June 7, 2009 - Spring Birds and a Ground Squirrel

My friend Shawn and I found a flock of male Yellow-headed Blackbirds in Deer River, Minnesota. They were walking around on the lawn of one house and eating something (probably insects) off the grass. Males have a bright yellow head and chest and a white stripe on their wings. Females are streaky brown with some yellow on their face. The Yellow-headed Blackbird’s call is a squeaky, raspy, grating sound which is often called the worst song of any of our North American species.

blackbirdyellowheadeddeerriver20090515

This is a juvenile Gray Jay. With its overall sooty gray look, I think it is a lot different than the adult (see next photo). This one still has a very wide mouth which I associate with juvenile birds.

jaygrayjuvkoochichingcounty20090529

Here is a photo of an adult Gray Jay to compare with the juvenile in the previous photo.

grayjay

Here’s an American Robin doing what they do best -- catching worms. It’s a good bet there are some baby Robins nearby just waiting for these juicy tidbits.

robinamericantroutlakebovey20090528

I just had to include this Black-capped chickadee because it is so darn cute!

chickadeeblackcappeddunninglake20090514

At first glance, this Franklin’s Ground Squirrel could be mistaken for the more common Eastern Gray Squirrel. But note the smaller ears, less bushy tail, and brownish color on this ground Squirrel. They live in the tallgrass prairie areas and can be found in Ontario, Manitoba, and the Midwestern United States. They have a gray head and tail. One of my sources said this gray color results from alternating bands of black and white on individual hairs. They aren’t often seen because they spend about 90% of their time in their underground burrows. This photo was taken at White Oak Lake near Deer River, Minnesota.

squirrelfranklingroundwhiteoaklakedeerriver20090528