Sax-Zim Bog
This area covers about 300 square miles of black spruce and tamarack peatlands. What can you expect to see? Great Gray, Great Horned, and Barred Owls, Ruffed and Sharp-tailed Grouse, Bald Eagle, Northern Goshawk, Rough-legged Hawk, Pileated and Black-backed Woodpeckers, Northern Shrike, Gray Jay, Black-billed Magpie, Boreal Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Snow Bunting, Pine and Evening Grosbeaks, White-winged Crossbill, Common Redpoll, Pine Siskin. Rare in winter: Northern Hawk, Snowy, and Boreal Owls, American Three-toed Woodpecker, Bohemian Waxwing, Red Crossbill, Hoary Redpoll, Purple Finch. Spring and summer: most of the winter species plus flycatchers, warblers, sparrows, rails, and shorebirds.
Located an easy 50-minute drive North West of Duluth, Minnesota, the Bog is easily accessible by many dirt and paved roads (see maps below). Lodging is available in Duluth, Floodwood, Cloquet, Eveleth, Virginia and Hibbing. There are also several local B&Bs. 47°8’45.20″N 92°43’38.02″W
Area Map
Map of the Bog and some of the best locations to spot specific species. Restrooms are few and far between. The closest gas station is 13 miles away in a small town called Cotton. If visiting in winter, which is the best time to see the winter owls, dress accordingly. It can get really cold. We stayed in Cloquet, MN which is 30 miles south of the blog. Niala Branson and I stayed at the Super 8 and would recommend it. There are several restaurants in the area, a large supermarket and even a Wal-mart. You must try Sammy's Pizza located at 305 Sunnyside Drive. Some of the best pizza I have eaten and a great staff of people.
Bob Cats #1
Bobcats are nocturnal and elusive and rarely spotted by humans. They roam throughout North American and adapt well to diverse habitats like forests, swamps, deserts, and even suburban areas. They are twice as big as a housecat and often referred to as Wildcats. They have long legs, large paws, and tufted ears similar to their larger relative the Canada lynx.
Although they appear to be solitary animals this group consisted of two adults and two teenage kittens. They can whelp a litter of one to six young kittens which will remain with the mother for 9 to 12 months while she teaches them to hunt.
Bob Cat #2
Their primary diet is rabbits, birds, mice, squirrels, and other smaller game. They can leap 10 feet which helps them to deliver a deathblow.
Most are brown or brownish red with white underbellies and short, black-tipped tails. They get their name from their tails which appear to be bobbed. They are fierce hunters and can kill prey much bigger than themselves.
Gray Jay #1
Often called the “whiskey jack” or “Canada jay” the bird ranges in size from 11 to 13 inches long. It is dark gray on top and pale gray below with a dull black stripe through the eye and a white forehead. It is similar in color to a chickadee. It has a reputation of being a camp robber stealing food from campsites and picnic areas. It consumes mostly conifer seeds during the winter. The gray jay uses sticky saliva to cache seeds, berries, and buds by sticking them to trees, returning to eat them later when food supplies are scarce.
Gray Jay #2
They visited this feeding station where peanut butter suet is provided by "Friends of Sax-Zim Blog".
Gray Jay #3
This close up reveals a lot of details of this bird. I love the lattice work detail of the breast feathers.
Pine Grosbeak #1
The pine grosbeak is a large, stout finch with a short, heavy bill and a long, black tail. The male pine grosbeak’s head and back are a striking reddish-pink that spreads down onto its breast and belly. Its flanks and rump are gray, while its wings are black with two white wing bars. It breeds from coast-to-coast in northern Canada. It prefers spruce and fir forests, in open mountainous regions. They don’t migrate far but will head south into the northern tier states.
On its wintering grounds, it can be found in deciduous trees as well as various conifers.
Pine Grosbeak #2
The pine grosbeak feeds primarily on plant material including seeds, berries, and buds from various trees including maple, birch, spruce, and pine. On occasion, it will also eat insects, and sunflower and mixed seeds from backyard birdfeeders. The pine grosbeak forages by walking along tree branches or on the ground, picking up food as it finds it. Sax-Zim Bog is a perfect winter location for these Grosbeaks.
Female Pine Grosbeak #1
The female is not that much smaller than the male. The bill is dusky and she has feet like the male. The upper part of the head and neck are yellowish brown. The rump is brownish-yellow and the remainder of the body is a brownish-grey. Her length to end of tail 8 1/4 inches, with a wingspan of 13½inches.
Female Pine Grosbeak #2
Female and immature pine grosbeaks are a more muted gray throughout with highlights of orange or yellow on the head and rump.
