Icy Coat

So far (as of 8 p.m.), the big storm hasn't produced much. We had some snow this morning and afternoon, but less than 1/2". Now it's raining - I can hear it hitting the windows. It's not coming down too hard, but with falling temperatures, tomorrow morning may be very interesting. Glazed surfaces that would be better skated upon than walked over. We'll see what tomorrow brings. Stay vertical!

Winter Storm Watch

Part of what I love about living in Minnesota is the variety in the weather - distinct seasons, different kinds of precipitation, temperatures of all extremes. It's a never-ending smorgasbord of atmospheric drama. But this winter hasn't exactly been much of a show-stopper. Yeah, there have been lots of above average temperatures, but that's just made it seem like winter hasn't arrived - yet. Tomorrow may change all that.

For the weather gods may be sending us some actual winter-like weather. We're supposed to get snow. Of course, the weather forecasters are making this out to be THE STORM OF THE CENTURY. Here in the southern Twin Cities, we may only get a couple of inches and then it's supposed to rain, so so much for the snow. Head a little farther north,  maybe to St. Cloud, and you'll be dealing with a foot of snow. Maybe.

I love winter and snow. I enjoy figuring out what the weather will be tomorrow. But until I'm actually shoveling what THE STORM OF THE CENTURY dumps on me, I'm not going to get too excited. I'll dust off the shovels in the garage and then grab a good book. And wait.

Update tomorrow...

Finally - the Barred Owl

Yes - today I finally spotted the barred owl by the Sugar Shack. Our intern, Kate, told me where to look, but it was still hard for me to spot the bird. But it knew exactly where I was. After I figured out which tree it was in, I watched it watch me as I moved towards and around the tree. Kate said she noticed the same thing - how the owl traced the movements of the people looking up at it. The picture I've posted isn't the best - I only had my little Olympus camera with me. Now that I know where to look, I'm going back with my bigger camera and tripod. Time for Glamour Shots, Mr. Barred Owl!

Who was watching who-o-o-o?

What Snow Shows

A real winter snow last night left us with about 3" of heavy wet snow. This kind of snow is great for snowballs and for building snowmen (I refuse to be p.c. in naming them). But tracking isn't always the best - the depth and heaviness distorts the impressions in the snow. That's why it's delightful to find  well-defined tracks, like those of a junco, in this kind of snow. For being such a little bird - almost weightless, the conditions of the snow were just right to leave this record of it's explorations on the patio.

Squirrels were also busy on the patio. Look at how you can see the toes, toe pads, and claws of the squirrel's feet in these tracks. Snow reveals lots of details that you may never notice at any other time of year. Look and learn!

GBBC Update

Are you keeping track of the birds you're seeing? That's what the GBBC is all about. One weekend of the year, data is collected from anyone who wants to participate to create a snapshot of population data across the U.S. and Canada. So far, I've submitted data for three days. My submissions are part of the 47,077 contributed so far. Over 560 different bird species have been spotted. The top ten birds from all of the submissions are:
1) Cardinals
2) Mourning Doves
3) Juncoes
4) Downy Woodpeckers
5) Crows
6) House Finches
7) Goldfinches
8) Blue Jays
9) Black-capped Chickadees
10) Tufted Titmice

I've seen the first nine in my backyard all three days. Tufted titmice tend to stay farther south in Minnesota. According to the submissions list, someone in Le Seuer, MN spotted titmice. I'd be thrilled but don't expect to see any anytime soon.

Go to the website (http://www.birdcount.org/ - be sure it's .org and not .com - that's a hunting website.) There are maps and lists to show what data is being generated. And check out the photos people are taking - there is one of a cedar waxwing that is beautiful - wonderful composition and coloring. AND be sure to send in your observations! The birds will appreciate it!

A Real Sign of Spring

It's been a pretty wussy winter - days of above average temperatures and not much snow. So it's not like last year - yearning for the endless days of cold and snow to be gone. But there is always that anticipation of the first signs of spring showing that winter is almost over and Saturday I saw one - a crow holding a stick in its talons as it flew. Now this might not seem like much - a bird with a stick, but that means crows are starting to build their nests. Native Americans watched for this sign as a way to know it was time to start maple syruping. I watch for crows carrying sticks because it gives me hope of the thrill of warm days and bird songs - SPRING!

Count the Birds - It's Time for The Great Backyard Bird Count!

One of the Citizen Science Projects I'm involved with is the Great Backyard Bird Count. It's a fun and easy way to help scientists figure out the size of  bird populations around the country. Read below about how you can participate.

If you are counting for Project FeederWatch from February 17 through 20, you can count for the 15th annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) as well!  Help create a snapshot of where winter birds are across North America.

The rules for counting birds for the GBBC are simple: record the highest number of each species that you see at a single time, submitting a checklist for each day that you count.  And you can report any birds you see, even those birds flying overhead. No registration is necessary. Simply enter your counts at www.birdcount.org.

