-RBA *Minnesota *Minnesota Statewide *January 31, 2013 *MNST1301.31 -Birds mentioned Harlequin Duck Barrow's Goldeneye Pied-billed Grebe American White Pelican Great Blue Heron Snowy Owl Northern Hawk Owl Boreal Owl Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Black-backed Woodpecker Northern Shrike Horned Lark Carolina Wren Townsend's Solitaire Spotted Towhee Harris's Sparrow Red-winged Blackbird Red Crossbill White-winged Crossbill -Transcript Hotline: Minnesota Statewide Date: January 31, 2013 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 31st, 2013. The BARROW'S GOLDENEYE first found on Christmas Day is still being seen at the Superior Entry of Park Point in Duluth, though it is reportedly absent or difficult to find during much of the day. A HARLEQUIN DUCK was reported on January 4th at Lock and Dam Number 4 on the Mississippi River and was still there on the 29th. It's best looked for below the dam east of Kellogg in Wabasha County. Don Paul reported a GREAT BLUE HERON on the 26th at the northeast corner of 84th Street and Normandale in Bloomington, Hennepin County. Two SNOWY OWLS are being seen in the southwestern corner of Dodge County in the vicinity of 690th Street and 120th Avenue. On the 19th, Kelly Larson found a NORTHERN HAWK OWL along Clearwater County Road 30, three miles west of Shevlin. Another was seen on the 20th by Jim Rataczak in Aitkin County, on the east side of state highway 65 about five miles south of McGregor. And a couple of BOREAL OWLS are being seen intermittently along state highway 61 between Two Harbors and Split Rock Lighthouse. One of the better places to look is downtown Two Harbors. On the 25th, Shawn Conrad found two BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKERS at Scenic State Park in northeastern Itasca County. Both were foraging at the south end of the spruce bog on the Fire Tower Trail. Several CAROLINA WRENS are still being reported from feeding stations around the state. Paul Gunderson of Big Lake Township in Sherburne County has had one at his feeder since November 23rd, and Sharon Wood has had one visiting her Bloomington feeder since the 28th. Two TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRES are now at the Ann Lake Campground in Sherburne County. Other interesting reports called in include observations of AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN, PIED-BILLED GREBE, YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER, NORTHERN SHRIKE, HORNED LARK, SPOTTED TOWHEE, HARRIS'S SPARROW, RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD, RED CROSSBILL, and WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL. The next scheduled update of this tape is Thursday February 7th, 2013.