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A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1:30 P.M. CDT FOR SOUTHEASTERN ITASCA AND WEST CENTRAL ST. LOUIS COUNTIES: At 12:52 P.M., a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado was located over Taconite, or 8 miles northeast of Grand Rapids, moving northeast at 65 mph. Locations impacted include: Nashwauk, Pengilly, Hibbing and Keewatin.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1:45 PM CDT FOR SOUTHEASTERN ITASCA, AITKIN, NORTHWESTERN PINE, EAST CENTRAL CASS, SOUTHWESTERN ST. LOUIS, CARLTON AND CROW WING COUNTIES: At 12:50 P.M., severe thunderstorms were located along a line extending from 7 miles southwest of Grand Rapids to near Palisade to 6 miles southeast of Deerwood, moving east at 50 mph. Golf ball size hail and 70 mph wind gusts.

Phenology and the Fabulous Fall Geek-Out at Wolf Ridge

A tiny, brown-streaked owl with yellow eyes perched on a brown vole that is about a quarter its size.
So tiny! So cute! So deadly (if you're a rodent)! Meet the Northern saw-whet owl.

This Tuesday, John and Heidi chatted with Wolf Ridge science and research guru Pete Harris! They talk about the upcoming "Fabulous Fall Geek-Out" for adult learners, featuring workshops about bird banding, lichens, fish, chickadees, saw-whet owl banding (!!!), and more. You can check out the workshops here! Pete also gives an update on some of the phenology he's been seeing at Wolf Ridge: cool water, the very beginning of fall colors, migrating birds, and berries. Listen to the full segment by clicking the "play" button above!

For more than two decades, Heidi Holtan has helped shape the sound of KAXE. Since joining the station in 2002 as a volunteer music programmer, she has worn many hats including the weekly book program, Realgoodwords, hosting the Morning Show, creation and host of the weekly call-in program Between You and Me, serving as Outreach Producer. Program Director, News Director and currently Director of Content and Public Affairs.
As a mail carrier in rural Grand Rapids, Minn., for 35 years, John Latimer put his own stamp on a career that delivered more than letters. Indeed, while driving the hundred-mile round-trip daily route, he passed the time by observing and recording seasonal changes in nature, learning everything he could about the area’s weather, plants and animals, and becoming the go-to guy who could answer customers’ questions about what they were seeing in the environment.
Charlie Mitchell (she/they) joined KAXE in February of 2022. Charlie creates the Season Watch Newsletter, produces the Phenology Talkbacks show, coordinates the Phenology in the Classroom program, and writes nature-related stories for KAXE's website. Essentailly, Charlie is John Latimer's faithful sidekick and makes sure all of KAXE's nature/phenology programs find a second life online and in podcast form.


With a background in ecology and evolutionary biology, Charlie enjoys learning a little bit about everything, whether it's plants, mushrooms, or the star-nosed mole. (Fun fact: Moles store fat in their tails, so they don't outgrow their tunnels every time conditions are good.)
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