Minnesota Waterfowl

Ice-out in Minnesota is running two weeks earlier than normal.

On Friday 3/23, Randy Frederickson counted 110,000 snow geese in Traverse County, MN. On Sunday 3/25 we headed to Worthington Minnesota, 200 miles south of Traverse County, looking for waterfowl. A scheduled MRVAC trip, one of our local Audubon chapters.

We had all the trappings of a successful Audubon trip. A hole-in-the-wall hotel, an out of the way location, a motley assortment of birders. And trip leader Craig Mandel.

Sunday evening we checked a few lakes. A couple of scaup here, some distant mergansers there. A good run-in with a pair of Eastern Screech Owls. Otherwise rather quiet.

Monday started the same. Nothing much flew in overnight. We are definitely at the tail-end of waterfowl migration. We chase after some skeins of geese in the distance, tossing the map and just following where they’re going. As so often happens… STOP! Geese in the field. The nondescript sheetwater pond in the last year’s cornfield gives us all the waterfowl we need. We park along the highway for a good hour picking out one species after another. Filling our checklists.

Pied-billed Grebe Mallard

American White Pelican Northern Pintail

Double-crested Cormorant Blue-winged Teal

Great Blue Heron Northern Shoveler

Trumpeter Swan Canvasback

Tundra Swan Redhead

Greater White-fronted Goose Ring-necked Duck

Snow Goose Greater Scaup

Ross's Goose Lesser Scaup

Canada Goose Common Goldeneye

Wood Duck Hooded Merganser

American Wigeon Red-breasted Merganser

Gadwall Common Merganser

Green-winged Teal Ruddy Duck

71 Species for the trip.