in a northern wilderness atmosphere. Drawdowns attract huge numbers of migrant shorebirds. Visit from May through September for best results.
Aitkin County: contains large areas of boreal forest and sedge meadow habitat only 2.5 to 3 hours north of the Twin Cities including Savanna Portage State Park, Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge, and Hedbom Forest Road noted for winter birds. Yellow Rails breed in marshes near McGregor and breeding forest specialties include Mourning Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler, Connecticut Warbler, LeConte's Sparrow, and Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow. Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge: located east of Crookston, this newly established 25,000 acre+ refuge preserves a remnant and restored prairie and grassland complex attractive to breeding Sandhill Crane, Greater Prairie Chicken, Marbled Godwit, Upland Sandpiper, Clay-colored Sparrow, and many waterfowl and waterbird species. Salt Lake: this state wildlife area near Madison along the South Dakota border is noted for migrant Eared Grebe, Franklin's Gull, many waterfowl, 20+ species of shorebirds including occasional breeding Wilson's Phalarope and migrant White Pelican, Peregrine Falcon, and Black Tern. Many rare species have been found in this locale, Minnesota's only alkaline lake. Top 10 birding highlights: Hawk Migration spring and fall at Duluth includes Golden and Bald Eagles, Northern Goshawk, and Peregrine Falcon. Thousands of Common Merganser stage on Lake Pepin before freezeup in late November/early December.
Greater Prairie Chicken: spring dancing "ceremony" on leks at Rothsay State Wildlife Area, Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge, and other northwestern locales. A large White Pelican colony breeds and forages at Lac qui Parle State Wildlife Area near Appleton.
Northern owl invasions in winter in Sax-Zim Bog, Aitkin County, and Koochiching County during some years may produce many Northern Hawk Owls, Great Gray Owls, and a few Snowy Owls. Hundreds of Common Loons stage in October/November on Mille Lacs and Leech Lake. One of the world's largest concentration of breeding Golden-winged Warblers occurs at Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge near Detroit Lakes. Hundreds of wintering Trumpeter Swan wintering on Mississippi River at Elk River Power Plant. Experience spring Warbler migration at Prairie Island Park in Winona along the Mississippi River with 20-25 species possible in a day. Tens of thousands of Ring-necked Ducks stage in fall at Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Drumbeater Lake in north central Minnesota. Birding LinksThere are also many organizations that are dedicated to bird watching and bird preservation. By following the links below you will discover these within the Service's Region 3 listed by state: For Illinois: Illinois Ornithological Society American Ornithologists Union Checklist Checklists of the United States and for Bird Checklists for the National Wildlife Refuge System Other sites that have good birding information are: American Birding Association
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Last updated:
August 20, 2010
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