Earlier today I post about a Kamikaze Crow which repeatedly attacked a Bald Eagle down on Park Point (Minnesota Point). The reason I had driven down to the fields is I had had heard there were some Whimbrels stopping over during their long migration up to the Arctic Ocean. Apparently the birds I saw had been blown slightly off course due to strong winds. Normally Whimbrels would migrate through Lake Huron and up to the northern reaches of Hudson Bay. However, it makes sense that they would like the fields at the end of the point … reminds them of the tundra habitat to which they are headed.

Here is a range / migration map from the Cornell School of Ornithology. Learn more about the Whimbrel via their web site. This is why I love migration; one gets to see unusual birds.

I found three Whimbrels in the midst of some Ring Billed Gulls eating bugs. When the next big south wind comes, they will continue their migration.

I watched a Crow attack a Bald Eagle out on Park Point this morning. I zoomed in, and pressed the shutter using burst mode a crazy number of times … hoping one angle would capture the intensity of the altercation. This is my favorite!

I suspect the crow has a nest near by because it kept up the attack for over ten minutes, and then when the eagle finally flew away but came back … it started up the attack once more.

Attack #1

Enjoying the morning sun

How audacious … it landed in MY tree

Be gone and don’t come back!

Attack #2

The strong winds out of the Northeast have finally abated, and this afternoon’s temperature will actually reach 70’s … even next to Lake Superior. The combination of some warmth plus rain and fog over the past two days has created a bug explosion. Trees are finally blossoming here in the Northland, and birds know that means FOOD! Yes, the migrants who like to eat bugs are finally appearing here at the “head of the lakes”. Over the next few days as we approach June 1st, the final “returnees” will reach the Boreal Forest. Believe it or not, once these birds arrive our first southern departures will be only six weeks away. Upland Sandpipers are some of the first birds to head south for their wintering grounds in South America. Folks often joke here in Duluth that if you blink, you miss summer!

Regardless, this morning down on Park Point (Minnesota Point) I had the unique privilege of watching two Brown Thrashers building their nest. These thrashers are one cool bird, or in this case two cool birds. They have an “evil eye” which is set off by their great singing. Normally, I only see thrashers high atop trees in the spring … singing for a mate. When I find them on the ground, they spook very easily. Thus, watching from only ten yards distance was a treat, and I now know where they nest is located! (Learn more about Brown Thrashers … Cornell School of Ornithology)

Brown Thrashers Building a Nest

The thrashers weren’t the only birds I photographed this morning …

Yellow-Bellied Flycatcher

Chestnut Side Warbler

Indigo Bunting

Ain’t late spring grand?! Summer will soon be here.