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Critter bits: Odds and ends from the wild side

Four years ago, I wrote of a bird that seemed destined to colonize our fair area after having been found in Kindred, a first for Cass County. Well, it's happened...

flight lines / outdoors Wed, Jan 20, 2010 - 12:00am

Short-eared owls can be found along sloughs, marshes and prairies where the birds nest and feed, often during daylight hours.

Short-eared owl: The "other" prairie owl

A red-tailed hawk, the most widespread soaring hawk (buteo) on this continent, is more likely to be seen in the open country than in the middle of forested habitat. Most...

flight lines / outdoors Wed, Jan 06, 2010 - 12:00am

Rocky Mountain junipers are perhaps the most valuable wildlife tree in the area. It's characterized by dense cover and ample food in the form of "berries." Keith Corliss/The Pioneer

Plan now for wildlife-centric landscaping

About noon this past Monday a magical event occurred. It went largely unnoticed and uncelebrated by most, but it had a hemisphere-wide impact on us in the North. At 1747...

flight lines / outdoors Wed, Dec 23, 2009 - 12:00am

Hairy woodpeckers are year-round residents of this area, making them one of the expected species, even in winter.

Lull in season no reason to stay indoors

It may have happened to me before but I can't recall. Certainly it's rarely experienced even during this season. But happen it did. Late last week, I found myself taking...

flight lines / outdoors Wed, Dec 09, 2009 - 12:00am

Turning heads while seeking owls normal reaction

I've grown used to the funny looks; the subtle little side glances as they pass by on bicycle or on foot, often walking a dog. Or maybe it's the delayed...

flight lines / outdoors Wed, Nov 25, 2009 - 11:54am

As the name implies, male redheads are known for their rusty red heads along with gray bodies, black breasts, and black-tipped blue bills.

Abundant redheads easy to identify once out of eclipse stage

Eclipse (i klips), n. the partial or complete obscuring, relative to a designated observer, of one celestial body by another, according to the American Heritage Dictionary. But this wasn't the...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Nov 12, 2009 - 12:00am

Legends about birds much more fun than fact

The annual Halloween season has a way of letting the weird, the unexplained, and the downright scary rule for a time. Both my kids have seen the latest spooky movie...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Oct 29, 2009 - 12:00am

Mountain bluebirds are very uncommon in the Red River Valley. This female was seen last week in the Absaraka area.

A bluebird of another stripe shows up in Cass County

There is a basic and centuries old principle familiar to anyone who has taken a class in economics; something called the law of diminishing returns. Simply stated, it says as...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Oct 15, 2009 - 12:00am

Greater yellowlegs are not well studied on their nesting grounds due to the habitat the birds prefer.

Bias difficult trait to overcome in approach to outdoors

There is a reasonable and valid explanation why Lady Justice is often depicted wearing a blindfold in addition to hefting the scales of justice and brandishing a sword. It's to...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Oct 01, 2009 - 12:00am

Just one of many raptors to migrate along the Red River corridor, this turkey vulture was recently spotted. Keith Corliss

Streams of raptors are possible in fall; Identifying hawks on the wing a challenge

Sometimes they come in bunches, often they are singles. Some are neatly packaged in a tight, folded tuck piercing the air like a missile while others are in full sail...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Sep 17, 2009 - 12:00am

Not quite a pure water creature and not fully at home on land, beavers represent a classic "edge" animal. Pictured is the sometimes drastic way in which beavers can alter their environment. Keith Corliss

Memories of college class still relevant

The passing years tend to dull memories somewhat. This is no less true with our schooling as well. I probably couldn't pass a statistics test today nor could I stand...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Sep 03, 2009 - 12:00am

A spring American golden plover photographed near West Fargo after returning from wintering areas in southern South America.

Killdeer relative known for long-distance migration

The nesting season is all but over for the vast majority of birds in the Northern Hemisphere. Many finished the business of gene perpetuation some months past. About a week...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Aug 20, 2009 - 12:00am

To find out where curve-billed thrashers are found consult a filed guide. Or open up one of the millions of possible Web pages on the Internet devoted to birds. Keith Corliss

Strong connection between Internet and birding

Type the word "birding" into the popular Google search engine and hit the enter key. The results show about nine million web pages available to users of the Internet. No...

flight lines / outdoors Thu, Aug 06, 2009 - 12:00am

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