Bird Watching on the Scenic Byway

Spring is Coming Soon with Birds of the Byway

See this video of a Birds of the Byway birding tour.

 

Watch another Birds of the Byway video at Whitefish Area Lodging Association website.

Read Judd Brink's article in the Spring 2012 issue of Outdoor Traditions, courtesy-Brainerd Daily Dispatch.

Christmas Bird Count

The National Audubon Society accepted the Uppgaard Wildlife Management Area as a site for their annual Christmas Bird Count. This new count circle was the first for this area and the first official bird count for any Minnesota Byway.  See the final Count Results.

Judd Brink is the organizer and data compiler for the Uppgaard WMA Christmas Bird Count. Please contact Judd Brink at (218) 838-4784 or e-mail for more information and or how you can participate in the 2012 count.
 

Birds of a feather...

Birds of the Byway signage identifies great birding locations along the Paul Bunyan Scenic Byway.What started as a unique printed publication to showcase the recreational attribute of birding in the region, has grown into an interactive web site. Local bird guide, Judd Brink, launched BirdsoftheByway.com, an exciting new place to record and share bird sightings from around the Paul Bunyan Scenic Byway.

BirdsoftheByway.com will also provide visiting birders ideas of where to go and what to do while in the area, as well as offer other birding information.

As the 2nd largest recreational activity in the country, interest in birding is growing in the region. Marketing opportunities will be available on birdsofthebyway.com, and new fun features can be expected.

If you set out to find a place on this continent with the highest counts of different breeding bird species, a place with exciting viewing in every season of the year, you’d need look no further than right here in Brainerd Lakes Area of North Central Minnesota.

Here you’ll find a unique coming together of prairie, evergreens and deciduous forests– all centered around the Mississippi River. This is one of the world’s major flyways for migrating birds. This diverse blend of geography– with its lakes, streams, forests and wetlands– and our four-season weather pattern results in a combination unlike any other in the world.

It’s not unusual for a keen-eyed birder to log more than 100 different species in an eight-hour day. The luckiest may spot a northern goshawk or an American woodcock, found in woodland openings. Seeing either of these species, let alone both, is an experience of a lifetime.

This inviting scenic area, long a vacation destination for those looking for family resorts and angling opportunities, also offers an abundance of wildlife and nature-oriented experiences.

Wintering
As geese head south in their great V-formations, they seem to pull winter in behind them. Along with snow and frost, you’re likely to see bald eagles; great horned and barred owls; woodpeckers including the hairy, downy, red-bellied and pileated; gray and blue jays; ravens; nuthatches; snow buntings; and finches. Watch for tree sparrows, juncos, pine siskins and evening grosbeaks.
 
Passing Through
The open spaces of our beautiful area offer unique viewing opportunities as seasons change. Each fall and spring, you can view an immense variety of birds, including some species that may only be seen as they pass through the area during their annual migration.
 
Conifer forests of pine, spruce, and fir represent much of central Minnesota, either as pure stands or mixed with several species. Look for red-breasted nuthatches, pine warblers, evening grosbeaks, Swainson’s thrushes, and solitary vireos in this type of habitat.
 
Download a the Birds of the Byway Tour Guide Checklist. Or Contact Us to request the full color Birds of the Byway brochure and map, includes Tour Guide Checklist. 
 
More Birding Resources:
BirdsoftheByway.com
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