Prairie Lakes Audubon Chapter- Minnesota

Prairie Lakes Audubon Chapter- Minnesota Representing the National Audubon Society in West Central Minnesota.

PLA Field Trip 6/4/26Verlyn Marth SNA Stevens CountyMany the usual players were present at Verlyn Marth on a very calm s...
06/23/2026

PLA Field Trip 6/4/26
Verlyn Marth SNA Stevens County

Many the usual players were present at Verlyn Marth on a very calm sunny day at the SNA. We all commented on how relaxing it was standing by the car parked on the gravel road and surveying the native grassland. The birds were a little far away for photographing but easily in a good viewing range for binoculars and we saw Bobolink, Western Meadowlark, Song Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Eastern Kingbird, Yellow Headed Blackbird, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow Warbler, and Orchard Oriole.

With the sun sinking we decided to make a quick stop at the Herman Stabilization Ponds where we added some waterfowl and swallow to the list. The late afternoon trip yielded a total of 24 species and included some great grassland birds.

PLA Field Trip 5/15 and 5/16Bluestem Prairie and Tamarac NWRAfter we departed Itasca SP on Thursday we were hoping we le...
05/27/2026

PLA Field Trip 5/15 and 5/16
Bluestem Prairie and Tamarac NWR

After we departed Itasca SP on Thursday we were hoping we left the wind behind but noooooo!
The early morning was calm on the Prairie but the birds were keeping their distance and really only viewable through a spotting scope. There were wren, sparrow, meadowlark, Prairie Chicken, and Bobolink calling at around 80 to 150 yards. A distant flyby of a godwit and a Magpie were noted. The only species willing to hang close was the Eastern Kingbird.

As the wind began to blow hard once again, we moved to the woodlands of Buffalo River SP. There we picked up a few songbirds notably cooperative Rose Breasted Grosbeak and Blackburnian Warbler. There were a few sparrow and swallow notably Cliff Swallow.

A stop at a busy pond added many waterfowl, some gull, and Sandhill Crane and somehow pushed the day count to 51 species.

Was it windy the next day at Tamarac NWR? YEP!! But the wind was too late. We had already seen 59 species during the morning calm. The warblers were singing wildly at eye level and we saw 17 species!! There were Scarlet Tanager, Rose Breasted Grosbeak, Broad Winged Hawk, Yellow Throated Vireo, and Pine Siskin. The sparrow were present too (5 species) most notably Harris Sparrow. Tamarac rarely disappoints.

Combining Itasca and Detroit Lakes we saw 98 species, a great weekend count.

PLA Field Trip 5/14Itasca SPOnce again the winds of western Minnesota bestowed its fury on the PLA birders who were tryi...
05/27/2026

PLA Field Trip 5/14
Itasca SP

Once again the winds of western Minnesota bestowed its fury on the PLA birders who were trying to catch the magic of spring migration at Itasca SP. At the Headwaters it blew so hard that we could hear warblers and other songbirds but in truth we only saw 4 birds. They were hanging tight to their perch.

Disappointed but not without a plan, we headed to the Dr Robert’s trail on the leeward side of Lake Itasca where we found some luck. We were actually able to see warblers, Magnolia, Black and White, Waterthrush, Ovenbird, Northern Yellow, and Palm. We recorded 13 warblers for the day but only saw 6 of them. The highlight of the latter part of the trip was following a Winter Wren as it flew from bush to bush singing the whole of 20 minutes. Also getting good long looks at Waterthrush added to the excitement.
We were able to record 32 species for the day which is very low for our spring Itasca trip and many of them were heard but not seen. But a few highlights made the day.

PLA Field Trip 5/9/26St John’s CampusWe were able to join the St John’s Birding Day festivities again this year and were...
05/27/2026

PLA Field Trip 5/9/26
St John’s Campus

We were able to join the St John’s Birding Day festivities again this year and were guided down the Old St Joe Road toward the Maple Sugar Shack. Almost immediately we heard warblers singing and were able to get good looks at many of them, seven species in all. Many Yellow Rumped and Northern Yellow warblers were spotted along with Tennessee, Nashville, Black and White, Ovenbird, and Redstart. When we cleared the woods and reached an open field we added 4 sparrow, 3 thrush, and a Meadowlark.
After a hardy lunch at the St John’s cafeteria, the PLA birders headed out again toward the beach trail where we added 4 more warbler, the Magnolia, Blackburnian, Orange Crowned, and Palm, increasing our warbler count for the day to 11. We also added Least Flycatcher and a pair of Rose Breasted Grosbeak to our list.
On our way home we stopped at the Albany Stabilization Ponds where we viewed various waterfowl, a Spotted Sandpiper, and over 30 Wilson Phalarope. It was a very windy but fantastic day where we were able to get good looks at 53 species.

PLA Field Trip 4/25/26Glendalough SPWe landed on the day Glendalough was having their annual park fund raiser festivitie...
05/04/2026

PLA Field Trip 4/25/26
Glendalough SP

We landed on the day Glendalough was having their annual park fund raiser festivities but the Beaver Pond Trail was quiet and we were able to find a fair number of bird species. The rain missed us and we had a pleasant hike with plenty of Song, Chipping, and Swamp Sparrow calling. It was early for warbler migration but we were able to spot Yellow Rumped and Palm. Waterfowl was spotted here and there mostly the regulars but we did get a very distant view of a Green Winged Teal. We needed a scope!

Other notables were Harrier, Phoebe, Bluebird, Sandhill Crane, Great Blue Heron, and 4 woodpecker species Downy, Hairy, Red Bellied and Yellow Bellied Sapsucker.

In all we had a pretty good day with 30 species.

Share and tell your friends!The PLAC will have a booth.
04/15/2026

Share and tell your friends!

The PLAC will have a booth.

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Alexandria, MN
56308

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