Phenology Talkbacks: Students befriend birds and track pawprints

Sebastian: “Good morning, this is Sebastian...”

Alexander: “and this is Alexander...”

Sebastian: “and we’re from Prairie Creek Community School, way down south in Northfield Minnesota...”

Alexander: “...but the fifth graders just got back from Wolf Ridge ELC, way up north in Finland, Minnesota and we’ll report on what we saw and heard there first.”

Sebastian: “We heard Barred Owls and we were among the first to hear the Blue Jay pump handle song on Friday, Feb. 7.”

Alexander: “We heard that down in Northfield back in December!”

Sebastian: “Our class saw a snow shoe hare during our animal signs class. It was so well camouflaged!”

Alexander: “There was also a Pileated Woodpecker that hung out by the feeders along with many chickadees, Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers.”

Sebastian: “We also saw grouse in the trees at dusk - they looked very funny up in those tiny branches.”

Alexander: “Back in Northfield, there were a lot of deer reported. Including some large groups and a buck.”

Sebastian: “Ruby saw three starling flocks, two hawks together, and a seagull.”

Alexander: “Maysoon also saw a starling flock. We’re wondering if they’re starting to be on the move.”

Sebastian: “Brrr…it seems a little early for that. The crows have been very busy and have been gathering in large groups. We haven’t seen any with nesting materials yet.”

Alexander: “We’ve heard a lot of ‘fee-bee’ calls from the chickadees – but so far there isn’t a lot of bird noise before dawn.”

Sebastian: “Sophie does think she heard a cardinal ‘Oh Ricky’ call though. We’ll keep our ears out for more.”

Alexander: “We’re still seeing juncos, and Amelie reported a Bald Eagle flying over downtown by the river.”

Sebastian: “There has also been an immature eagle in a tree along the highway many of us travel on to get to school.”

Alexander: “Remember, you can tell an immature eagle by its spotted feathers… Not by the jokes it tells.”

Sebastian: “Thanks for that reminder, Alexander. With that, we’ll sign off. This has been Prairie Creek Community School.”

Alexander: “One more step along the phenology journey.”

This report is brought to you by Jareth and the students from St Elizabeth Ann Seaton in St. Cloud, Audrey and the students from St. Mary Help of Christians in St. Augusta and Bo and the students from St. Andrew in Elk River. They visited Long Lake from Feb. 10-12, 2025.

“The weather was downright cold with lows dropping to minus 27 degrees with a high of 14. “Thankfully, the winds were calm and the cold didn’t stop us from exploring nature. The weekend’s fresh, powdery snow made for great cross country skiing and snowshoe adventures where we saw a number of deer beds. As our group was approaching a stand of birches, we flushed a deer, and found tracks leading to and from the bed. We also found plenty of ‘cocoa puffs and lemon snow.’

“The bird feeders were active during the ‘warmth’ of midday with sightings of male Red-bellied, Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers, Blue Jays, chickadees, nuthatches, and a few squirrels. It’s notable that we only saw a few squirrels. Not even the promise of an easy meal of seeds was enough to get them to come out from their warm nests.

“Our group found mouse tracks that led to a hole under the snow. We saw lots of rabbit tracks and found an acorn on top of the snow.

“We heard one woodpecker drumming. Though we saw chickadees and nuthatches, we didn’t hear them singing their spring mating calls. It must be too cold for them to sing.

“It was a crisp, but beautiful week in nature and we want to remind everyone that, no matter the weather, it’s always a great time to unplug, get outside and LIVE CONNECTED!”

This report is brought to you by Aubrey, Brooklyn and the students from Paynesville Elementary. They visited Long Lake from Feb. 12-14, 2025.

“During our trip from Feb. 12-14, the low temperature was 20 below zero and the high was 9.

“The critters were mostly hunkered down in the cold, but there were still signs of spring to be seen and heard. During a sunrise walk to the beach, Harmony heard a chorus of spring chickadee songs.

“On that same walk, she found a dead mouse, frozen in the snow. We suspect that it either died from accidentally being stepped on, or it wandered too far from the warmth and froze to death. It was probably not the victim of an owl or a predator, because they wouldn’t have left it behind. Some lucky scavenger will find it and enjoy a mouse-sicle for supper.

“Joey found dog, wolf or coyote tracks that led up to a log and a little jump from that log were more tracks. Harmony and Haily saw mouse tracks in the woods near the thicket.

“We noticed that it’s easy to spot bird nests in the winter. Our group saw deer beds, Nora spotted deer tracks, there was deer scat everywhere and Selena and Clayton both saw a bunch of deer out of the window. Naturalist Julia saw three deer behind the dining hall. She said that one of them stomped on another deer while it was eating.

“Dylan, Macey and Rheagan found goldenrod galls in the woods and ate the grubs they found inside.

“The competition for seeds at the bird feeders was fierce. We saw a squirrel nearly run over a bird to get to the seeds.

“We had a great time exploring nature and we want to remind everyone to unplug, get outside and LIVE CONNECTED!”

“Hello from North Shore Community School on the north shore of Lake Superior. This is the phenology report for the week of Feb. 8, 2025. My name is Isabel, and I am your phenologist for this week!

“On Tuesday, Feb. 11, the temperature outside at 9:00 am was -14 degrees and on Wednesday, at the same time, it was -12 degrees. On Thursday it was -9 degrees. In Brimson, Minnesota on Monday morning, Feb.13, it was -32 degrees! We have had several weather advisories this week because of the dangerously cold temperatures that have been as low as 20 to 30 below zero and wind chills as low as 25 to 40 below zero which could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 10 minutes.

“On Thursday, Lucy saw sea smoke rising from the lake because of the cold temperature. When the cold dry air hits the water's surface, the water will start to evaporate and you will get sea smoke.

“Throughout this week, Teddy has seen multiple Ruffed Grouse in his yard despite their usual winter absence. On Monday, Feb. 10, Isabel saw 2 grouse in her backyard on a tree eating food. On Thursday, Feb. 13, Mrs. Rolfe’s class went to chickadee landing; they saw a few Red-breasted Nuthatches, a Hairy Woodpecker, and a squirrel. They also had a few chickadees land on their shoulders and head.

“Annabell has noticed a lot more deer tracks around her house while walking home from school. Mrs. Rolfe has noticed that some deer have been making their beds right next to her garage, something she has not seen before.

“On Feb. 12, we had a full moon called the Snow Moon. The Ojibwe call this full moon the ‘Bear Moon’ because it's when mother bears give birth to their young.

“This concludes the phenology report. Have a great week, and be observant!”

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, <b>subscribe</b> 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).