Feb 3, 2019: Wolf's January 2019 Wildlife Report

Rough-legged Hawks arrive in late October and leave our area by early April.  This Rough-legged Hawk was found hunting along the north slope (Upland Trail).  I watched as the hawk was first unsuccessful, but after another attempt, came up with a small rodent. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 1/2/19)

A total of 49 avian species (plus 1 sp.) was recorded this month, ranking this month as the highest January among 22 years of records.  This total is 3 species less than last month and 7 more than January 2018.  January 1998, with only 18 species, remains as the lowest January.

Based on discussions with Dr. Stephen Dinsmore, many of the individual duck species may have been birds that lingered north of us or may have attempted to over-winter there, but were forced south due to cold temperatures or loss of open water.  The Hermit Thrush and Yellow-rumped Warbler offer new Winter records for Story County.  The 132 Trumpeter Swans on the 20^th set a new Park record, breaking the former high of 109 set last Winter.

Listed below, following the species’ names, are the date(s) of sighting(s), plus the occasional miscellaneous information regarding numbers, gender (♂=male, ♀=female), age (im=immature, ju=juvenile, abp=adult breeding plumage, ad=adult, anb=adult non-breeding), color phase (b=blue, w=white), and location (BY=back yard, FY=front yard).  The order follows the 59^th Supplement (2018) to the American Ornithologists’ Union Check-list of North American Birds and the 18^th Supplement to the 7^th Edition (1998).

There are no sightings for the 10th through the 13th; I was birding in NE Minnesota.  I also didn't ride the trails on the 3 days of the Polar Vortex.

AVIAN

     ROSS’S GOOSE: 14 (1 ad w), 16-20 (1 ad w)

     GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE: 2 (24), 3 (26), 4 (22), 5 (26), 6 (31), 7 (35),

          21 (1)

     CACKLING GOOSE: 1, 2 (2), 3 (4+), 5 (4+), 6 (7+), 7-8, 9 (4), 14 (2), 17 (7+), 18 (8+),

          19-20

     CANADA GOOSE: 1-10, 14-29, 31

     TRUMPETER SWAN: 1 (18), 2 (60), 3 (57), 4 (74), 5 (6), 6 (49), 7-8 (45), 9 (53),

          14-16 (83), 17 (82), 18 (78), 19 (79), 20 (132), 21 (86), 22 (4), 23 (19), 24 (90),

          25 (74), 26 (72+), 27 (85), 28 (75), 29 (61), 31 (5)

     TUNDRA SWAN: 2 (1 ad), 3-4 (2 ad), 6 (2 ad), 7-8 (1 ad), 9 (2 ad), 14-16 (1 ad),

          17-21 (2 ad), 23 (1 ad), 24-27 (2 ad), 28 (1 ad), 29 (2 ad)

     NORTHERN SHOVELER: 14 (1♀)

     GADWALL: 9 (1♀)

     AMERICAN WIGEON: 17 (1♀)

     MALLARD: 1-9, 14-29, 31

     GREEN-WINGED TEAL: 5-6 (1♂)

     REDHEAD: 4 (3♂ + 2♀)

     LESSER SCAUP: 1-9 (1♀), 14-19 (1♀), 21 (1♀)

     COMMON MERGANSER: 19 (2♂), 21 (1♂)

     RING-NECKED PHEASANT: 2 (1), 25 (5)

     EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVE: 24-25 (4), 27 (2)

     MOURNING DOVE: 20 (12), 22 (3), 24 (5), 25 (3), 27 (3), 28 (1), 31 (3)

     RING-BILLED GULL: 7 (1)

     GREAT BLUE HERON: 2 (1)

     NORTHERN HARRIER: 1 (1), 2 (1 im ♂), 6 (1♂), 9 (1 im ♂), 15 (1), 18 (1), 25 (1 im ♂)

     SHARP-SHINNED HAWK: 20 (1 im)

     COOPER’S HAWK: 2 (1 ad BY), 5 (1 im), 15 (1 ad BY), 18 (1 ad BY), 20 (1 im BY),

          26 (1 ad pair BY), 27 (1 im BY), 31 (1 ad BY)

     Accipiter sp.: 24 (1)