It’s a step well worth taking to make sure the GBBC database includes your information and collects as many observations as possible. After you enter your checklists on the GBBC website, take a few moments to explore reports coming in from across the continent and upload images for the photo contest. Tweet about the birds you’re seeing by including the #gbbc hashtag; your comments will appear in the Twitter widget on the GBBC home page. Just by participating in the GBBC you’ll be entered into a drawing for great prizes. The GBBC is a joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society with Canadian partner, Bird Studies Canada and sponsorship from Wild Birds Unlimited.


It doesn't take much time and watching birds is enjoyable. You can do it for one day or all four days. You can watch for 30 minutes or all day. You can do it at your home or when you're out on a walk. And take pictures of what you see. There are prizes! What are you waiting for - do it!

Oh - and what were the tracks I took the pictures of yesterday?
A: coyote
B: mice - lots of them
C: squirrel
D: raccoon (These tracks were on my driveway. Had raccoon tracks there again today - a regular runway)
E: rabbit

Trackin'

Finally - we got some snow! Not much, just enough to show lots of tracks. I had two tracking classes today with First Graders from Somerset Elementary. It was awesome - tracks everywhere. My favorite were the coyote tracks where it had slid on the ice beneath the snow. Nice to know that even animals are sometimes clumsy!

Can you identify who made these tracks?


A




B





C




D



E

Leave a comment with your answers. And I'll identify them in my next post.

Feeding Frenzy

The birds are busy at the feeders today - probably due to the change in the weather. I've read that chickadees start to shiver when the temperature drops to 60F, so what must it be like for them at 10F with a windchill of -10F? The suet is big draw, its being a big source of energy. I made a new suet feeder to accomodate the pileated woodpecker, and he (it is a he - there's a red moustache) comes about every two weeks. But the feeder is popular with lots of the birds - the other woodpeckers (downys, hairys, red-bellied, and flickers), chickadees, nuthatches, juncoes, finches. About every other day the feeder is emptied. Those little birds can eat a lot of food!





Frogs in February?

A group of students was exploring one of the frozen ponds today. They were looking for fish at the spot where the ice is thinner (where the water drains from the elevator shaft) and there, swimming around under the ice were two frogs! By their color and size, the naturalists watching them thought they were probably green frogs (greenish, but no spots). It continues to be an odd winter with many unexpected happenings.

Owl Prowl

I looked for the barred owl today, but it wasn't there. I'm thinking barred owls don't have a key roosting site like saw-whet owls have. They must travel and rest in a wider area.

The saw-whet is still resting in the same tree. Yesterday, it was sitting on dinner - a mouse. Look carefully at the picture - you can see the mouse's leg on the right-hand side.

This picture is taken directly beneath the owl as it looks down at me.

The saw-whet seems very tolerant of humans. It watches visitors as closely as the visitors are watching it.

Raptor Sightings

Lots of raptors in the skies over the nature center this afternoon. As we finished teaching a class about looking for signs of animals, two broad-winged hawks came from the Farm Pond area, circled a couple of times and then headed southwest. Seconds after they left, another hawk appeared. It too circled a few times. As it flew away from the group, we could clearly see its rusty-colored tail, so here was a second type of hawk - a red-tailed hawk. Then, as I was leaving work, I heard our eagle in its mew making its harsh cry. When I looked up to the sky east of the parking lot, two bald eagles were circling. I went up to the raptor mews and checked and sure enough, the eagle was looking in the direction of the two wild birds. I wonder if she wanted to fly with them...

DNC's Education Bald Eagle

Hoarfrost

Fog in February seems unusual, but it did create fabulous hoarfrost yesterday.

According to meteorologist, Chris Franks, hoarfrost forms when there is lots of moisture in the air and then the temperature drops below freezing. The moisture freezes when it comes into contact with branches, weeds, car windows, whatever. There has been lots of moisture in the atmosphere the last couple of days, so the hoarfrost was able to grow long and spiky. It never lasts long, but it's beautiful when it's here.

A Little More Saw Whet

My nieces and I went to see the saw whet owl yesterday. It's still roosting on the same branch of the fir tree where it was first spotted. The girls were amazed by how tiny the bird is - about as big as a robin. But it is a much fiercer hunter than a robin. Saw whets will kill more mice than they can eat at one time so they can store the food for later. They'll place it in their roosting tree. Later when they're hungry, they'll sit on the food to thaw it and then eat up! If there is an abundance of food, saw whets will often only eat the heads. For being so small, they can be picky eaters.

Saw-Whet Sighting

One of the smallest of owls in Minnesota is the saw-whet owl. A 3rd grader walking through the pine plantation at the nature center spotted the owl sitting in a fir tree. Word spread quickly about the owl and a group of the staff checked on the bird in the afternoon. It sat very still and didn't seem to be anxious with all the people viewing it. Saw-whet owls are only about 7-1/2" tall and blend into the bark of the trees. They have a greyish-brown back and rusty-striped breast. Its eyes are yellow and the bill is dark.  One other thing the 3rd grader noticed was all the pellets on the ground. About 20 pellets were scattered on the ground beneath the owl's tree. If owls cough up 1-2 pellets/day, how long has the owl been in this area?

Tomorrow I'm going back and try to get better pictures of it. There's also a barred owl that has been spotted near the Sugar Shack. I'll try to get pictures of it, too.