Another Bird Field Trip

This week we went birding at the Coon Rapids dam. We saw house sparrows, mallards, scaup, killdeer, tree swallows (my first of the year), rock doves, Canadian geese, herring gulls, ring-billed gulls, and the osprey. The osprey always nest on the Hennepin county side of the dam. This year they are on top of a huge electrical transmission tower. We listened to a man speak about the osprey. He, with three other men, have studied these osprey for years. They're writing a book about the one they call "The Old Man." Old Man is more than 10 years old. He has a distinctive injury to his right wing that separates the feathers near his wrist. He has mated with several females over the years. He hasn't returned from his migration to South America yet. He is usually later than the other osprey. When he does come back he ferociously chases off the other male osprey. He is also ferocious when fending off eagles who look at his newly fledged offspring as a tasty treat. I think I'll buy their book when it comes out. These men hang around the osprey nest with their digital scopes and fancy cameras all the time. They allow park users to look at the osprey through their scope. They educate and spark interest in the osprey. While he talked the osprey in the nest were calling non-stop. One would fly off to fish while the other one called. Then they would switch positions and take turns fishing and crying out. We were there almost an hour and no fish were caught during that time. The speaker said there is another osprey nest in Coon Rapids on top of a baseball field light in a park. He wouldn't say which park. I spoke up, "Why won't you tell us what park?" He said he made an agreement not to name the park to protect the osprey. He's talking to a bird class. None of us are going to disturb the osprey nest. Besides, standing here at the dam with a scope pointed at the osprey nest isn't doing anything to protect those osprey. His comment got my dander up and I was bound and determined to find that other osprey nest. I suspected the nest would be at Sand Creek because there are so many baseball fields there. I have a friend who lives adjacent to that park. Her kids are athletic and I figured she has been at many baseball diamonds. So I asked her. She said she would check it out. That very night she called me back. She found the nest. Turns out the nest wasn't at Sand Creek or any of the next 4 baseball fields she looked at. The nest is in a baseball field behind Lilliputt Golf Course on Coon Rapids Boulevard. The photo above is similar to what it looks like. I guess I know who to ask when it comes to finding raptor nests in baseball parks in Coon Rapids.

On a smaller note, my chipping sparrow is back today. I'm expecting the hummingbirds by next week.