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Phenology Report: Northern Harrier hawks chase songbirds with no success

A light-colored bird of prey with dark wing tips swoops over a meadow.
Contributed
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A Northern Harrier hawk swoops over an open area in Minnesota on May 4, 2024.

KAXE Staff Phenologist John Latimer provides his weekly assessment of nature in Northern Minnesota. This is the week of September 24, 2924.

We’re in seasonal free-fall right now, and things are changing fast! This week, John teaches us about the hunting habits of Northern Harriers, the re-emergence of deer ticks, and the annual migration of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. Enjoy!

Topics

  • Introduction (0:00-0:23) 
  • Timing of hummingbird migration (0:23-1:31) 
  • Deer ticks (1:31-3:27) 
  • Wooly bear caterpillars (3:27-8:41) 
  • Fall color progression (8:41-9:41) 
  • Migrating birds and insects (9:41-10:08, 11:38-13:54, 15:04-15:55) 
  • Fall wildflowers and fruits (10:08-11:11:38, 13:54-15:04) 
  • Conclusion (15:55-16:50) 
  • Hummingbird addendum (16:50-17:27) 

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).

Stay Connected
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.<br/><br/><br/>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.)