© 2025

For assistance accessing the Online Public File for KAXE or KBXE, please contact: Steve Neu, IT Engineer, at 800-662-5799.
Donate
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Do you know what to expect in October? Latimer previews the month in nature

KAXE | By Charlie Mitchell
Published October 10, 2025 at 12:00 PM CDT
A flock of Snow Buntings flies up from a roadside in Itasca County. They have black and white markings, and there are about fifty birds in the flock.
Contributed
/
Lorie Shaull
A flock of Snow Buntings flies up from a roadside in Itasca County on Nov. 15, 2024. Snow Buntings typically arrive to central MN in October.

During the Phenology Report for the week of Oct. 7, Staff Phenologist John Latimer covers the next month in nature, development of fall colors, and migratory dragonflies.

Autumn is finally here, with the first wave of true frosts and long-sleeve weather making its way south from Canada into central and southern MN. John Latimer, KAXE’s staff phenologist, let us know what to look for in the upcoming month. Here are a few highlights:

  • First snowfall
  • Last sightings of American Robins, Northern Flickers, Yellow-rumped Warblers
  • Last sightings of darner dragonflies, mosquitos, and monarch butterflies
  • Last sightings of chipmunks
  • First sighting of Snow Buntings, Dark-eyed Juncos become abundant
  • Aspens and tamaracks turn yellow and drop their leaves
  • Blueberry plants turn bright red, asparaguses turn yellow/gold
  • Weeping willows, shrub willows, and hazels lose their leaves
  • Milkweed pods break open
  • Autumn willows put out furry catkins

Topics

  • Introduction (0:00-0:26)
  • Preview of October (0:26-8:21)
  • Fall color and falling leaves (8:21-13:26, 15:48-16:04)
  • Dragonflies (13:26-15:48)
  • Butterflies (16:04-16:24)
  • Conclusion (16:24-17:00)

What have you seen out there? Let us know: email us at comments@kaxe.org or text us at 218-326-1234.

That does it for this week! For more phenology, subscribe to our Season Watch Newsletter or visit the Season Watch Facebook page.

Funding for this project was provided by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR).
Tags
Science and Nature PhenologyKAXE Morning ShowTuesday Morning ShowKAXEPhenology ReportFall phenology
Charlie Mitchell
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.)
See stories by Charlie Mitchell
Creative Commons License
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.