Summer Residents on the Cullen Chain of Lakes
Wildlife sightings on Lower Cullen
Lake
for Spring, Summer and Fall of 2008
March 26 From Ann Beaver-- Our Brittany killed a rabbit this morning. We put it out on the ice to see if an eagle would come by for it. One hour later an eagle landed and tried to fly off with it, but it was too heavy. No dummy, the eagle proceeded to eat a good portion of the rabbit on the spot, with two crows standing by to nab any escaping scraps, and then it flew off with the remaining food.
March 28-- A robin visited our heated birdbath this morning.
April 20 -- Two red-breasted merganser couples spent several hours feeding in the open water off our shoreline.
April 23 -- Today we had a common merganser (this time I got it right, Charlie) couple stop by to feed for a couple of hours AND a loon couple arrived and has been fishing off the north shore of the lake for several hours. Spring must really be here and ice out must not be far off.
May 22 -- The two loons on the west end of Lower Cullen are incubating eggs in their nest on a muskrat house. The nest is perilously close to the water's surface, so let's hope they don't get flooded out this year like they did last year. I saw another pair of loons on the east end of the lake last week, but they weren't nesting yet.
May 25 -- Four to five dozen white pelicans spent the morning and early afternoon fishing and relaxing on Lower Cullen along the Paul Bunyan Trail shoreline.
June -- The loons at the west end of Lower Cullen are successfully raising two chicks. The loons at the east end have one chick.
Wildlife sightings on Middle
Cullen
Lake for Spring, Summer, and Fall of 2008
The Juncos are finally back! Saw three on the ground early this morning -- where are the sparrows?
Also heard and saw three Sandhill Cranes flying right over my head as I filled suet feeders. Just HUGE!
April 5-- The first chipmunk of the season ran through the leaves. It must have been a cold winter --- last year the first chipmunk appeared on March 13.
April 6 From Marie Boudrye
On Saturday (before the big wet snow) we had at least 8 male and female purple finches. I don't remember them being SO RASPBERRY in color (at least not since last spring, which seems so long ago). We've had so many Redpolls with red dots on their heads, and some pink on their breasts, that to see the purple finches so raspberry was shocking PINK.
Today we had the first red-wing blackbird and, of course, the grackle. They shared the same table -- have to admit the grackle is beautifully irridescent, but ....
Also today I searched among 75 - 100 juncos to find one lone Fox Sparrow busily kicking up the pine needles and leaves looking for morsels to eat. They are one of the prettiest sparrows we see migrating through here.
The American Goldfinches are coming in increasing numbers now, with many of the redpolls beginning their exodus. Binoculars help finding birds like the Fox Sparrow -- also a Bird Book for quick identification if not sure of markings, etc.
Saw the first American Tree Sparrow of the season!!
For those of you who use computers regularly, it would be helpful, if you bird watch or water fowl watch, etc., if you sent in your sightings so that others in the area could be on the lookout for these delightful wonders of nature!
April 10 From Marie Boudrye
The first two wood ducks of the season skidded to a stop on the frozen lake near our shore. They, along with a pair of Canada geese are lounging in the open water by the beaver lodge waiting for the ice to go out.
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April 17 From Phil Reichenbach
Saw a loon in flight over Lower Cullen lake.
April 20 From Charlie Boudrye
Heard the Spring Peepers at Bond's corner.
April 21 From Phil Reichenbach
Saw two foxes trotting up the road between my place and Doug Woog's. Heard the Spring Peepers at Bond's corner.
April 22 From Marie Boudrye
I saw a mature beaver swimming next to shore in front of my bird blind an hour before sunset. He turned away and swam under the ice sheet.
April 23 - Marie Boudrye
There were three common mergansers in the open water near the shoreline -- one was a male and two were females. Also visiting were three hooded female mergansers. The numbers of woodies have increased to, off and on, five to six pairs. Every day brings new surprises!
April 24 From Marie Boudrye
Two Loon pairs were off shore as the ice sheet slowly retreated.
May 5 From Charlie Boudrye
Two fox kits were spotted at the mouth of their burrow/den on Inland Trails road. Wait a minute--May 6 three fox kits. Wait another minute - May 7 there were five fox kits enjoying the sunshine.
May 9 From Charlie Boudrye
We saw two loons behaving strsngely. One was on a small strip of sand next door, its heas was shifting from side to side. A second loon was huddled next to the shore on a bed of dead bulrushes. This loon did not move when I was 10 feet away throwing out corn for the ducks.
The next day one of these two was dead in the water off our shore. We took it to the DNR and hope to find out what casued its death.
June 12 From Marie Boudrye
There are two loon chicks on Middle Cullen toward the east end. We saw the family this afternoon. We learned from John Szfranski that the nest is west of Hild's in a large reed bed. We also saw a female on a nest further east close to the shoreline in a wide expanse of reeds (very shallow water).
July 21 From Marie Boudrye
During the week of July 21, we saw 3 young green herons hopping around the branches of a large pine at our lakeside. We were not able to see very clearly, but do believe there was a heron nest in that pine.
November 11 From Margaret Reichenbach
Saw two otters in front of our cabin today. Also saw two swans fly by. Our neighbor, Beavers have also been seen.
Wildlife sightings on Upper Cullen Lake for Spring, Summer, and Fall of 2008
May 1 - Karen FortmanNo report as yet.
