I was pretty excited to find a Bobolink today! This is my first one since July of 2021, and my first personally-found one in a long time. I had been telling my spouse that "there should be Bobolinks here" because the habitat was right. But it wasn't until later when we were driving a minimum maintenance road through a nearby Wildlife Management Area, that I heard one calling. The bird (a male) stayed mostly far out in the field, but did perch briefly on some closer fenceposts. Bobolinks share similar habitat with Meadowlarks and are declining in population due to habitat loss -especially the loss of meadows and hay fields. Vermillion Highlands Wildlife Management Area, Dakota County, MN 06/08/24

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I was pretty excited to find a Bobolink today! This is my first one since July of 2021, and my first personally-found one in a long time. I had been telling my spouse that "there should be Bobolinks here" because the habitat was right. But it wasn't until later when we were driving a minimum maintenance road through a nearby Wildlife Management Area, that I heard one calling. The bird (a male) stayed mostly far out in the field, but did perch briefly on some closer fenceposts. Bobolinks share similar habitat with Meadowlarks and are declining in population due to habitat loss -especially the loss of meadows and hay fields. Vermillion Highlands Wildlife Management Area, Dakota County, MN 06/08/24

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I was pretty excited to find a Bobolink today! This is my first one since July of 2021, and my first personally-found one in a long time. I had been telling my spouse that "there should be Bobolinks here" because the habitat was right. But it wasn't until later when we were driving a minimum maintenance road through a nearby Wildlife Management Area, that I heard one calling. The bird (a male) stayed mostly far out in the field, but did perch briefly on some closer fenceposts. Bobolinks share similar habitat with Meadowlarks and are declining in population due to habitat loss -especially the loss of meadows and hay fields. Vermillion Highlands Wildlife Management Area, Dakota County, MN 06/08/24

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I couldn't get anywhere near as close to this Eastern Meadowlark as I would have liked. But I like how there is good separation from the background. I'm happy to have seen so many of these birds this year. Afton State Park, Washington County, MN 05/26/24

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Another of the many Eastern Meadowlarks we've seen and heard this spring. Definitely one of my favorite "grassland species" meadowlarks populations have been in steep decline for at least 50 years or more due to loss of prairie habitat. Crow-Hassan Park Reserve, Hennepin County, MN 05/19/24

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