Ninth Weekend of Banding and Season Totals for 2021

Hello Everyone, 

This is my ninth and final report of the 2021 banding season, covering the weekend of October 30th, 2021. Also included is a breakdown of the season totals.

Saturday, October 30th 

Trudi stayed home this weekend, so I met Rick and Chuck and Nancy at Hawk Harbor around 8:00 am. Todd came in a little later and set up at the falconer's site. Nancy, Rick, Chuck and I loaded up the banding gear into Rick's truck and we were off. We got started at 8:40 am. Winds were light out of the Northwest and the skies were clear. 

This was one of the slowest days so far this season. We saw some eagles, rough-legs and a few red-tails, but they were passing over really high. The only action we saw was a Rough-legged hawk that made a long shallow stoop at Todd's nets, but it pulled up at the last second and we saw it leave the South side of the field. We stuck it out until 4:15, when we declared it a "Skunked Day" and closed down. 

We got a total of 0 birds and no bounce-outs on Saturday. 

0 Birds - a "Skunked Day". 

Sunday, October 31st 

Sunday morning, I got up and fixed some hot chocolate for the crew, we loaded up Rick's truck, and we drove out to the main blind. Skies were cloudy and the wind was a bit stronger from the Northwest. 

Even with the good Northwest winds, we did not see many hawks starting to move. The Ravens ruled the day as they were all over the place. At 8:54, a dark Rough-legged hawk came in and made a bunch of screaming passes at the fake owl, hitting it twice. The only other thing of interest that day was a young spike buck that walked out toward us from the draw. It turned and faded back into the woods just North of the blind. 

So at noon, we decided we had had enough, it was cold, and we are old, so we closed down for the season. 

We got a total of 0 birds and no bounce-outs on Sunday.

0 Birds - a Skunked Day. 

0 total birds for the weekend. 

172 total birds for the season. (Last year we had a total of 147 birds.)

01. This was as close as we got to anything coming in all weekend.

02. A Halloween Rough-leg hitting the fake owl.

03. The young spike buck that came out to give us a look.

A very special THANK YOU goes to the Mattson family for letting us use their hay field for the 52nd year in a row. 

Also a big THANK YOU goes to Bob Crosbie for supplying our lure birds this year. 

A BIG THANK YOU to every one of our banding crew who came up to do the banding again this year. What a great and dedicated team of regulars we have. Trudi Taylor, Rick Dupont, Nancy & Chuck Schotzko and Todd Rosengren: without your dedication and co-operation, we would not be able to do this thing we love so much, year after year. 

Thanks for being such great friends and sharing an interest in our modest program! 

THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH!!!!!! 

We had a total of 172 birds for the season. (Last year we had a total of 147 birds.) 

We had a total of 18 bounce-outs this year. (Last year we had 30 bounce-outs.) 

Here it is, the final breakdown for 2021.

 

Sharp-shins - 137 

Immys 108 . . . Males 49 . . . Females 59 

Adults 29 . . . . Males 9 . . . . Females 20 

Red-tails - 14

Immys 8  . . . . Males 3 . . . . Females 5 

Adults 6 . . . . . Males 1 . . . . Females 5 

Merlins - 12 

Immys 12 . . . . . Males 10 . . . . . Females 2

Adults 0 . . . . . . Males 0 . . . . . .  Females 0 

Cooper's - 3 

Immys 3 . . . . . Males 2 . . . . . Females 1 

Adults 0 . . . . . Males 0 . . . . . Females 0 

Broad-wings - 2 

Immys 1 . . . . . Males 1 . . . . . Females 0 

Adults 1 . . . . . Males 0 . . . . . Females 1 

Peregrines - 2 

Immys 2 . . . . . Males 2. . . . . Females 0 

Adults 0 . . . . . Males 0 . . . . . Females 0 

Goshawks - 1 

Immys 1 . . . . . Males 1 . . . . . Females 0 

Adults 0 . . . . . Males 0 . . . . . Females 0 

Rough-legs - 1 

Immys 1. . . . . Males 0 . . . . . Females 1 

Adults 0 . . . . . Males 0 . . . . . Females 0 

Eagles - 0,      Gyrfalcons - 0,      Northern Harriers - 0,     Kestrels - 0 

Please help hawks by supporting: 

Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory (www.hawkridge.org) 

Midwest Peregrine Society (https://midwestperegrine.umn.edu/) 

National Eagle Center (www.nationaleaglecenter.org) 

Raptor Resource Project (https://www.raptorresource.org/) 

The Raptor Center (www.raptor.cvm.umn.edu) 

Twin Cities Metro Osprey Watch (http://ospreywatch.blogspot.com/) 

Until we see you again next year,

Keep your eyes on the skies! 

