varied thrush in Ely reports Marshall Helmberger

Marshall Helmberger reported this morning of a Varied Thrush siting in Ely.... Check out The TimberJay newspaper for more information!

Marshall also talked about ski conditions in Northern St. Louis County - they have about 3 inches and he's done a little skiing on the lakes.... see the new Ski Talk blog on our website.

John and Harry's Suggestions for Starting Your Own Phenolgy Journal

If you have been thinking about keeping a journal of the nature around you, here's a list of John and Harry's suggestions for things to look for when you are getting started. You can begin any time recording daily temperatures, snowfall amounts, birds at you feeders, and so on. This list includes things that are easy to spot and common benchmarks as the seasons change. A number of them are noticable as Winter gives way to Spring.

1. Right now, listen for the first fee-bee calls of the chickadees. They are beginning to think about setting up their territory for Spring.

2. Soon woodpeckers will begin hammering away their percussive beats, again an early sign of beginning to establish a Spring territory.

3. The emergence of the light green buds on the Trembling Aspen, usually in late April or early May, and two or three weeks before the Big-tooth Aspen.

4. The flowering of Cowslips, a.k.a Marsh Marigolds, in the ditches and bogs in early Spring.

5. The budding of Red Maples

6. The flowering of Wood Anemones

7. The arrival of Red Wing Blackbirds: easy to hear and easy to see.

8. The return of Redstarts, Yellow-Rumped, and Chestnut-sided Warblers

9. Ice-in or ice-out on area lakes: John has found Ice-in dates to be a more reliable benchmark; also keep track of the number of days your lake is covered with ice.

10. If you see a specific tree or plant everyday, us it as your personal measure of the changing seasons.

John and Harry's Phenology notes for Tuesday, December 18th

The Winter Solstice arrives this Friday. The sun sets about the same time this week. After this Friday, the 21st, the sun will begin to set a little later later each day. At first we only gain a few more seconds of daylight because the sun will continue to rise a little later each day until around January 1st. After that, the sun rises a little earlier and sets a little later each day until the Summer Solstice in June.

You can find more information about the solstice and other heavenly topics at the Earth and Sky web site and listen to Earth and Sky every weekday morning at 6:06 and 8:06.




Harry's top picks for birding field guides are the Sibley Guide for Birds of North America, the Fifth Edition of the National Geographic Field Guide for Birds of North America, and the large print edition of Peterson's Field Guide for Birds of Eastern North America for someone who has trouble with the small print in the regular field guides.

Harry Hutchins Gift Suggestions

Harry Hutchins gives us his gift suggestions this holiday season.

1. The Better World Shopping Guide by Ellis Jones

2. Don't Forget the Duct Tape: Tips and Tricks for Repairing Outdoor & Travel Gear by Kristin Hostetter -How to fix your outdoor gear in the field

3. National Geographic 5th Edition Field Guide to Birds of North America. Much updated with many new paintings, maps and all US birds. Birding hotspots also included.

4. Midwest Skiing - A Glance Back
A great set of pictures from Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois skiers.

5. Momentum: Chasing the Olympic Dream by Pete Vordenberg . Autobiography by former US ski team member and current head coach of his experinces from age 10 to present day. It is funny, a lot of UP stories and a great read.

6. 50 lbs of birdseed

7. Shopping bag - can be found at Ogle's in Grand Rapids, 2 for $3

What gifts do you recommend this holiday season?