all kinds of birds

Questions regarding the Flora and Fauna on the island.

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Moonflower
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all kinds of birds

Post by Moonflower »

My son and I will do our first trip to Isle Royale in August 2013. He is an avid birder. We're excited to see and hear all of the loons, but wondered if anyone had any tips for places on the island that are particularly "bird-y."
drobarge
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by drobarge »

Moskey Basin is one of the best sites on the island for loons. I counted 7 different pairs inside of an hour one evening last May.
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by drobarge »

Mc Cargoe Cove is also exelent for birds if you have binoculars.
Wilderness Junkie
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by Wilderness Junkie »

Not sure if you are bringing boats, but there were 3 nesting pairs of loons on Lake Whittlesey last year in early June. We also ran into several families of mergansers on Wood lake.
Moonflower
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by Moonflower »

We won't have boats, but cool to see loons on the lakes.

Anyone go looking for songbirds? I think we'll bring binoculars.
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Tampico
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by Tampico »

I can't find the pictures, but we spent a night at the Duncan Bay campground and during dinner a Gray Jay was more than happy to hop around on the picnic table and steal scraps off our plates. S/He appeared to be quite tame, and bold. Small binoculars are a must (on any trip, really), but as a fellow bird enthusiast, I found the birds to be a bit hard to find at the shore (I'm a boater and only visit campsites with docks). Plenty of Seagulls. When we stayed at Daisy Farm, the Loons spent the entire night squabbling among themselves, it was quite a racket. At Moskey Basin, we saw a Merganser with about 30 chicks in tow (looking for that picture, too).
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by johnhens »

Your son might be interested in this:
http://www.nps.gov/isro/naturescience/u ... 5B1%5D.pdf

If you were going in Spring or later Fall you would be amazed with the migrating songbirds that stop on IR particularly with storms. We go to IR in late May and at some point, a storm with strong South winds will bring in amazing clusters of warblers.

Don't know where you are going, there was a nesting pair of goshawks last summer off the Minong, peregrines have nested along the cliff faces, I have pictures of my first three toed woodpecker taken along the Stoll trail. Pileateds are seen as well as black backed woodpeckers. You should see migrating shorebirds. Hummingbirds are usually seen. Flickers at Daisy Farm. Heard but not seen, sandhill cranes in the swampy areas. Bald eagles can be seen. Both mergansers, black ducks. In the past there has been a nesting pair of merlins along the Stoll trail. Saw our first Whimbrel there off Stoll Pt. Ducks (both pond and sea) should be starting their migrations. Shoreline trails in the AM for passerines. Kingfishers.

If you are going out from the Keewenaw, make time to visit Brockway Mtn., a great place for raptors, though August may be a bit early.
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by Ingo »

johnhens wrote:Heard but not seen, sandhill cranes in the swampy areas.
We saw a pair of sandhills on the Greenstone ridge near Mt Siskiwit last summer.
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Re: all kinds of birds

Post by jerry »

You could see some sandhills from the dock at Windigo in late June of 2010.
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