Trudi & Frank Taylor

Eighth Weekend of Banding 2021

Hello Everyone,

This is my eighth report of the 2021 banding season, covering the weekend of October 23rd, 2021.

Saturday, October 23rd

Nancy and Trudi stayed home this weekend, so I met Rick and Chuck at Hawk Harbor around 8:00 am. Todd came in a little later and set up at the falconer's site. Rick, Chuck and I loaded up the banding gear and went out to the banding station. We got started at 8:50 am. Winds were light out of the Northwest and the skies were clear.

Just after 9:00, our neighbor Don drove out to the middle of the field in front of us in his new four-wheeler and dropped off some fish scraps and suet chunks. He has done this several times before to attract scavengers, so whoever is visiting the blind gets to see a show of eagles, ravens and crows. It didn't take long before a bunch of scavengers dropped out of the sky. We ended up with six eagles, one Rough-legged hawk, a bunch of ravens and loads of crows coming in for the feast. This was a welcome distraction as we did not see many raptors coming over the station that day.

Our first and only bird of the day was a Red-tailed hawk that came in low from the fake owl. It hit the net at 10:37. We banded it took some photos and Chuck let it go. Red-tails, rough-legs and eagles were coming over in scattered waves but not in great numbers, and none of them right over us in a good position. A few came in for a close look but as Rick once said, "They seem to have commitment issues!"

Around 2:00 pm at the banding station, we saw a wolf come out on the north side of the hayfield, over on the other side of the draw. I grabbed my camera and ran towards it. I used the bushes in the draw, which were about half way to the wolf from the blind as cover, so I could get closer to it without being seen. When I popped up to get some shots from the draw, it perked up, took a look at me, and then started to come towards me. That's when the filming stopped and I legged it back to the blind! After seeing how fast I could run, the wolf turned around and faded back into the brush on the north side of the field where it came from. It had a bad left front leg and it was probably just trying to come over and have me fix it! I guess I missed a great opportunity to get to know a wolf, "A LOT" better!!! Just kidding, the wolves up there never bother people at all!

There was nothing moving after that so we closed down at 3:00. A few other falconers who were trapping at other sites came in to Hawk Harbor to have supper, camp for the night, and sit by the cozy campfire.

We got a total of 1 bird and no bounce-outs on Saturday.

1 Red-tailed hawk.

Sunday, October 24th

Sunday morning I got up and fixed some hot chocolate for the crew and the falconers who were up trapping at other sites. They headed out and we loaded up Rick's truck and drove out to the main blind. Skies were cloudy and the wind had shifted around to the Northeast.

Two of the falconers, Kenny and Danny, came up to the banding station to see our rig. We had just finished setting up at 9:00, when we spotted a Rough-legged hawk way out to the north of us. Kenny and Danny took off for their site and we started luring for the rough-leg. At 9:02, it came blasting in from the north. Chuck and I missed seeing it come in as we were both looking up high to the north and it came in under where we were looking. We banded it, took some photos, and Chuck released it. That was it for the day! Rick was so happy that we at least got one bird and didn't get a "Skunk Day".

The only other action we saw that day was a young Red-tailed hawk that had spotted Todd's rig at Hawk Harbor and made a blistering shallow stoop across the other end of the hayfield! We watched it dive in from the main blind and thought for sure he had it. I even walked down to help him get it out of the net, but when I was almost there, I saw it ringing up over the road. It had stooped all the way in, only to pitch up at the last second and make a circle above the nets. Dang!!! Nothing else was moving so we closed down at noon.

We got a total of 1 bird and no bounce-outs on Sunday.

1 Rough-legged hawk.

2 total birds for the weekend.

172 total birds for the season.

Please help hawks by supporting:

Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory (www.hawkridge.org)

Midwest Peregrine Society (https://midwestperegrine.umn.edu/)

National Eagle Center (www.nationaleaglecenter.org)

Raptor Resource Project (https://www.raptorresource.org/)

The Raptor Center (www.raptor.cvm.umn.edu)

Twin Cities Metro Osprey Watch (http://ospreywatch.blogspot.com/)

Keep your eyes on the skies!

