Need help with a bird ID. These guys just showed up in my feeder. I’ve never seen anything like this in northeastern Minnesota. It’s been a cold, harsh winter, and it’s bringing unusual birds into the feeder. Apparently they must be nocturnal.
Photo #1: My wife Molly first noticed the birds coming up the steps
Photo #2: The birds gathered around the feeder. Not sure they knew what to do.
Photo #3: Eureka! Two birds figured out how to get seed! Starvation averted.
A few years ago, the Bohemian Waxwing was my nemesis bird. No matter how many fruit trees I checked during the winter, nary a Bohemian. These waxwings are a sub-Arctic bird which often “winter” in the Duluth area. Large flocks of Bohemians have now started to appear in the Two Harbors area. This morning I found a flock of over 400 birds eating berries for breakfast near the Dairy Queen in Two Harbors, followed by a flight across town to hang out in some pines. After the storm it was great fun to enjoy some sunshine and beautiful birds.
On the way home I avoided the expressway and took the slow road, Scenic 61. I had to stop at the Sucker River crossing. This is why. Never take a fast road when a slow road is available! It was a glorious day to be alive! By 1 pm the temperature soared to 25F and I hit the ski trails.
I had never seen a snowplow train at work until this morning. While out looking for Bohemian Waxwings I became distracted by this “boy toy”! We have had approximately 20 inches of snow in Duluth over the past five days. This amount of snowfall requires some work on the part of the local railroad, particularly clearing the “high and deep” snowbanks which have been created by “road plows” at each railroad crossing. The video … three parts in total … runs about two minutes. Steps #1 and #2 for clearing the snowbank may catch you by surprise. There are a lot of gadgets and attachments on this train!
Snowplow Train
Video