In May, I wrote about a new technique that might be used to survey sharp-tails and prairie chickens on their dancing grounds (lek). The technique uses aerial infrared photography that is supposed to be able to not only document the number of birds present on the lek but also even tell the difference between males and female birds.
The pilot study was completed over two confirmed leks in the Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge and likely others in a large search area. The total cost for the flight was $1,600, a lot less than originally thought as they were able to piggyback on another project that saved some costs. The Minnesota Prairie Chicken Society kicked in $850 and the Minnesota Sharp-Tailed Grouse Society kicked in $750.
The Fish and Wildlife Service regional office is covering the cost of the GIS specialist to process the imagery. It will be interesting to see the results to see if this technique can be used to better survey these birds so stay tuned.
Nesting chickadeesI had three pairs of chickadees use some of my nest boxes this spring. One had six eggs, another had seven, and the third had nine eggs. It must have been pretty crowded in the nest with nine eggs but they all grew up and left the nest.
No wonder there are so many chickadees around!
Another nesting birdLast summer, we had a pair of red-headed woodpeckers nesting nearby. Very unusual. I had seen one perhaps twice in the past. And they appear to be back again this summer.
I suspect they are using a very large aspen that died a few years ago. It just shows that dead trees are very important in the forest for many species of birds and should be left and not used for firewood. With five species of woodpeckers visiting our feeders, we are going through a lot of suet.
Dave Dickey is a retired DNR Area Wildlife manager. Anyone with a question, comment or story idea should email him at whitetail99@yahoo.com.
Source: Update of sharptail grouse lek survey
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