Tag Archives: minnesota

Great gray owl ‘irruption’ appears to be winding down

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The reports I’ve gotten from birding enthusiasts in the past few days indicate the influx of great gray owls that converged on parts of northwest Minnesota appears to be winding down as the birds move back north.

That being said, the “invasion” of owls moving down from Canada was big news in the bird world, and it provided some great viewing opportunities for both expert and novice birders alike.

In birding terms, the invasion was an “irruption,” a phenomenon that occurs when numbers of a particular species move into an area. In the case of the great gray owls, the birds converged on northwest Minnesota after supplies of the mice, moles and other small rodents they depend on for food ran short in Canada. And according to reports from wildlife managers, northwest Minnesota had a particularly abundant supply of small mammals for the owls to feast on this winter.

Some friends and I spent a few days on Oak Island of the Northwest Angle in late February and saw numbers of owls near Sprague, Man., just across the border. The owls seemed to be favoring areas that provided trees for perching, but with enough open habitat to offer a clear view of small critters scurrying on or under the snow. Once we got closer to the Northwest Angle, where the terrain is more heavily forested, the number of owls we saw declined.

Beth Siverhus of Warroad, Minn., photographed this great gray owl perched atop a flagpole north of Warroad earlier this week. She titled the photo “U.S. of O(wl).”

Beth Siverhus, an avid birdwatcher and amateur photographer from Warroad, Minn., has spent a lot of time watching and photographing owls during the past few weeks and says the number of birds she’s seeing has declined as the owls move back north. Siverhus, who also is a certified wildlife rehabilitator, said she knows of four owls killed by vehicle collisions, one that was shot and another that died of unknown causes. In every case, she said, the owls were in good physical condition, which suggests they were finding ample food supplies during their time in northwest Minnesota.

Siverhus got some excellent owl photos during the recent irruption, including this shot of an owl perched atop a flag along Roseau County Road 137 north of Warroad. She titled the photo “U.S. of O(wl).”

 

Eradication of bovine TB means end to DNR deer testing in northwest Minnesota

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I was out of the office Monday, or I would have posted this item from the Department of Natural Resources that will come as good news to everyone who hunts deer or raises cattle in northwest Minnesota.

The DNR announced Monday that bovine tuberculosis appears to have been eradicated from deer herds near Skime, Minn., where the contagious respiratory disease was found in cattle and wild deer in 2005.

The DNR tested 325 deer near Skime during last fall’s hunting season, and none of the animals sampled positive for  the disease. That marks the third consecutive year that deer in the area have tested free of the disease and means  testing efforts now will end in the 164-square-mile disease management zone.

“We have accomplished what many believed was not possible,” Michelle Carstensen, DNR wildlife health program supervisor, said in a statement. “By reducing the incidence of TB in wild deer to an undetectable level and hopefully eliminating it, Minnesota has become an international example on how to successfully respond to a disease outbreak that has a significant wildlife component.”

Cooperation from farmers, landowners and hunters allowed DNR and the Minnesota Board of Animal Health to successfully combat the disease outbreak. Bovine TB is a progressive and chronic bacterial disease that primarily affects cattle but also infects wildlife.

“These people made significant sacrifices to make sure Minnesota livestock and wildlife are free of this disease,” Bill Hartmann, state veterinarian and executive director of the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, said in a statement. “Their cooperation does not go unnoticed.”

In a news release, the DNR said Minnesota regained its TB-free status in cattle in 2011, but the agency continued testing wild deer until achieving three consecutive years of negative findings for bovine TB. This provides assurance that the disease has been controlled in wildlife as well.

Efforts to eradicate the disease, which included aggressive hunting and federal sharpshooters both on the ground and in the air, greatly reduced deer numbers in the affected area and caused hard feelings among local residents and hunting camp owners. With the disease apparently eradicated, the DNR said it now will begin implementing more conservative regulations, including limiting the harvest of antlerless deer, to build back the herd.

“Deer populations are resilient and history has shown that they can recover in a short period of time when harvest is restricted,” Leslie McInenly, DNR big game program leader, said.

Carstensen said the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association and its Roseau River chapter were particularly helpful during disease surveillance efforts by sponsoring a firearm raffle each year to help encourage hunters to submit harvested deer for sampling.
                                                       

DNR discontinues moose season in northeast Minnesota

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There won’t be a moose season this fall in northeast Minnesota, the Department of Natural Resources announced today.

Moose numbers in northeast Minnesota have declined dramatically, to the point where the DNR has decided to discontinue the state’s limited moose season until populations improve. (Minnesota DNR photo)

Based on results from a recent aerial survey, moose populations in the northeast have accelerated dramatically, the DNR said. Moose numbers were down 35 percent from last year and 52 percent from 2010.

In a news conference earlier today, DNR officials said the state won’t offer moose hunting seasons unless the population recovers. The DNR hasn’t offered a moose season in northwest Minnesota, where only a remnant moose population remains, for more than a decade.

DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr

“The state’s moose population has been in decline for years but never at the precipitous rate documented this winter,” Tom Landwehr, DNR commissioner, said today. “This is further and definitive evidence the population is not healthy. It reaffirms the conservation community’s need to better understand why this iconic species of the north is disappearing from our state.”

Landwehr said the state’s limited moose hunts aren’t causing the population decline, but the decision to discontinue the season “is reasonable and responsible in light of latest data and an uncertain future.”

Based on the aerial survey conducted in January, northeast Minnesota has an estimated 2,760 moose, down from 4,230 in 2012. The population estimate was as high as 8,840 as recently as 2006.

In an effort to understand and solve the moose decline, wildlife researchers in January began fitting 100 moose in northeast Minnesota with GPS tracking and data collection collars. This multi-year research project will investigate the causes of adult moose mortality, calf mortality, calf survival, moose use of existing habitat and habitat quality. To date, 92 collars have been placed on moose in the Grand Marais, Ely and Two Harbors areas.

A copy of the aerial survey report is available online at www.mndnr.gov/moose.