Evening,
We spent the morning at North Fork Wetland. The gate was locked as previously
reported. However, there is a very nice gravel area for viewing off of 682 on
the west side of the wetland. It gives you an excellent view of most of the
wetland. It was partly cloudy, 34 degrees with winds out of the NW at 14 mph.
The morning clouds helped to shield us from the rising sun in the east.
We used binos and a spotting scope. I recommend bringing a spotting scope if
you are going to view here.
Several Mallards and Canda Geese were on the lake.
A Bald Eagle was present all morning. It spent most of the time perched on
fallen trees and logs around the lake. Ocassionally, it would make short low
level flights around the wetland.
At least four Harriers were quartering back and forth low over the fields and
perching on various stumps and post. This is a good site to study their
behavior. They interacted with the Bald Eagle on several occasions. We watched
one catch a rodent about 30 feet from us on 682 as we were driving away.
We spotted two Red-tailed Hawks soaring and perching in the area. One was on a
post in the field and another on the telephone poles on the south side of the
wetland.
We saw two Rough-legged Hawks. Their white tail distinctive in flight in
comparison to the Harriers' white rump patch. They were hunting from various
perches and by hovering over the wetland.
Jim Fitzgerald
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