An all-day birding event Saturday on lands within the Three Rivers Parks District system isn't serious science, but it has value.
Three Rivers Parks District will spend a day getting a better snapshot of its birds
Teams will set out to count Saturday. It isn't serious science, but it matters as bird species diminish.
September 9, 2022 at 2:40AM
The Big Day count is part of the park system's Big Year of Birds, which featured a World Migratory Bird Day festival last spring at Eastman Nature Center, regular birding talks and a focus on cultivating interest among young people through clubs and camps.
Trying to identify birds Saturday — whether through their wing bars or tails or coloring or song — also will give Three Rivers staff a snapshot of what's at places like Crow-Hassan Park Reserve near Rogers, Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve in Savage and Carver Park Reserve in Waconia, where creating habitat is taken seriously by wildlife managers.
A variety of sparrows and meadowlark species in Three Rivers prairie systems are doing well, while their numbers are declining statewide owing to habitat loss, said parks district senior wildlife manager John Moriarty. In fact, Audubon says grassland species are the most imperiled birds in North America. They've declined by 53% since 1970, according to a study by leading research institutions in the U.S. and Canada. Eastern and western meadowlarks have decreased by a combined 139 million birds.
Three Rivers has strategically built up resilient prairies of 100 to 200 acres to attract birds and other wildlife, knowing it needs to carve out even larger areas if healthy bird populations are to thrive. Crow-Hassan has a 1,200-acre restored prairie complex, and work continues to add more prairie to Murphy-Hanrehan and Carver.
Ten teams of two to five people will course through parks district lands from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday — Moriarty among one. They'll cover a variety of habitats, and conclude at Mississippi Gateway Regional Park. He knows he's likely to see some breeding great horned owls that reside at Silverwood, and he is hoping to see a variety of shorebirds that are moving through this time of September.
Counters will submit their findings through Cornell Lab of Ornithology's eBird app, which has become a standard for data collection, said Moriarty. Three Rivers already monitors the everyday tallies on its lands by eBird users, he added.
"[The count] gives us a good snapshot of what we can find at the beginning of the fall migration," Moriarty said. "Sometimes with that many eyes, you can pick up some species you don't ordinarily see."
Other programs
A list of some other birding-related happenings upcoming:
Saturday, Nerstrand Big Woods State Park, Fairbault: A campfire program for families and all-comers to learn about the species of woodpeckers at the park. 6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m., dnr.state.mn.us/stateparks/
Sept. 17, Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory, Duluth: In a program called Eyes on the Skies, learn about migrations and the observatory's history and role in monitoring the action. On average, more than 1,000 raptors pass Hawk Ridge in their migration south each autumn. 11 a.m.-noon, hawkridge.org/events/
Sept. 18, Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, Bloomington: Refuge naturalist Craig Mandel will lead one of his regular birding walks in the refuge. Meet at Old Cedar Avenue parking lot. Birders of all skill levels are welcomed. 8 a.m.-10:30 a.m. fws.gov/event/birdwatching-trek-old-cedar-avenue
Oct. 8 and 15, Crex Meadows, Grantsburg, Wis.: Join a "Saturday Sunset with the Sandhills" tour and watch the arresting cranes fly in to their nightly roosting grounds at the 30,000-acre wildlife area. 5 p.m.-7 p.m. crexmeadows.org
None of the boat’s occupants, two adults and two juveniles, were wearing life jackets, officials said.
