There were few reports of overwintering geese and Cackling Geese in Aitkin and Cass in early January were noteworthy. Mute Swans in Goodhue probably originated from captive birds at the Prairie Island Casino. Following several recent low years, near record numbers of Trumpeter Swans in Wright and record high numbers of Tundra Swans at Reno Bottoms in Houston were welcomed. Over-wintering dabblers included Wood Ducks in Scott and Stearns, Northern Pintail in Dakota, and Green-winged Teal in St. Louis and Winona. Noteworthy January dabblers included Gadwall and American Black Duck in St. Louis, and American Wigeon in Stearns. For the first time in recent years, and reflecting relatively mild conditions in early December, impressive numbers of divers including Canvasback, Lesser Scaup, and Common Merganser were found along the Mississippi River in the southeast. Sea ducks made a good showing, most notably a male alternate Harlequin Duck (most certainly the same individual) returning for the third consecutive winter in Dakota and Washington near Prescott, WI. Black Scoter provided a new county record for Olmsted and a rare winter record in Freeborn. Away from Lake Superior and the Twin Cities, Long-tailed Ducks made appearances in Benton, Goodhue, and Stearns. Barrow's Goldeneye provided a new record for the Duluth CBC and also made appearances in Dakota/Washington (Prescott, WI area), Sherburne, and Wabasha. Impressive was the state's second, and the first to be photographed, apparent hybrid Common X Barrow's Goldeneye in Duluth. Another rare hybrid in the state was an apparent Common Goldeneye X Hooded Merganser in Duluth.

Populations of both Gray Partridge and Ruffed Grouse appeared to be on the rise and Wild Turkey was reported from a record number of counties. Horned Grebe was found in Meeker and Waseca while Western Grebe provided an unusual winter record for Faribault. Most overwintering American White Pelicans and Double-crested Cormorants in the Twin Cities area represent known or probable injured/stressed individuals. As many as 11 Great Blue Herons were found on the St. Paul North CBC. A Plegadis ibis in Blue Earth provided the state's first winter record.

Bald Eagle numbers continue to climb. They were reported from 68 of 87 counties during the season. There were January reports of Northern Harrier and Red-shouldered Hawk, the latter also reported on ten CBCs. A flock of 100 Sandhill Cranes in Anoka/Isanti in December was very late and 3–4 Wilson's Snipe overwintered in Olmsted.

Larophiles were treated to impressive numbers of gulls this season, many of which lingered into January. A widely nomadic Franklin's Gull overwintered, providing the state's first January/February records. It was recorded in four (!) metro counties. A California Gull found in November in Duluth continued into the season. Record single day high counts of Thayer's Gull (17), Iceland Gull (5), and Great Black-backed Gull (7) in Duluth were overshadowed by even larger numbers of these species found during the season, with individuals distinguished by photographed plumage patterns. The state's 6th Slaty-backed Gull found in October was still present this period. The first record of this species was found in 2006! A total 55 Eurasian Collared-Doves were tallied on the Cottonwood CBC and a White-winged Dove (now nearly annual!) was seen by many in Burnsville.

Snowy Owl numbers were unimpressive statewide. Approximately 100 Northern Hawk Owls signaled an invasion year; whereas there were only two reports of Boreal Owl. Northern Shrike made a strong showing statewide as evidenced by a high count of seven on the Bloomington CBC.

Both Red-breasted Nuthatch and Brown Creeper were more plentiful this season in the south. Far afield, a Carolina Wren visited several feeders in Crow Wing during January, only to become a meal for an accipiter. Townsend's Solitaire and Varied Thrush numbers were only moderate, whereas Lapland Longspurs and Snow Buntings made their strongest showing in the last five years. There were Yellow-rumped Warblers found both north and south. Both an Ovenbird and Common Yellowthroat were still present in Hennepin at the beginning of December.

A Spotted Towhee visited a feeder in Pine for over two weeks. Extremely late sparrows were Chipping in Kandiyohi, Vesper in Olmsted, and Savannah in Stevens. Northern Cardinals were found in extreme northeast and northwest corners of the state. Rose-breasted Grosbeaks in Beltrami, St. Louis, and Goodhue were record-late. The first winter record of Black-headed Grosbeak, found in Duluth, provided many happy (albeit cold) birders with a new state bird. Providing the sixteenth state record, a Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch was photographed in Aitkin.

Finally, we note that this is the first winter report to include not only observations submitted directly to the MOU, but also those reported to eBird at Cornell. Hence, whereas the 2008–2009 winter summary was based on approximately 16,000 observations, for the current report this number grew to almost 26,000! Even though some of these additional observations are duplicates, it's certain that this season's report represents more complete coverage of the state for this season than any past summary.

Weather summary: Although November was the second or third warmest in many Minnesota communities, wintry weather returned in December, mostly thanks to storms and blizzards on the 8th and 9th and again on the 24th and 25th. Many communities reported three to four times normal December precipitation. Extreme temperatures for the month ranged from 52º F at Marshall on 1 December to -23º F at Orr on the 12th. While there was significant snow cover over southeast Minnesota, there were places with scant snow cover, most notably along the North Shore of Lake Superior. January started cold, moderated during the middle of the month, and finishing again on the cold side. Extremes for the month ranged from -40º F at Orr to 45º F at Wheaton and Browns Valley. Temperatures as cold as -30º F reached as far south as Pipestone, Worthington, and Waseca. Notable precipitation came from winter storms on the 6th and 7th, and again on the 22nd and 23rd. February average monthly temperatures were near normal in some parts of northeastern Minnesota, but elsewhere they ranged colder than normal. High variability in snowfall characterized the month; some areas were well above normal, while others were well below normal.

Undocumented reports: Osprey 12/19 Northwest McLeod (Hutchinson) CBC; Northern Goshawk 12/8 Sherburne, 1/3 Northern Wright CBC; Broad-winged Hawk 12/19 Jackson County CBC, 2/11 Steele (2); Gray Jay 1/1 Washington CBC, 1/13 Fillmore; Common Raven 2/23 Scott, 1/30 Wabasha (3, Weaver Bottoms); Gray Catbird 1/2 Isabella CBC; Chipping Sparrow 12/19 Duluth CBC, Owatonna CBC, Winona CBC, 12/20 Two Harbors CBC.

Acknowledgements: Thanks to all of you who submitted seasonal reports and documentation, especially to those using the on-line seasonal report at <http://moumn.org/moureports/season.html>. Special thanks to Dave Cahlander for his continuing efforts to streamline and improve this process. Carl Greiner, serving as Minnesota's Christmas Bird Count compiler, summarized vasts amounts of data from 69 counts. Bruce Fall, as the Minnesota eBird coordinator, tracked down details for many of the records considered. Reports of winter owls were mapped by Michael Hendrickson; these compilations were invaluable for sorting the data into reasonable counts. Finally, thanks to Anthony Hertzel, Jeanie Joppru, and Jim Lind for their tireless compilations of weekly birding summaries available via the RBAs and on-line.