-RBA *Minnesota *Minnesota Statewide *January 1, 2009 *MNST0901.01 -Birds mentioned Barrow's Goldeneye Northern Hawk Owl Great Gray Owl American Three-toed Woodpecker Black-backed Woodpecker Townsend's Solitaire Varied Thrush White-throated Sparrow Snow Bunting Common Redpoll -Transcript Hotline: Minnesota Statewide Date: January 1, 2009 Sponsor: Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU) http://moumn.org Reports: (763) 780-8890 Compiler: Anthony Hertzel ([log in to unmask]) This is the Minnesota Birding Report for Thursday, January 1st 2009. In Duluth, a male BARROW'S GOLDENEYE was seen on December 26th near 21st Avenue East in a small patch of open water of Lake Superior and with a flock of Common Goldeneye. A NORTHERN HAWK OWL was seen on the 22nd near Grand Marais, Cook County, at the intersection of U.S. Highway 61 and Birch Drive. North of the Sax-Zim bog, a NORTHERN HAWK OWL was seen on the 31st at the junction of St. Louis County roads 7 and 310. Another was south of here at the intersection of county roads 28 and 7. And in the southern part of St. Louis County, a NORTHERN HAWK OWL was seen just north of Cloquet along county road 33 about a quarter mile south of Maple Grove Road. Back in the bog, a GREAT GRAY OWL can be seen a mile and a half east of county road 7 on county road 232, and both an AMERICAN THREE-TOED WOODPECKER and a BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER were three and a half miles north of county road 28 on McDavitt Road. A VARIED THRUSH is being seen in Duluth along the 2200 block of West 4th Street. Another was reported from Crow Wing County, two and a half miles south of Deerwood along county road 8. For more details, call Steve or Jo Blanich at 218-546-5939. And a VARIED THRUSH has been just south of Little Falls in Morrison County since the 12th at 11453 Hilton Road. A TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE is still at the Ann Lake campground of Sherburne NWR in Sherburne County. It was most recently reported on the 24th. On the 25th, a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE was in Duluth near the Hartley Nature Center visitors' building. Elsewhere I have a few reports of overwintering WHITE-THROATED SPARROW, SNOW BUNTING, and COMMON REDPOLL. The next scheduled update of this tape is Thursday, January 8th 2009.