Sub Zero Approaches

Last February one of the many neighborhood European Starlings faced its demise at the hands (claws) of a visiting Merlin. It was cold back then as I recall, but not as cold as it will be in the coming hours. As the new year came to be, I mostly yielded to bird watching. All with the exception of gawking at the beautiful Snowy Owl that I managed to locate near the Maple Grove gravel pits. This weekend and coming week may prove colder yet and so I have decided to put the bird count on hold for now. I will no doubt be active again soon, looking for the biggest number of birds I can find in one day to reach January's high number. 

October's Big Day high (although I started on the 25th) was 41 with a total of 51 species.

November's Big Day high was 35 with a total of 57 species.

December's Big Day high was 28 with a total of 47 species (the Snowy Owl stealing the show).

This is my first official blog - hopefully it will be successful in spreading the word about my love for birding and my love for the Lord. 

I do hope to continue this in hopes that it will bring enjoyment to some and raise questions for others.

I know it seems vicious to post a bird killing another, but it does show how God provides for our needs. Let's give him thanks and praise.

Now that the CBC (Christmas Bird Count) is over, my next big birding event will be the Sax Zim Bog Festival http://sax-zimbog.com/ I have a list of 7 birds that I would like to find on this trip. Realistically though, if I find 2 new ones that would be great. Right now my Minnesota Life List is at 286. I would love this number to be over 290 by the end of the year. I am not sure if this is a realistic goal or not but I need to come up with some sort of goal. 

One other thing that I wanted to mention is that last year we had a whole lot of fun here at our house doing the GBBC or the Great Backyard Bird Count. I wanted to do that again this year but unfortunately this falls on the same weekend of the Sax Zim Bog Festival. If anyone is interested in hosting it this year for a small group, I would be happy to provide support or any additional information so contact me if you are interested. 

That's it for now. Stay warm and safe and in God's care.

God Bless

Pete