Thursday, March 27, 2008

My avocation is birding. I tend to walk or drive through natural areas 4-6 times per week, generally before coming into the office. I track seen & heard birds on a weekly and yearly checklist - generally seeing 250-280 species annually in Minnesota.

This week I've noticed how late bird migration is - have not yet seen a Killdeer (normally back by mid-March), saw first two Eastern Bluebirds this morning (few days late), few Sandhill Cranes in area, few migrating ducks in the air or fields. Ponds open briefly during the day, but freeze again overnight. Last year Mille Lacs Lake opened March 28th, this year it could be 10-14 days later. This could end up being a slower birding year, since some species could skip central MN (and its frozen lakes & ponds) on the way north.

Sometimes my Type A personality can be impatient - not a good attribute for a pastor or follower of Jesus Christ overall.

3 comments:

Canoearoo said...

There was a sandhill crane in our road yesterday. We also saw 2 eagles and a red winged black bird. Spring is slowly coming!

Qtpies7 said...

I don't know anything about what birds are around but I do know about being impatient! You have more than enough redeeming qualities to make up for that, though I have not noticed that you are impatient.

Workship said...

Glad you joined the blogging world. Jer & I look forward to your posts. :-)