blizzard and frost depth

Another 10 inches of snow!  And blizzard winds.  The birds that ventured out of their shelters for food had to contend with lousy weather.  This female Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis was windblown and swinging while eating safflower seeds from the hanging tray feeder.  

Because so much insulating snow came down early in November and piled up repeatedly throughout winter . . .  soil frost depth is minimal at this time.  With all the moisture in the ground, it should be a good year for wildflowers!

log in deep snow

The pond is covered by more snow than we have seen at one time in the last decade. This area has an average of about 50 inches of snow each winter season. By the end of January, we had more than that.  The log and the big rock are barely visible, but we can see many tracks of the critters who walk about.

bird tracks

 

logs in snow

The logs on the edge of the pond are partly submersed for the critters to use them in many ways spring, summer, and autumn  . . .   to watch for prey in the water below, to watch for dragonflies flying above, or merely take a nap in the sunshine.

This winter, after several snowstorms, the logs are all under an icy blanket.  Even the big rock, which we use to gauge the water level, is under snow.

first snow 2022

Snow overnight. The log is totally exposed, because we are down more than 8 inches of precipitation.

ice holes on pond

Cold, grey, blustery weather on the pond.

The water is covered by a thick layer of ice and snow drifts. Where the ice is visible between the drifts, a few holes break the smooth solid sheet. These seem to form where plant matter floating close to the surface or a submerged rock interrupted the process of liquid freezing to solid.

log in snow drift

We call the log near the shore of the pond  'turtle log'.  

Now it is buried in a snow drift.  It is curved, and usually emerges above the water or ice at least 18 inches.

Twenty inches of snow fell on the pond in this one early-winter storm. 

log in first snow

Overnight, we had the first snow of this season.  On the pond, the water is high and the log was frosted with a little coat of white 'frosting'.  The reeds are still green, but weakening and leaning sideways with the weight of moisture.  The turtles who sun themselves on the log in summer are hibernating now. (see Surviving Below Freezing, 10/31/2020)  

ironweed in winter

 

tracks, cracks, marks, mysteries

Snow overnight.  A thin sheet of ice on the pond beneath the slush.  Wonderous tracks and marks this morning.  Maybe the muskrats, or the mallards, or other birds, or the mice or voles?  Maybe all of them, cavorting at dawn!  Tracks in a row, wandering.  Slide marks in the slush like a runway with bunched snow at the end.  Cracks expanding in the ice, icy fingers spreading both black and white!

 

thistle

We have been watching this thistle plant, while removing the other "field" thistles from the wetland area.  Probably 'Musk Thistle' Carduus nutans, or ‘Plumeless Thistle’ Carduus acanthoides, the seed germinated last summer.  It over wintered as a rosette protected by leaf litter and a cover of snow.

We noticed this rosette among the ground clutter after the snow melted.  Through May, it resumed vegetative growth.  It is growing tall now, and branching out to produce numerous large flower heads.
This particular plant is just a lot of green now, hiding among more green.

But when it finally blossoms, you will not be able to miss the deep purple magenta flowers!

After blooming and setting seed the whole plant will die, thereby completing the life cycle.
But this plant can produce 120,000 seeds that could germinate this season and form little rosettes to wait out winter.  Rather than allow this species to spread and become a nuisance in the pond area, DNR recommends control before flowering.  We will enjoy the beginning of flowering and try to cut off development of any seeds.

Chickadees at feeder over the pond

Black-capped Chickadees stay in Minnesota all winter.  They eat seeds and insects or larvae when they can find any.  They come to feeders where I offer sunflower seeds, safflower seeds, and peanut chips.  This feeder hangs over the pond with an extra branch for the birds to perch on.

From November to April I watch, count, and report the birds I see as a citizen scientist.  Cornell Lab of Ornithology is replete with data and information about birds.  https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home

This pond is covered with snow, and a layer of ice under that.  The turtles are hibernating below in the mud.  The muskrats are snug in their burrows.  It looks quiet and peaceful on the pond, but there is a lot going on in all seasons.

snowy pond February

How different the same view looks in winter! Still, we see evidence of critters who live at the pond by their tracks in the snow.

feeding birds on the pond

Chickadees, house finches, juncos, and even downy woodpeckers venture out of the trees nearby to take seed at the feeder next to the pond.

sparkly snow on seedhead

photo by Julie Pritschet

snow birds

Robins returned to the wild wild woods; they heard it is now "astronomical spring".  

a murder of crows

This hawk was gliding over the feeder garden looking for breakfast.  The American Crows, who had been snatching peanuts from the tray feeder, gave chase.  The hawk landed on a nearby roof.  The crows dive-bombed in an effort to scare the hawk away.  The hawk calmly waited, squawked a few times, then lifted off towards the river for a better chance at hunting.

snow on Joe Pye Weed

The seedheads of Joe Pye Weed stand at the edge of the woods. When nibbling these seeds, the Goldfinches nearly disappear by blending in with the dried leaves and seed pods.  With a blanket of sticky snow, the pods became "cotton balls" overnight!

insulation for insects

A fallen tree in the wild wild woods has become a feeding trough for critters and birds. 
(See "insect picnic" posted on 7-20-15)
Now, after a few more inches of snow, any insects or larvae still nestled in the trough will be cozy with a white blanket to insulate them; later, the birds will surely find nourishing meals there.

critter tracks

Now that some snow blankets the ground, we can easily see tracks in the woods.  Rabbits, grey squirrels, red squirrels, mice, chipmunks, various birds, and white-tailed deer left tracks -- visible today as the sun lowered in the west.  Even the neighborhood cat made her mark while searching around the brush pile.