Walking through the arboretum, it’s difficult to miss the many conifers planted across the grounds. On a closer inspection, one notices that many of these trees are full of cones. It appears that this year was another good year for cone production in southern Minnesota for pines, spruces, and firs. Last year saw a bumper crop of spruce cones, particularly that of the white spruce (Picea glauca), which attracted flocks of White-winged Crossbills on their once-every-two-decades-or-so irruption into southern Minnesota. While we may not see the crossbills again for a while, it will be interesting to see what wildlife is attracted to this year’s bounty.

Douglas Fir cones in conifer garden southwest of Interpretive Center, 11/17/09.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- Pileated Woodpecker seen flying over Arb on 11/17 and heard “clucking” from large trees near President’s House on 11/19: these are the first sightings of our largest woodpecker on campus since before the tornado in 1998!

- 2 adult Bald Eagles soaring and vocalizing high above campus 11/17

- Late Golden-crowned Kinglet heard calling in conifer garden southwest of Interpretive Center 11/17

- Late White-throated Sparrow eating seeds under feeders behind Interpretive Center 11/16

- Late Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel seen foraging in lawn area west of Interpretive Center 11/16

……

**Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, the next scheduled update of “Arb Sightings” is Thursday, Dec. 3.

Due to the warm weather, there has been significantly reduced activity in the Bird and Butterfly Garden; instead of hanging around the seed feeders, most of the birds are elsewhere in the arboretum finding seeds, nuts, and even insects. Warmer weather means that the birds don’t have to work as hard to keep their core temperatures warm, and thus they don’t need to consume as much food. Squirrels have been busy as well on these warm days, caching their seeds and nuts for winter storage. Many of their leaf nests are visible at the tops of bare deciduous trees in the Arb, as nearly all of the non-oak leaves have fallen and are now cluttered on the still-green lawn.

The scenery behind the Interpretive Center, 11/12/09.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- 4 Bald Eagles flying over Interpretive Center 11/8

- Cedar Waxwings feeding on highbush cranberries behind Interpretive Center 11/11

- Late Yellow-rumped Warbler foraging in highbush cranberry behind Interpretive Center 11/11

- Several small grasshoppers still present along walking trail near Borgeson Cabin 11/9

With the warm temperatures have come warm fronts from the southwest, which equates to windy days here on top of the Minnesota River valley. Most of the leaves from the Arb’s deciduous trees have fallen in the past week except those of the oaks (which may hold on to their leaves into early spring); the basswoods, whose foliage was still relatively green and lush at the end of last week, are now looking quite bare. Besides the still-green lawn, the only other green color left in the Arb is that of our evergreen conifers.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- Bald Eagle flying southwest over Coneflower Prairie 11/5

- Cooper’s Hawk hunting south of Borgeson Cabin 11/5

Cooper's Hawk in crabapple tree south of Borgeson Cabin, 11/5/09.

- Sharp-shinned Hawk hunting behind Interpretive Center 11/4

- 3 American Badger holes discovered in lawn west of Interpretive Center 11/2, followed by an impressive 16! the following day 11/3

- Late Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel foraging in lawn north of Interpretive Center 11/5

- New York and New England Asters still blooming in Bird and Butterfly Garden behind Interpretive Center 11/5

It appears that we’re going to end October just a quarter of an inch short of the rainfall record for the month; yesterday we received another half inch or so of rain. Finally, though, the forecast for the next ten days predicts more sunny and dry days than cloudy and rainy, and we might even see temperatures above 50 degrees Fahrenheit on several days.

This past Monday and Tuesday saw high temperatures approaching 60 degrees Fahrenheit, a brief reprieve from the cool, rainy weather we’ve been experiencing for most of the month. Such warm, mid-fall days are termed “Indian Summers,” although generally these warm periods tend to last for more than a couple days. Another characteristic of Indian Summers is the hordes of Asian ladybird beetles and boxelder beetles that can be seen flying about and covering south-facing windows. These bugs can be found throughout the spring, summer, and fall in small numbers, but on warm fall days they tend to congregate and disperse to new locations in search of overwintering sites (such as your house). Earlier this week it was difficult to walk outside without having these two species land on some part of your body.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- Cedar Waxwing flock (numbering near a hundred) feeding on European mountain-ash berries west of Interpretive Center 10/26

Cedar Waxwing feeding on European mountain-ash berries west of Interpretive Center, 10/26/09.

- Juvenile Cooper’s Hawk hunting small birds near Interpretive Center 10/28

- Thirteen-lined Ground Squirrel stuffing cheeks with sunflower seeds below bird feeders behind Interpretive Center 10/26

- Red and Gray Squirrels caching acorns throughout Arb 10/28

- Oak collection in peak fall color 10/24-28

- Basswoods behind Interpretive Center still showing mostly green foliage 10/30

Just about all the plants have finished flowering, although there are still a few residual New England Asters that appear to be staunchly defiant of the unseasonably cold weather. Most of the trees, including the oaks and lindens, have begun to show fall coloration, and many of the maples are now looking rather bare. The tamarack plantation near the Jim Gilbert Teaching Pond is exhibiting its classic fall “smoky gold” coloration; these trees are among the most beautiful in fall.

