Harris' Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

White-throated Sparrow

Juneberry

 This shrub is blooming in the woods right now. As you drive down the road to Crane Lake, the white blossoms are quite noticeable when you look into the forest, as the leaves on the trees haven’t popped out completely yet.

The berries on this bush are edible and quite delectable. Take a look at this previous post: http://blog.visitcranelake.com/juneberries-are-peaking/ 

Up here at Crane Lake a better name for this bush might be “Julyberry” as that is when they ripen.

from Wikipedia: As Frans de Waal writes: “To endow animals with human emotions has long been a scientific taboo. But if we do not, we risk missing something fundamental, about both animals and us.”^[36] 

Antonym

While anthropomorphism has generally taken on a negative connotation in science, there is also the risk of science assuming that only humans possess any degree of certain traits.^[37] This is called anthropocentrism, whose practitioners either believe in or unintentionally form an outlook of human exceptionalism. Darwin dismissed these ideas of human exceptionalism in his book The Descent of Man, to the chagrin of many religious philosophers, by saying that our differences are “only in degree, and not in kind”. ^[38]

Right now if you have been following any of the nest webcams like the Minnesota Bound Live Eaglecam, a crisis is unfolding. The Eagle nest being watched had two eggs hatch a couple weeks ago. Both Eaglets were named: Kirby and Harmon, after famous Twins Baseball players. Tragedy occurred last week when one of the babies fell out of the nest. The nest is 75 feet up in a tree and the baby eagle didn’t make it. Now there’s even a bigger crisis. The remaining Eaglet, Harmon, somehow had gotten his wing stuck in the nest. He struggled for 24 hours until finally someone from the Raptor Center in St. Paul, recused the poor little guy. The Eaglet was in bad shape and they decided to remove him from the nest. He was at the Raptor Center for 2 days before they placed him back in the nest. Now with heart wrenching apprehension, we are waiting for the parent Eagles to return. It is very, very hard to watch.

Voyageurs National Park News Release

Release Date:  April 25, 2012

Contact:           Steve Windels, steve_windels@nps.gov, 218-283-6692

  Bald Eagle Nesting Areas Protected inVoyageursNational Park

 VoyageursNational Parkbiologists located 72 bald eagle nests within the park boundary on April 11, 2012 while conducting the 40th consecutive spring aerial survey (1973-2012) to determine the number and location of nesting pairs present. Adult pairs were observed incubating at 34 nests, compared to 37 nests in 2011 and 30 in 2010.   Eagles are incubating eggs on nests throughout the park, including 1 onCraneLake, 2 onSandpointLake, 6 onNamakanLake, 16 onKabetogamaLake, and 9 onRainy Lake. Two non-incubating pairs were also observed next to nests, 1 onKabetogamaLakeand 1 onRainy Lake.

 Since the start of the 2011 breeding season, 6 new nests have been found insideVoyageursNational Parkwhile 7 nests have been lost when nests blew out of nest trees or nest trees fell over.

 The park follows the recommended conservation management actions of the Bald Eagle and Golden Eagle Management Act (16 U.S.C. 668-668c, 1940 as amended). Each year since 1992 the park has temporarily closed the land and water areas around active bald eagle nests to visitor use during critical nesting periods. Some eagle pairs nest in late March and early April and others may not nest until late April.

 The closed areas are marked with closure signs and buoys. The closures have been based on recommendations of bald eagle researchers from across theUnited Statesto park wildlife managers. Specific management recommendations from a two-year research study on the effects of watercraft on bald eagles nesting inVoyageursNational Park(Wildlife Society Bulletin 2002) are also being applied for the eighth consecutive year.

 Park managers are asking both motorized and non-motorized watercraft users to not travel within 200 meters of nests where bald eagles are actively nesting during the closure period (late April through mid August). Boaters are also encouraged to not stop on the water within 200 yards of active nesting sites.

 The breeding areas around 4 of the park’s 34 nest sites occupied by breeding pairs are temporarily closed to campers and other human activities. After the young leave the nest, these temporarily closed park areas will be reopened for public use.

 Four of the park’s 200 developed day-use, camping, and houseboat sites are affected by the temporary closures. The closed developed areas are:

 Rainy Lake –Sand Bay South (R25) and Skipper Rock Island (R45) houseboat sites.

 Kabetogama Lake –YoderIsland (K 37) houseboat site, Happy Landing Campsite (K11)

 One undeveloped area that visitors might use where an active breeding pair is nesting is also closed to human activity and marked with signs or buoys.  It is West Sphunge Island Inlet, on Kabetogama Lake.

People play a very important role in protecting nesting eagles and other birds. Individual eagles differ in temperament and tolerance to human and natural activities. Some are easily displaced by human/eagle interactions, whereas others are more accustomed to close interactions with humans. April, May and June are particularly sensitive periods for nesting eagles. Overall, reducing the potential for human disturbance has been documented to allow greater nesting success of eagles throughout the United States.

 Superintendent Mike Ward said, “We appreciate the public’s assistance in protecting bald eagles in the park. Reducing the potential adverse impacts at eagle nesting areas ensures that we are successful at sustaining eagle populations inVoyageursNational Park”.

www.nps.gov

About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 395 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov.

Eastern Phoebe

Black-capped Chickadee

Now, don’t get the Phoebe mixed up with the Black-capped Chickadee’s song that also goes “fee-be, fee-be,be”. The Chickadee makes this song in the spring when they are setting up their territories. The song is described as a clear, fluted fee-bee-be. Some describe it as “cheeseburger, cheeseburger” Most of the time it is a 3-parted song, and is different than their familiar alarm call of “chick a dee-dee”.

 

The Eastern Phoebe’s song is more burrey or buzzy and usually the first phrase “FEE-be” goes down and the second “FEE-be” phrase goes up. It’s easy to pick out the difference right now in Crane Lake as they’re all singing and setting up their territories. The Phoebe can be found close to water at this time of the year because that is the more likely place to find insects that have hatched out. The Phoebe is the first member of the Flycatcher family to arrive back in Minnesota. Many times they arrive before there are any noticeable bugs flying around. I guess the Phoebe can adapt for a short time by eating seeds and fruit left over from last summer and fall.

Song Sparrow

Song Sparrow

They can be easily found along the lakeshore. Their song is easy to pick out this time of year. It always starts with 3 leading chip notes and then a jumble of a melodious churtle.

Melospiza melodia

Even their scientific name, Melospiza melodia reflects their singing ability.

Bald Eagle in nest

http://youtu.be/pbdeTp0M8So

Two Loons interacting on Crane Lake. I think maybe the one Loon was going to try to stab the other Loon with his pointy beak.