October 5, 2008 - Birds On The Gunflint Trail

During our time on the North Shore, I took one day to drive up the Gunflint Trail. It starts in Grand Marais, MN and goes north, ending near the Canadian border. Because it is located in the wilds of northern Minnesota, and because it has the word Trail in its name, you might think this is a rutted, dirt track requiring a 4-wheel drive vehicle. In reality, it is a nicely paved road and offers access to a number of fine resorts. It offers easy access to some beautiful country and provides entry points to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

I was looking for birds, of course, and here are some that I saw. Black-capped Chickadees are a common sight along the Gunflint. It’s always nice to see them because they are such perky little birds. Boreal Chickadees are also found in this area but I didn’t happen to see any this time.

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I stopped at Gunflint Lodge and found some ducks near the dock area. Mixed in with the Mallards were some American Black Ducks. They look a lot like female Mallards and are related to Mallards. Black Ducks have a dark body and a contrasting lighter neck and head. Males and females look alike but females are somewhat lighter. They are found in the eastern parts of Canada and the United States, and Minnesota is at the western edge of their range. These ducks were not shy at all. They had probably been hanging out at the lodge all summer accepting treats from the people who were staying there.

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I did reach the end of the Gunflint Trail, and shortly after I started back to Grand Marais, I spotted three ruffed Grouse foraging along the side of the road. I’m pretty sure the Grouse hunting season had started so I was surprised to see them right out in the open. I turned around and was able to get close enough to take some nice photos of them.

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The Black-backed Woodpecker is a prized sighting for birders. They are found in the boreal forests of the north and often gather in burned-over areas. They flake the loose bark off burned trees to get at insects and their larvae. As a result of the Ham Lake fire 14 months ago, there is a lot of burned forest habitat along the Gunflint Trail and it wasn’t too hard to find these birds. True to their name, they really do have a solid black back. They are about the size of the more common Hairy Woodpecker. We are used to seeing male woodpeckers with a red spot on the back of the head, but the Black-backed male has a yellow spot on top of the head. The female looks like the male but without the yellow spot.

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