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Phenology Report: 2025 is on pace for an early spring (so far)

An Eastern comma butterfly opens its wings in Farming Township, Minnesota on March 2, 2024. It is an orange butterfly with black spots on its wings.
Contributed
/
Ryan Rothstein via iNaturalist
An Eastern comma butterfly opens its wings in Farming Township, Minnesota on March 2, 2024.

During the Phenology Report for the week of March 20, 2025, Staff Phenologist John Latimer covers the advance of spring, and encourages us to watch for butterflies, waterfowl, and flowers on the maple trees.

Are you excited to marvel at some spring migrators? I hope so: Ready or not, here they come. This week, John shares some of the things he’s looking for in the Grand Rapids area and compares this year’s spring season to others in his 40-year record. Listen in and enjoy!

Topics

  • Introduction (0:00-0:25)
  • John keeps watch for butterflies (0:25-2:17, 2:47-6:19)
  • An early spring, so far (2:17-2:47, 21:54-24:14)
  • Waterfowl fly in and over (2:47-8:17)
  • Cardinal conversations with students (8:17-10:11)
  • Roving around for American robins (9:49-13:04)
  • Red-winged Blackbirds (12:47-14:39)
  • Dark-eyed Juncos (14:39-15:40)
  • Maple bud progression and sap production (15:40-17:08)
  • Budding aspens, willows, and poplars (17:08-19:21)
  • Juneberries and alders (19:21-23:32)
  • Conclusion (23:32-25:06)

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).

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.)