Trudi & Frank Taylor

01. Our neighbor Don puts fish scraps out in in the field once in a while
so we can watch the eagles, ravens and crows come in to scavenge.

02. An eagle coming in.

03. A young Bald eagle landing in a tree to check out the "treats".

04. Another eagle coming in.

05. Making a pass over the blind to check us out.

06. Eagles moving in for the feast.

07. More eagles coming in.

08. Dropping in to feed.

09. Another eagle coming in.

10. Young and old face off.

11. Young ones facing off.

12. Six eagles at the feast.

13. All filled up and heading off.

14. Our first and only hawk of the day.

15. Rick and Chuck holding the Red-tailed hawk.

16. A Red-tailed hawk.

17. Chuck about to release the Red-tailed hawk.

18. Chuck releasing the red-tail.

19. A wolf came out onto the hayfield.

20. It had a bad left front paw.

21. Checking me out before heading my way.

22. Sunday morning campers at Hawk Harbor.

23. A young Rough-legged hawk.

24. Rick and Chuck holding the rough-leg.

25. A young Rough-legged hawk.

26. Chuck about to release the Rough-legged hawk.

27. Chuck releasing the Rough-legged hawk.

28. A young Rough-legged hawk.

Seventh Weekend of Banding 2021

Hello Everyone,

This is my seventh report of the 2021 banding season, covering the weekend of October 16th, 2021.

Friday, October 15th

Trudi and I decided that we would head up to Hawk Harbor a day early since we needed to be back in the cities to attend a memorial for a very good friend on Saturday. When we got there, Kenny was already trapping on the falconer's site. So, I fired up the old mower, packed the banding gear into a utility trailer, and chugged out to set up at the banding blind. Kenny came up to help us and we were ready to start at 10:15. Winds were out of the Southwest and the skies were cloudy.

Our first bird was a young Sharp-shinned hawk that was out hunting in the draw at 11:10. There were not many birds moving and the next one to come in was a young Red-tailed hawk at 11:31. It gave us a great show as we saw it set its wings way out across the field in front of us. It continued its long shallow stoop and when it was about two hundred feet out, it dropped its legs down for the grab. I love it when they do that!!!

At 2:21, we were looking at some birds passing to the North of us when a very dark adult red-tail surprised us by shooting in from the South! I remembered that an intern at Hawk Ridge was doing a telemetry (radio tracking) study on dark red-tails, so I called Frank Nicoletti, the bander at Hawk Ridge, to see if this was the type of bird they were looking for. He was very excited to see the text and photo of the bird and came out right away to pick it up. They put a tracking device on it, banded it, and released it (see the Hawk Ridge website for details). Later, Frank informed us that they had named the bird Trudy in honor of our Trudi and had tracked it all the way to Madison, Wisconsin, by Sunday afternoon.

Rick came up early to help us, but we didn't catch anything else all afternoon. We closed down at 5:00 pm. and went in to Culvers in Two Harbors for supper.

We got a total of 3 birds and no bounce-outs on Friday.

1 Sharp-shinned hawk and 2 Red-tailed hawks.

Saturday, October 16th

Nancy and Chuck met Trudi, Rick, and me at Hawk Harbor Saturday morning and the five of us jumped into Rick's truck to go set up the banding station. We had everything ready to go at 8:24. Winds were out of the West Northwest and the skies were clear. At 8:45, the Grape family, who have been regular visitors since 2011, came up to sit in with us for a while. We had just settled in when an adult Red-tailed hawk bombed in from the North. We banded it, took photos, and Marcella released it. Another red-tail came in from the same direction at 9:52. We banded that one, took photos, and Giada let that one go.

Around 10:00, Trudi and I left for the cities to attend a memorial service for our good friend of 40 years, Loral I Delaney, who passed away on September 19th. Loral I and her husband Chuck own Armstrong Ranch and Kennels and have conducted the Anoka Game Fair at their place for the past 40 years. Since the Game Fair's inception, they have generously provided a tent for falconers to meet the sporting public and allow us to educate people about falconry. Loral I was a great friend and inspiration to Trudi and me. She was an accomplished sculptor, artist, nationally recognized dog-trainer, international shooting champion, and a Trap Shooting Hall of Fame inductee. We will miss her great smile and nod of approval as she zipped around Game Fair in her golf cart, making sure everything was perfect for exhibitors and attendees.

