Great Blue Herons wing their way north

East Rapids Elementary in Grand Rapids

North Shore Community School near Duluth

“Hello from North Shore Community School on the north shore of Lake Superior. This is the Phenology Report for the week of March 7, 2026. My name is Segovia, and I am your phenologist for this week!
“On Friday, March 6, there was a drizzle of rain. Due to the rain, on Saturday, March 7, sidewalks were covered with a thin layer of ice, which soon melted. Daylight Saving Time began at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 8. Spring-like weather was enjoyed on this day. The temperature rose to almost 50 degrees and was sunny. Driveways, roadways, and trees were free of ice and snow.
“Keep an eye out for deer ticks when the temperature is above freezing if you are out and about in the woods as they can start to emerge as the snow melts. On Monday, March 9, students saw spots of grass on the school grounds due the previous few days of snow melt. “On the morning of Tuesday, March 10, we woke up to 1-2 inches of wet snow. The bare trees the day prior were snow covered until it melted shortly after. On Wednesday, March 11, we woke up to another 1-2 inches of snow. It melted before noon due to the sunshine. Winter is determined to hang on.
"On Sunday, March 8, Ms. Urban saw two swans near Brookston, MN. On Monday, March 9, Adelle saw an owl at her house. On Tuesday, March 10th Ms. Carla saw a flock of turkeys in her driveway. Also on Tuesday, Gage saw a large amount of Red-winged Blackbirds in his back field. He thought there were around 30 of them!
"On Monday, March 9, Ms. Urban saw pussy willow buds that had burst by the baseball field at school.
"On Sunday, March 8, Mrs. Rolfe noticed several Asian beetles in a window in her house. The Asian beetles were between the glass and the screen. On Tuesday, March 10, the snow depth at Mr. Dover’s class spot was 19 inches. Also on Tuesday, Sam found a spider dangling from its web on a white pine by the pavilion, and the preschoolers noticed some quickly flowing water in the stream at their phenology spot.
“This report is being recorded on Thursday, March 12 due to a predicted snowstorm and blizzard tomorrow on Friday, March 13. If the predicted snow of 6-12 inches with blizzard winds occurs, it is likely school will have a late start or be cancelled. Be safe and enjoy the snow!
“This concludes the phenology report. Have a great week and be observant!”

Long Lake Conservation Center near Palisade

This report is brought to you by Annora, Gunnar and Kiwi from St. Stephen's Catholic School in Anoka.

“Our trip to Long Lake Conservation Center from March 11-13 started with pleasant spring-like weather and ended in Snowmaggedon with six inches of snow and high winds.
“In between, we saw and heard lots of interesting things in nature. There were three first-of-the-season bird sightings. We heard, but didn’t see, a Red-winged Blackbird, and saw Trumpeter Swans and Canada Geese fly over the lake.
“On a hike around the lake, we found lots and lots of canine tracks. Most looked like coyotes, but a few were large enough to potentially be wolves. The most likely answer is that there is a coyote with big paws.
“We saw herds of as many as 15 deer at multiple times and locations. Deer tend to herd up in the late winter and early spring to feed together on emerging vegetation when other winter food sources become scarce. After a relatively mild winter, the deer seem healthy and the population is high. We saw numerous clumps of deer fur in the woods, so the shed has started.
“Before winter returned, a few snakes were spotted sunning themselves on the rocks outside of their hibernaculum.
“Despite the snow, spring is near. We had a great time exploring nature and we want to remind everyone to unplug, get outside and LIVE CONNECTED!”

Little Falls Middle School

"This is Jay and Thomas reporting from Little Falls Middle School. This is our phenology report for the week of March 15.
“Our most intriguing discovery this past week was a pair of small grasshoppers that a classmate found. We have always thought that all grasshoppers died in the fall after laying eggs, but apparently, a small amount of nymphs will hibernate through the winter.
“Mr. Couture had an exciting discovery at his house as he has a Saw-whet Owl that is hanging around. He had heard the call for several days, and thought it was an alarm at first, before investigating and learning the real source.
“There were 3 Pileated Woodpeckers that were seen together on the same tree.
“The sugar maple sap has been running, and people have been collecting and making maple syrup.
“There are leaves of tulips popping up in the courtyard of our school, against the south facing walls.
“We saw our first Wood Ducks of the year on March 8, as 3 individuals were spotted.
“One mystery this week was the discovery of very small blue eggs in Wood Duck box. The box was cleaned out early last fall, and we are confused about where they came from.
“We had an observation of a group of crows chasing and swooping at a Red-tailed Hawk.
“We got a great trail camera video of a bobcat and a mystery animal that climbed a tree to avoid it, we think it was a mink.
“The new shallow snow we have gotten on several nights, has allowed us to see how quickly the voles establish their trails.
“That is our report for this week, until next week, keep exploring, keep discovering, and keep connecting with the great outdoors.”

Belwin Outdoor Science in Afton

Prairie Creek Community School in Northfield

Hugo: “Hi this is Hugo-”
Anna: “And this is Anna-”
Hugo: “And we’re from Prairie Creek Community School-”
Anna: “Way down south in Northfield, Minnesota.”
Hugo: “First things first - we have… MOSQUITOS!”
Anna: “Sam and Leo saw them… Amelie felt them.”
Hugo: “Orion saw some giant swans.”
Anna: “Natalie saw a Bald Eagle perched at the river, Grace saw some by a nest, and Sam saw one flying”
Hugo: “Ellen saw two kestrels - one of them had a rat in its talons.”
Anna: “Ezri saw two beavers and some beaver dams.”
Hugo: “The turkeys are still roosting in my trees, but they seem to all be female.”
Anna: “I saw juncos and many of us have been seeing a pheasant hanging out in the same place every morning when we go to school.”
Hugo: “Michelle saw a groundhog, and on March 6, Emory saw a chipmunk which is pretty early for us.”
Anna: “We saw a live wooly bear outside on Thursday. It was sunny. We are a little worried about what might happen to it in the snow.”
Hugo: “Oscar saw some seagulls-”
Anna: And there are a lot of Red-winged Blackbirds.”
Hugo: “When Oscar was in Redwing, he saw a Great Blue Heron.”
Anna: “Redwing is on the Mississippi River so we think it was following the river.”
Hugo: “We think we might see a heron in the next week or so here in Northfield because our river, the Cannon, connects to the Mississippi.”
Anna: “This has been Prairie Creek-”
Hugo: “One more step along the phenology journey.”

Tara Orstad

This report comes from Tara Orstad, a science teacher at Olson Middle School in Bloomington.

“We've had Sandhill Cranes in south Shakopee for weeks! They love our corn fields and marshes nearby.
“Also, we just saw our first male Red-wind Blackbirds today on Lake O'Dowd.
“Also, we had have lots of duck and swan activity for a couple weeks as well as they love the calm open water on O'Dowd with the Minnesota River nearby.”

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

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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).