Pine Squirrel
The Red squirrel is also known as the Pine squirrel is less than half as large as the gray. This is Minnesota’s smallest tree squirrel. Although found throughout the state it is most common in evergreen (conifer) forests. The red squirrel is rusty red above, with a whitish belly, gray sides, and ears that are tufted in winter. It is noted for its bright eyes, perky disposition, and chattering, rattling call. Its body is between 11-13 inches with a four to five-inch tail. They have a white belly and dull reddish gray top coat in the summer and orange-red in the winter. They feed off conifers, acorns, mushrooms, hickory nuts, walnuts, and maple seeds. They are preyed upon by cats, hawks, coyotes, foxes, weasels, marten and bobcats.
Snowy Owl #1
The snowy owl, a nearly all-white bird of the far north, is not difficult to confuse with anything else. Young birds and adult females are streaked with black. Older adults’ males are pure white. Some winters when small mammals are scarce in the far north, snowy owls head south in search of food. This past year local Missouri photographers captured pictures of them in the St. Louis, MO area. It nests where there are high populations of rodents. It also takes mammals including rabbits, hares, voles, ground squirrels. In coastal areas may feed heavily on birds, including ducks, geese, grebes, murrelets, and sometimes songbirds. Often hunts by day. Usually hunts by watching for prey from a perch, then pursuing it in swift flight and catching prey in talons. Sometimes seeks prey by flying low, or by hovering and watching the ground. May locate prey by sight or sound.
Snowy Owl #2
The overall body of the Snowy Owl is designed to allow it to stay very warm in the colder regions. This is why it has a very thick middle section. It also has fur on the talons that help it to retain body heat. They are about 24 inches tall when they are fully grown. The wings are amazingly detailed and can span about 60 inches.
The frozen tundra is where the eggs of the Snowy Owl will be laid. The females can have as many as 8 eggs at a time but 5 is the most common number. The female will stay with them for a period of 30 days to keep them warm and safe from predators. The male does his part by bringing her food and helping to stand watch over the area to keep predators away from them.
Snowy Owl #3
They have very large eyes that help them to be able to adapt to a variety of changes in their environment. Even though they have very small ears they have amazing hearing that is better than most animals out there. They may be small animals but they are very strong and very aggressive.
Even though the Snowy Owl lives in isolated areas they do have some predators to worry about. This includes the fox, wolves, and wild dogs. As other food sources for these predators become hard to find they will turn more and more to the Snowy Owl to fill their bellies. Humans happen to be the biggest predators of the Snowy Owl. Due to the delightful appearance of them, it is a thrill for them to be hunted and then mounted as trophies. In some cultures, the meat of these owls is considered to be a delicacy. Others are hunted for their lovely feathers that are used to make different types of clothing.
Look for them when they hunt which can start around 8 PM until midnight and then picks up again around 4 AM in the early morning until sunrise.
Winter Feeding Station
Members of "Friends of Sax-Zim Bog", a 501c3 non-profit organization work to preserve the Black Spruce-Tamarack forests which are not preserved. Their mission is to preserve and protect northern Minnesota's Bog.
Various winter feeding stations are maintained by members which provide some fantastic viewing experiences. The wildlife is somewhat conditioned to vehicles, birdwatchers, and photographers. This station was located on Admiral Road.
Feeding Station #2
Deer carcass is attached to feeding stations and provides tallow and meat during the winter months for a variety of birds and mammals. This Gray Jay was picking at the fat and meat of this carcass.
Black Capped Chickadee
Black Capped Chickadees, often confused with the Carolina Chickadees, they appear to look bigger and bulkier. The white edges of the secondary wing feathers are bolder. In the winter they feed off of insects, seeds, and berries. They are cavity nesters who prefer birch trees and birdhouses. The female constructs the nest which consists of moss, rabbit fur, and deer fur. Chicks fledge after 16 days but can remain with adults for up to four weeks. Can be found mostly in the northern states while Carolina Chickadees are primarily located in the southern states.
Hairy Woodpecker
Plumage patterns on the Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers are strikingly similar, with very little to differentiate the two species. Upon seeing an individual bird, identification can at first be difficult. Size is an obvious means to discriminate the two species, but this sometimes isn't apparent with a lone bird. The obvious key to differentiate between the two species is the length and appearance of the bill.
The Hairy, a larger bird, requires larger trees; it is usually less common. Can be found in forests, woodlands, river groves, shade trees. Accepts a wide variety of habitats so long as large trees present; found in deciduous, coniferous, and mixed forest, groves along rivers in prairie country, open juniper woodland, swamps.
Pine Marten #1
A member of the weasel family, are small tree-climbing mammals. There are eight species worldwide but in America, we have only one, the American Pine Marten. Their fur is silkily ranging from pale yellow to dark brown in color and a breast spot that can vary in color. They weigh about 2 pounds and measure anywhere from 30 to 34 inches. They become sexually mature between two and three years and are pregnant for nine months.