While we were in the cities, the banding team caught 4 more Red-tailed hawks, a Sharp-shinned hawk, and our first for the season, a young male Northern Goshawk. They closed down at 4:00 pm.

We got a total of 8 birds and no bounce-outs on Saturday.

1 Sharp-shinned hawk, 1 Northern Goshawk, and 6 Red-tailed hawks.

Sunday, October 17th

Trudi and I drove back up to Hawk Harbor Sunday morning and joined Nancy, Chuck, and Rick. We all loaded up into Rick's truck and went out to the banding station. We set up and were ready to go at 8:15. Jackie Fallon, who is the V. P. of Minnesota Field Operations for the Midwest Peregrine Society, had a full schedule of programs to do at various places along the North Shore that weekend, so she had camped at Hawk Harbor for the night. Jackie had a little time that morning before she had to go, so she joined us at the banding blind. At 8:27, we spotted a shin out hunting in the draw, Rick pulled the lure, and we had our first bird of the day, an adult female Sharp-shinned hawk! We banded it, took photos, and Jackie released that one. At 10:04, another shin was cruising by to the North of us, saw the lure, and that one came straight in.

Around 11:45, Don Mattson, who owns the hayfield we band in, came up to see us. He said he had some pumpkins that he had grown and wondered if we wanted any. Trudi and I rode with him over to his house to pick some out. While we were there, we got a call from the blind saying they had just caught a dark young Red-tailed hawk. Again we called Frank Nicoletti to see if this bird was suitable for the radio-tracking study. He came out right away to get it and said they would look it over to determine if it could be used for the radio-tracking program. It was a small male, so they would have to take it back to Hawk Ridge for measuring to see if it would be eligible.

After Frank left with the dark young red-tail, the migration seemed to dry up. We had a young Bald eagle come in and take a close look at us, but nothing else came by. We didn't see any more raptors soaring in the area, so we decided to close up and head home at 1:00.

We got a total of 3 birds and no bounce-outs on Sunday.

2 Sharp-shinned hawks and 1 Red-tailed hawk.

14 total birds for the weekend.

170 total birds for the season.

Please help hawks by supporting:

Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory (www.hawkridge.org)

Midwest Peregrine Society (https://midwestperegrine.umn.edu/)

National Eagle Center (www.nationaleaglecenter.org)

Raptor Resource Project (https://www.raptorresource.org/)

The Raptor Center (www.raptor.cvm.umn.edu)

Twin Cities Metro Osprey Watch (http://ospreywatch.blogspot.com/)

Keep your eyes on the skies!

Trudi & Frank Taylor

01. A Sharp-shinned hawk was the first bird of this weekend.

02. Trudi holding the shin.

03. A young Red-tailed hawk.

04. Frank holding the young red-tail.

05. Trudi about to release the red-tail.

06. Trudi releasing the red-tail.

07. A very dark Red-tailed hawk.

08. One of the darkest birds we've seen.

09. Front of the dark red-tail.

10. Back of the dark red-tail.

11. Frank Taylor with Frank Nicoletti from Hawk Ridge.
Frank Nicoletti came to pick up this bird for a telemetry research program.
Photo by Trudi Taylor

12. The dark red-tail was named "Trudy", fitted with a transmitter and released.
It had flown to Madison, Wisconsin, by Sunday afternoon.
Photo by Frank Nicoletti

13. Sunday morning more red-tails were coming in.

14. The Grape family and our banding team holding two red-tails.

15. Marcella holding a Red-tailed hawk.

16. Bill, Tricia, and Giada watching Marcella release the red-tail.

17. Giada holding another Red-tailed hawk.

18. Bill, Tricia, and Marcella watching Giada release a red-tail.

19. Loral I Delaney and Trudi at a recent Game Fair.

20. Our first young Northern Goshawk of the year.
Photo by Rick DuPont

21. A Sunday morning Sharp-shinned hawk.

22. Rick, Jackie, Trudi, Chuck, and Nancy with a shin.

23. Jackie holding the shin.

24. Jackie releasing the shin.

25. A dark young red-tail.

26. Nancy, Chuck, Don, Trudi, and Rick with the red-tail.

27. A dark young red-tail.

28. Chuck, Frank Nicoletti, Nancy, Trudi, Frank, and Rick with the red-tail.
This bird was also sent off for the telemetry study.
Photo by Tynn Kann

29. A young Bald eagle making a pass at the banding station.