Tamaracks near the Jim Gilbert Teaching Pond, 10/20/09.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- Northern Short-tailed Shrew foraging near Bird and Butterfly Garden 10/16

- Cedar Waxwing flocks feeding on (possibly fermented) highbush cranberries and European mountain-ash berries 10/20

- White-crowned Sparrow at feeders behind Interpretive Center 10/19

- First Pine Siskin of the fall at feeders behind Interpretive Center 10/19

- Ginkgoes near Interpretive Center bare of 95% of their leaves 10/22

- Delphiniums in Thornberg Perennial Garden still blooming 10/22

The scenery behind the Interpretive Center on Monday morning, 10/12/09.

High temperatures this coming weekend are forecast to be in the low to mid-50’s, but so far there is no hint of an Indian Summer in the next ten days. It also appears that we’re in for more rain next week, so keep that umbrella handy.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird last seen at feeder 10/12 (even after sugar water had frozen solid on 10/10!)

- Female Purple Finch at sunflower feeders behind Interpretive Center 10/14

- Great Horned Owl flushed from deciduous trees north of Borgeson Cabin Tuesday evening 10/13

- Tamaracks near Jim Gilbert Teaching Pond starting to show golden-yellow coloration 10/14

- New England Asters still blooming in Bird and Butterfly Garden 10/15

- Ginkgo leaves first observed falling north of Interpretive Center 10/10

Maples are currently in their peak fall color; the maple collection near the Borgeson Cabin is absolutely stunning right now. Interestingly, on this day last year, the red coloration seen in maple leaves then appears to be the same shade of red as today’s leaves, suggesting that the trees are very closely following last year’s progression schedule.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird coming to hummingbird feeder in front of Interpretive Center 10/8 (more than a week later than last year’s late date of 9/30)

- Red-breasted Nuthatch coming to sunflower feeders behind Interpretive Center daily since last week (photographed here on 10/5)

Red-breasted Nuthatch at sunflower feeders behind Interpretive Center, 10/5/09.

- Both Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets in deciduous woods north of Borgeson Cabin 10/7

- Late monarch butterfly seen flying south near Interpretive Center 10/7

- Darner dragonflies migrating south near Jim Gilbert Teaching Pond 10/7

- Stella D’Oro daylilies still blooming in perennial gardens near Interpretive Center 10/8

On Monday, September 28, strong winds out of the NW gusted to over 40 mph, blowing many leaves off the trees and furnishing the first significant  cold front of the season in southern Minnesota. With these winds came migrating birds, particularly raptors. In two hours of hawkwatching in the Arb Monday afternoon, the following species were observed flying southeast with the strong winds:

Turkey Vulture – 3

Sharp-shinned Hawk – 2

Broad-winged Hawk – 6

Swainson’s Hawk – 1 (new species for the Arb!)

Red-tailed Hawk – 10

Merlin – 2

Also of note was a large flock of 52 Turkey Vultures flying south last Friday afternoon 9/25. Surprisingly, a single Peregrine Falcon was mixed in with the group. Another Peregrine Falcon was observed flying over campus (this time at much closer range) on the afternoon of Wednesday 9/30.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- First Dark-eyed Juncos of the fall seen 9/29 near the Interpretive Center (one day earlier than last year)

- Gray Squirrels seen caching hickory nuts near Borgeson Cabin 9/29

- Flock of 1,000+ Franklin’s Gulls flying low over campus 9/28 (against 40+ mph wind!)

- Spreadwing (a type of damselfly) sp. photographed near Jim Gilbert Teaching Pond 9/29, establishing the first photographic record of this genus (Lestes) in Nicollet County

Spreadwing sp. (genus Lestes) on European larch near Jim Gilbert Teaching Pond, 9/29/09.

Right now in the Bird and Butterfly Garden you’re very likely to see two animals: 1) a bumblebee (they are covering the asters right now) and 2) a House Finch. The females and young males generally don’t look to exciting in their drab brown, streaky plumage, but they are outnumbering any other birds coming to the feeders ten to one.

Here are some other highlights from this week in the Arb:

- White-lined Sphinx moth nectaring on petunias in front of Interpretive Center 9/23

White-lined Sphinx nectaring on petunia in annual graden in front of Interpretive Center, 9/23/09.

- Red-tailed Hawk perched on top of shelter outside Interpretive Center 9/19

- First Ruby-crowned Kinglet in Arb 9/21

- First large flocks of Canada Geese heading south 9/23

- Acorns readily dropping from oak trees 9/22

- Three Northern Leopard Frogs sitting on lily pads in Waterfall Garden outside Interpretive Center 9/22

It’s uncertain how this unseasonable weather is affecting plants and animals in the Arb. Leaves are beginning to turn various shades of red and orange, and asters and goldenrods in the Uhler Prairie are on schedule in full bloom. At the same time, bird migration seems to be lagging a bit this year, with several species usually present by now yet to be sighted this far south. Monarch butterflies can be seen flying south, but there hasn’t been any strong north wind yet to encourage the “big push.”

Here are some observations from this week in the Arb:

- Maples starting to show fall color in maple collection south of Borgeson cabin

- Gray Treefrog sitting on leaves of Blue Salvia in Herb Garden 9/17

- Vesper Sparrow in treeline between Coneflower Prairie and deciduous woods 9/16

- Apples near Borgeson cabin ripe and ready for picking 9/16

- Red-breasted Nuthatch coming to sunflower feeders behind Interpretive Center 9/15

- New England Asters blooming in gardens around Interpretive Center and attracting many pollinators (bees) 9/14

New England Aster blooming in Bird and Butterfly Garden, 9/14/09.