If you’ve ever gazed out a plane window while flying into the Twin Cities, you probably noticed shimmering lakes, vast marshes, and the Minnesota River, like a ribbon of blue, winding its way through wooded river bottoms. All belong to the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, which extends for miles upriver as far as the Cities of Shakopee, Chaska and Jordan. This area of riparian woodlands, marsh habitats and grass-covered upland bluffs is a green oasis rich in bird life located within a densely populated urban region. The river valley provides both a natural flyway for migrant songbirds and water birds and a corridor for flights to and from feeding and roosting sites. Certain locations within the refuge are stopover sites for migrating Tundra Swan and thousands of American Coot. Sandhill Crane are making a comeback in this part of the river valley, because of the large expanses of grass and marsh; at least one known heron rookery can be found there. Of the over 265 species of birds recorded in the Minnesota River Valley watershed, the vast majority are found in this natural jewel.

Mendota Region East Loop
Many Twin Cities birders know the Bass Ponds and Long Meadow Lake area of the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is one of the best places in the Twin Cities for viewing birds during spring migration. From late March to early June, the Bass Ponds are flooded with a long list of spring migrants. Large rafts of ducks, geese and Tundra Swan congregate on Long Meadow Lake to feed and rest. As spring advances, a variety of passerine migrants are found here: Winter Wren along the creek and Hermit, Swainson’s and Gray-cheeked Thrush along the wooded paths. Twenty to twenty-five species of warbler, plus vireo, flycatcher, kinglet and woodpecker can be found in the trees and brushy edges on a good day in May. Rails and other marsh birds can be observed from boardwalks that extend into the marshes.In the winter, the creek is open and one can find wintering Song and Swamp Sparrow and an occasional Winter Wren or Virginia Rail.

Two hundred and forty-four avian species have been recorded at Fort Snelling State Park, one of the highest totals for any Minnesota state park. Every year a pair of Bald Eagle nest here and raise their young. On Gun Club Lake, waterfowl congregate by the thousands in spring and fall. This is a great lake for Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup and many species of “puddle ducks”, such as Northern Pintail, Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, American Wigeon, and, of course, the ubiquitous Mallard. In addition, over 25,000 American Coot gather here in the fall.

Black Dog Lake is best known as a wintering site for water birds such as ducks and gulls, because the Black Dog power plant keeps large areas of water open. You can usually find a few unusual wintering ducks, grebes and even an occasional heron mixed in with thousands of Mallards and Canada Geese. Bald Eagle are often seen here. During November and December, Black Dog’s open water attracts many species of gull, including Thayer’s, Iceland, Glaucous, Great Black-backed and Lesser Black-backed. The lake’s surrounding habitat attracts Rough-legged Hawk and Northern Shrike. During the summer, the habitat on the south side of the lake attracts nesting Willow Flycatcher and sometimes Bell’s Vireo. American Woodcock display here in April.

Mendota Region West Loop
This portion of the Mendota Region contains a number of very accessible birding hot spots. With its woods, grasslands, wetlands, marshes and lake, Hyland Park Reserve has long been a favorite Twin Cities birding spot. Nearby Bush Lake attracts water birds and the surrounding marshes draw a variety of wetland and marsh birds. The diverse habitats in Hyland Park Reserve provide resting and feeding sites for a variety of migrant sparrows, especially Harris’s, White-crowned, Lincoln’s and White-throated; wrens; thrushes and, of course, warblers and vireos. Baltimore Oriole, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Indigo Bunting are commonly sighted here during summer and the feeding stations at Richardson Nature Center provide excellent winter bird watching.

If you are only able to visit one site in this region make it the Louisville Swamp Unit. A local favorite for field trips, this unit has as wide a range of habitats as any unit in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. You can experience upland grasslands, oak savannas, riparian habitats, a variety of woodlands, marshes, swamps, lakes including shorebird habitat, and, of course, the Minnesota River. What more could a birder ask? The area has a composite list of over 250 species, including Prothonotary Warbler nesting along Sand Creek. Twenty-five species of warbler as well as vireo and many other passerine migrants can be found here on a good day in May. In the wet lowland areas, you’ll discover large numbers of ducks, geese and herons. Clay-colored Sparrow, Eastern Meadowlark and Eastern Kingbird are commonly seen on the uplands and Field Sparrow can be heard singing in the oak savanna. Walking trails give easy access to all of these habitats. Spring and fall migration periods and the summer breeding season are equally good times for birding at Louisville Swamp.

While Murphy-Hanrehan Regional Park attracts many migrant songbirds, it is primarily known for sheltering a wide variety of unusual breeding birds. The park, located in a densely populated area of Scott and Dakota counties, contains a dense stand of old growth deciduous woods. Nesting within the park are Blue-winged, Cerulean and Hooded Warbler; Acadian Flycatcher; Wood Thrush; Veery; Red-shouldered Hawk; and even a pair of Common Loon. This is the only nesting site for Hooded Warbler in Minnesota. The park’s grassland trails are good places for observing sparrows, Bobolink, Sedge Wren and both species of meadowlark. And if this isn’t enough to entice any birder, the marshes are filled with Yellow-headed Blackbird, Marsh Wren and waterfowl.