Dear Hawk Ridge Friends,
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We hope you're having a great start to 2022! With all the recent chilly weather, it's hard to believe the West Skyline Spring Count is right around the corner starting March 1! Many locals and visitors have already been enjoying the local and visiting feathered friends throughout this winter, including Great Gray Owls, Snowy Owls, Bohemian Waxwings, winter finches and more!. We'd love to share in these beautiful bird sightings with you, as part of our Owls to Eagles Winter Tour this March 10-15, in partnership with the Hawk Migration Association of North America. Hawk Ridge Banding Director, Frank Nicoletti, is one of the guides, which will make the trip even more memorable! Find out more on how to sign up by clicking HERE and reading below! P.S. If you missed our last e-newsletter, you can view that and older versions by clicking HERE.
Owls to Eagles: Hawk Ridge and Northern MN in Winter
Join Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory and the Hawk Migration Association of North America for an immersive late winter/early spring birding tour based out of Duluth, MN! Birders and nature photographers will engage with the boreal forest and Lake Superior region, as expert guides, Frank Nicoletti and Josh Haas, provide excellent views of Northern specialty bird species and the techniques and tips for capturing images of these hard-to-find birds. Proceeds from this trip helps support the raptor research and education of both HRBO and HMANA!
The expansive bog lands, boreal forests, and Lake Superior shorelines of Duluth, MN, and environs, offer a uniquely accessible opportunity to see specialty birds of the northern climes in winter. We hope to see Great Gray, Snowy, & Northern Hawk Owls. We will also target Black-backed Woodpecker, Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak, and all three common grouse species, Sharp-tailed, Ruffed, and Spruce. If conditions line up, it also could be an excellent trip for irruptive winter finches (crossbills, redpolls), gulls (Glaucous, Iceland), waterfowl (Long-tailed & Harlequin Duck) and more! Hannah Toutonghi will also present on her exciting Northern Hawk Owl Project graduate research on one of the evenings!
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The tour will also occur when spring migrants return, so both Bald & Golden Eagle and other migrants will be on the move at the Hawk Ridge spring site, the West Skyline Hawk Watch. An average of 25,000 raptors migrate through each March-May, and a record 1,076 Bald Eagles were counted there in ONE day in March of 2019! The days will be filled with exciting birding adventures with an itinerary for each day dependent on birds and the weather conditions. For more details on itinerary and registration, please click HERE. We hope you can join us for this amazing tour!
Upcoming Events
March 1 - May 31, 2022
2022 marks the 5th consecutive, full spring season of bird migration monitoring research at the West Skyline Spring Count in Duluth, MN! This is one of the premier spring bird migration sites in North America with record numbers of Bald and Golden Eagles, as well as other raptor species. The spring migration count average from 2018-2021 is over 25,000 raptors and thousands of other birds. Over 125 different bird species were recorded in 2021! Spring migration highlights include an amazing diversity of 15-20 different raptor species, as outlined:
Peak for each species (high counts listed)
- Eagles: around March 25 (Bald: 100-500/day; Golden: 10/day)
- Rough-legged Hawks: April 10-20 (up to 75/day)
- Red-tailed Hawks: April 10-20 (1,000-2,000/day)
- Broad-winged Hawks: May 1-10 (3,000-4,000/day)
- Sharp-shinned Hawks: April 10-20 (up to 450/day)
P.S. Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory (HRBO) in Duluth, Minnesota is seeking one experienced Bird Migration Counter to document and showcase the amazing spring bird migration at the West Skyline Spring Count. This is a seasonal full-time position February 28 – May 31, 2022. CLICK HERE for info on how to apply.
Hawk Ridge 50th Anniversary Celebration!
Sept. 22-25th, 2022
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Hawk Ridge is turning 50!! Be sure to SAVE THE DATE for our 50th Anniversary Event! Hawk Ridge is celebrating 50 years of raptor research and education! We will kick off the event Thursday evening at the beautiful Greysolon Ballroom for a grand celebration of the past, present, and future of Hawk Ridge on Thurs. 9/22/22! Our annual Hawk Weekend Festival will follow that weekend (Fri. 9/23 - Sun. 9/25) with a great line up of speakers, field trips, and special events. We invite you for this very special celebration and hope to see many of our Hawk Ridge friends from past and present!
Thank You for Your Support!
Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory thanks all of our supporters. We appreciate you! As a nonprofit organization, we are primarily funded by individual gifts to put our bird migration research and education programs in action. Below are some of the ways you can help us keep sharing the magic of the bird migration!
Support Hawk Ridge by Shopping!
Be sure to purchase one of our unique artist-designed Hawk Ridge shirts or tote bags online! Our featured artist this year is Emma Regnier, who returned as one of our Bird Banding Research Trainees this fall and was one of our Bird Migration Count Trainees in 2020. She created 2 new beautiful designs for our limited-edition shirts for 2021, including the popular "Celebrate Diversity" design pictured here!
If you like to shop on Amazon, we'd also super appreciate you adding Hawk Ridge as a charity you support via Amazon Smile. Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory receives a donation of 0.5% of eligible purchases!.
Become A Member Today!
If you're already a member of Hawk Ridge, we sincerely appreciate your support! THANK YOU! If you're not a member and have enjoyed your experience with Hawk Ridge, we invite you to renew or join as a Hawk Ridge member today! Our memberships and donations help drive our bird conservation research and education programs. You can check out our exciting membership benefits and join or renew online HERE!
Books with Portion of Proceeds coming to Hawk Ridge!
Art on the Edge of the Boreal Forest: Alternative Futures for the trees, birds and insects
Original art by ten Minnesota artists
Text by Lee Frelich, Ph.D. and Gerald Niemi, Ph.D.
A group of Minnesota botanical artists applied their skills and knowledge to create a visual archival record of Minnesota's threatened boreal forest. Dr. Frelich, director for the Center for Forest Ecology, and Dr. Niemi, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Biology, University of Minnesota Duluth (and former Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory Board Member & Research Chair), as well as Jane Albers, DNR Forest Health Specialist, contributed research on threatened boreal trees, plants, birds, and insects. This collection is important because the ecology of the boreal forest is undergoing slow and silent but significant change due to disturbances caused by fire, invasive insects and stressful climate conditions. Books for sale online from various sellers, including HERE.
Hawks on High - Everyday Miracles in a Hawk Ridge Season
By Phil Fitzpatrick with drawings by Penny Perry
Phil Fitzpatrick captures the magic of migration at Hawk Ridge and interesting bird bits beyond through his beautiful collection of poetry. Poems are brought to life through the artwork of Penny Perry. Books for sale online and at Hawk Ridge Nature Reserve during the fall season September 1 - October 31.
Simply Donate
You can always simply donate online by clicking HERE or by mailing a check made out to Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory, P.O. Box 3006, Duluth, MN 55803.
Sincerely,
Janelle Long
Executive Director
Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory
Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory
P.O. Box 3006
Duluth, MN 55803-3006
Call: 218-428-6209
Contact: mail@hawkridge.org
Visit: www.hawkridge.org
501(c)3 Non-Profit Organization
Federal Tax ID 76-0746366
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