     BALD EAGLE: 1 (3 ad + 5 im), 2 (3 ad + 3 im), 3 (2 ad + 3 im), 4 (2 ad), 5 (1 ad),

          6 (2 ad + 2 im), 7 (2 ad + 1 im), 8 (2 ad + 3 im), 9 (3 ad + 3 im), 14 (1 ad + 3 im),

          15 (2 ad), 16 (1 ad + 1 im), 17 (1 ad + 1 im), 18 (2 ad + 1 im), 19 (2 ad + 2 im),

          20 (1 ad + 1 im), 21 (2 im), 23 (2 ad + 1 im), 24-25 (1 ad + 1 im), 26-27 (1 ad),

          31 (1)

     RED-TAILED HAWK: 1 (1), 2 (3), 3 (1), 4 (2), 5 (1), 6 (1 BY), 7-9 (2), 14-15 (2), 17 (2),

          18 (1), 20 (2), 21-22 (1), 23-24 (2), 25 (3), 26-28 (1), 31 (1)

     ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK: 2 (1), 6-8 (1), 17-18 (1)

     RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER: 3 (1), 5 (1), 7-9 (1), 14-15 (2), 18 (2), 19-20 (1),

          22 (1), 23 (2), 25-26 (1)

     DOWNY WOODPECKER: 1-7, 14-23, 25-28, 30-31

     HAIRY WOODPECKER: 14 (1), 26 (1)

     NORTHERN SHRIKE: 6 (1), 16 (1), 25 (1)

     BLUE JAY: 2-4, 6, 9, 17, 21-22, 24-25, 27, 29, 31

     AMERICAN CROW: 1-9, 14-18, 20-31

     BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE: 2-4, 6-9, 14-23, 25-29, 31

     RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH: 2 (1)

     WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH: 2 (1), 3 (3), 4 (4), 6-7 (2), 8 (1), 14 (1), 17 (3), 18 (1),

          20 (1), 22-23 (1), 25 (1), 27 (1)

     HERMIT THRUSH: 20 (1), 27 (1)

     AMERICAN ROBIN: 4 (2), 20 (1), 23 (1), 26-28 (1)

     EUROPEAN STARLING: 2-5, 7, 14, 16-17, 20, 22, 25-28

     CEDAR WAXWING: 14 (5 BY), 15 (12 BY), 26 (2), 31 (8 BY)

     HOUSE SPARROW: 1-9, 14-31

     HOUSE FINCH: 2-9, 14-28, 30-31

     AMERICAN GOLDFINCH: 6 (1 BY), 14 (1 BY), 15-16 (2 BY), 18 (1 BY), 19 (2)

     AMERICAN TREE SPARROW: 1-9, 14-21, 23-31

     SONG SPARROW: 2-3 (2), 4 (1), 5 (2), 6-7 (1), 16-17 (1), 25 (3), 31 (1)

     SWAMP SPARROW: 2 (2), 3 (1), 4-5 (3), 6-7 (2), 9 (2), 16 (1), 17-18 (2), 25 (1)

     WHITE-THROATED SPARROW: 1 (1 BY), 6-7 (1 BY), 19-20 (1 BY), 22-23 (1 BY),

          27 (1 BY), 29-30 (1 BY)

     HARRIS’S SPARROW: 25 (1), 27-28 (2 BY)

     DARK-EYED JUNCO (Slate-colored): 1-9, 14-31

     YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER (Myrtle’s): 2 (1)

     NORTHERN CARDINAL: 1-9, 14-31

Unless indicated otherwise, the White-tailed Deer were antlerless. 

MAMMALIAN

     EASTERN COTTONTAIL: 1-4, 14-20, 22-31

     FOX SQUIRREL: 1-9, 14-31

     MEADOW VOLE: 27 (1)

     COMMON MUSKRAT: 15 (2)

     WHITE-TAILED DEER: 3 (7), 6 (6), 8 (3), 9 (5), 16 (3 BY), 17 (2 BY), 18 (6), 19 (6 BY),

          20 (3 BY), 23 (4 BY), 25 (3), 27 (6), 28 (4 BY), 30 (5 BY), 31 (2 BY)

LEPIDOPTERA

     WOOLLY BEAR (Isabella Tiger Moth): 7 (1)

Wolf. Oesterreich