Their babies are known as kits and are born in brushes or hollow logs. Kits are born in the spring and there can be between 2 to 4 babies in a litter.
This along with the Great Gray Owl are the coveted species of wildlife photographers. Look for groups standing on the sides of roads with large lenses and tripods and you know something special is in the area.
Pine Marten #2
They are omnivorous, eating fruits, nuts, berries, and meat from their prey, which includes squirrels, chipmunks, reptiles, mice, fish, and insects. Bobcats and some species of hawks and owls are their natural predators. The American pine marten has disappeared from some parts of the northeastern United States because deforestation has deprived it of some of its natural habitats, and pine martens are still hunted for their fur.
On our first day, we missed getting to see this little guy so we got early to get a good seat and wait for his arrival. We weren't disappointed because he showed up not too long after this station was restocked with peanut butter suet.
Pine Marten #3
I got a lot of poses of this little guy/gal but there is something about this one that really drew me in when I went to process my images. It kept inching forward, quickly I might add, and finally stopped to check out the photographers while staying hidden behind a twig.
They are not protected under the Endangered Species Act and pine martens are considered a sensitive species by the United States Forest Service. This image was captured at Sax-Zim Bog, north of Cloquet, MN, on 1/20/2019.
Pine Marten #4
I fell in love with this image because it shows the detail and color of the pelt. Sadly these animals are trapped for their pelt. I searched the net for pelts and to my horror, there are numerous sites that offer these and other pelts for sale. Pine Marten pelts can sell for anywhere from $70 to $130 per pelt. I find it hard to believe that in this day of technology and our ability to manufacture similar man-made products like this that we have a need to hunt and kill these and other animals for their pelts or hides. I am not opposed to hunting and support it if it is done for the food but not if its sole purpose is to provide expensive clothing for the wealthy. Just my opinion. I am going to post a link to one such web site just to show the market for various animal hides. https://www.glacierwear.com/fur-pelts-hides/sable-pelts.html
Ruffed Grouse
Member of the Pheasants and Grouse family. They can be found in deciduous and missed forests, especially those with scattered clearings and dense undergrowth. A brown or greyish brown bird with a chicken like head with a slight crest. They have a fan-shaped black-banded tail and black ruffs on the sides of the neck. Both sexes can range in size from 15.8 to 19.7 inches long, weight anywhere from 15.9 to 26.5 ounces and have a wingspread of 1937 to 25.2 inches. Can be found year round in the northern states, northwestern states, can be found from Maine to North West Tennessee.
Landscape #1
Sax Zim Bog consists of 300 square miles of bog, aspens, conifers, rivers, lakes, meadows, and farms. A bog according to Websters, is wet spongy ground especially: a poorly drained usually acid area rich in accumulated plant material, frequently surrounding a body of open water, and having a characteristic flora (as of sedges, heaths, and sphagnum)
Landscape #2
Lake Nicholas Road. A full moon was accentuating this cluster of aspens blanketed in snow. The sun was setting and provided some beautiful magenta hues.
Landscape #3
Lake Nichols Road is located in the southeastern part of the blog off of highway 7. This picture was capture around 6 PM using a Fujifilm X-T2 and 10-24mm lens. This is an image of Lake Nichols, frozen over with the sun setting in the background.
Landscape #4
Stone Lake Road is off of Highway 7 and located in the northeastern part of the blog. The snow was much deeper in this area and there was supposed to be restrooms at the landing but we never found the landing with all the snow and the lake being frozen over. This area is mainly aspens and conifers and with a bright blue sky, this made for a great shot.
Landscape #5
As the day was drawing to an end we were blessed with a full moon. This image was captured at about 7 PM using a Fujifilm X-T2 handheld. Having been out in -22° weather all day I didn't have it in me to set up a tripod and shoot this scene at a slower shutter speed to take in more light. This was handheld with a shutter speed of 1/160sec and an ISO of 250. I also shot using an aperture of f/10 to include some depth-of-field to capture the moon.
Landscape #6
Leaving the area and traveling on interstate 35 we came across this row of pines which appeared to have been planted in a long row. The sun was rising and we were traveling at about 70 miles per hour which made the light shining through the trees look like a stobe.
This was a great trip and one I will want to repeat. For us, it was a 10-hour drive from Holts Summit, MO. My travel companion Niala drove up from New Madrid, MO the day before so she had an extra 4½ hour drive. If you are into wildlife and birding this is a must do a winter trip. Although we did not get any pictures of the Great Grey Owl we will be back next year to try and capture a photo of this magnificent bird.
Deborah McDougall Roy
on February 8, 2019Wonderful blog post! Beautiful photos and great info. Hoping to get to the Bog soon!