Wildlife Update: November 17, 2020

After the warm week (temperatures in the 70's a couple of days!) we had, the weather has now gone back to what we would consider "normal" for November, which means temperatures in the 30's and 40's. We have ice covering on many flowages within the area, and that will continue to spread as temperatures remain cold. 

We have definitely passed our peak of migration at this point, with most of the waterfowl species, shorebirds, songbirds, etc. gone south for the winter. 

However, there are still some birds to see in the area. Though numbers of Sandhill Cranes will continue to decrease throughout this month, there are still some birds hanging around in farm fields and around wildlife areas. We are also still seeing Trumpeter Swans in Crex Meadows and surrounding areas. There have been several sightings within the past week of migrating Tundra Swans as well. 

We have also had our first reports of many of our winter birds that are arriving, and these will be around until migration begins again in the spring. 

Bird species highlights for this week included: Golden Eagle, Snow Bunting, Lapland Longspur, Pine Siskin, and Common Redpoll. 

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 If you decide to take a drive or a hike on Crex Meadows, be aware that we are now getting into our fall hunting seasons. Here is the list of species and dates to be aware of:

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-Regular Goose Season: September 16- December 16

-Wild Ducks: September 26- November 24

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-Mourning Dove: September 1- November 29

-Ruffed Grouse: September 12- January 3

-Pheasant: October 17-January 3

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-Archery and Crossbow: September 12- January 3

-9-day Gun Deer Season: November 21-29

-Muzzleloader Deer Season: November 30- December 9

-December 4-day Antlerless Hunt: December 10-13

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Birds spotted in Crex Meadows, Fish Lake, Amsterdam Sloughs, and Grantsburg Area within the last week:

American Crow

American Tree Sparrow

Bald Eagle

Black-capped Chickadee

Blue Jay

Canada Goose

Common Raven

Common Redpoll

Dark-eyed Junco

Downy Woodpecker

Golden Eagle

Hairy Woodpecker

Horned Lark

Lapland Longspur

Northern Harrier

Northern Shrike

Pileated Woodpecker

Pine Siskin

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Red-breasted Nuthatch

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Red-tailed Hawk

Ring-necked Pheasant

Rough-legged Hawk

Ruffed Grouse

Sandhill Crane

Sharp-tailed Grouse

Snow Bunting

Trumpeter Swan

White-breasted Nuthatch

Wild Turkey

Mammals Spotted:

Beaver

Bobcat

Fisher

Grey Squirrel

Raccoon

River Otter

White-tailed Deer

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**See something out on our properties that isn’t on the list? Feel free to send us a report or stop in and tell us the story! We are always happy to hear observations from our visitors!