Astronomy
Sunday the 22nd is the Fall Equinox. On this day, all over the world, there will be twelve hours of daylight and twelve hours of darkness.
Birds
Look for Northern Flickers pausing at Afton on their way south. Flickers are a type of woodpecker, and the only woodpecker we might see here that migrates in the winter. They don’t go far, only to the southern United States. Looking for them pecking into the ground in search of ants, their favorite food, which they slurp up with the help of exceptionally long tongues. Watch for Canada Geese flying south in V-formation. This flight formation helps the geese conserve energy on their journey – the lead birds encounter more wind resistance, and the birds behind them have an easier time flying. When the birds in front get tired they drop back and let other members of the flock move up and do the hard work. Other birds you may see migrating along the St. Croix flyway include Pied- billed Grebes and Wood Ducks. Canada Geese and Wood Ducks only go as far south as they have to in order to find open water and food, but some Pied-billed Grebes travel all the way to Central or even South America.
Mammals
With the arrival of cooler weather squirrels are working even harder to gather food for winter. Gray Squirrels gather nuts and fruits, while Red Squirrels concentrate on the seeds of conifers. Raccoons do not store food for winter; instead they bulk up in fall and store an insulating layer of fat under a thick winter coat. And when it gets very cold they curl up in their dens and can sleep for weeks in a state called “torpor”. This is not true hibernation as raccoons will come out and forage on mild winter days.
Amphibians and reptiles
Look for snakes and turtles basking in the sun. Soon snakes will travel to their hibernating places and turtles will burrow into the mud of riverbanks and lake bottoms. Snakes hibernate in large groups sheltered by rocks or in caves. The hibernating place is called a “hibernaculum”, which is Latin for “tent for winter quarters”.
Insects
A few late Monarchs move through going south to Mexico. Green Darner dragonflies migrate, too – look up in the evening to see swarms of them on the move. They sometimes migrate with hawks, which doesn’t always work out well for the dragonflies as the hawks eat the dragonflies! And look for Goldenrod Soldier Beetles . . . on still-blooming goldenrod plants!
Plants
Most wildflowers are done blooming, but several varieties are still flowering. Take a hike and look for Sky-blue Asters, Flat-topped White Asters, New England Asters, White Snakeroot, Canada Goldenrod, Showy Goldenrod, Blue Vervain, and Sawtooth Sunflowers. Sawtooth Sunflowers grow up to six feet tall!
Weather observations
Here are some weather observations for this week from past years.
| Friday, September 20 | 2023: 80° and sunny; 2022: hot and humid, record high of 92°; 2018: record rainfall of 3.28” |
| Saturday, September 21 | 2019: quarter inch of rain, high in low 70s |
| Sunday, September 22 | 2020: high in low 80s, sky hazy with smoke from wildfires |
| Monday, September 23 | |
| Tuesday, September 24 | 2017: record high of 90° |
| Wednesday, September 25 | 2022: Breezy and in the 60s; 2018: rain off and on throughout the day |
| Thursday, September 26 | 2016: gusty winds with high in the 60s |
Photo/Image credits
All photos copyright Nina Manzi, except:
- David Brislance, MN Conservation Volunteer: Northern Flicker
- Keith Henjum: Raccoon
- Dean Lokken: Canada Geese
- Gary Sater: Pied-billed Grebe, Wood Duck
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