Birding Minnesota by Canoe

By Rob Kesselring/Sue Plankis

Outdoor Writers

Excerpt from a birdwatching canoeist’s journal:

“As we drifted down the Cannon River, a Cooper's Hawk

glided over our canoe toward a stump in the middle of a boggy

backwater. We see a pair of Eastern Kingbirds lift off to attack the hawk. The hawk landed on the stump and worked its way to a branch where there was a nest.

The Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge has many secrets hidden within its 42,700 acres, the first of which it isn’t a designated state forest, but a refuge. And taking advantage of that refuge are two packs of timber wolves of about 10 to 12 animals each. The wolves have been seen by hunters and hikers and can be heard on winter nights in the refuge.

A live webcam has been placed in a peregrine falcon box that is located in the Bremer Bank building in downtown St. Paul, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR).

St. Paul, Minn. — It's officially meteorological spring, and we're not far away from the vernal equinox later in the month. So, while we still have monumental piles of snow, it can't hurt to check in on the perennial signs of spring.

Diana Doyle doesn't log high-speed miles on her bicycle.  Biking with Julian Sellers would also disappointment to serious speedsters.

            If you bike with these members of Audubon Society, crank your seat down to allow for many stops, bring your binoculars and don't talk too much because they will be listening to bird songs.