This year was almost a year with out an autumn. In fact it may go down in the record books as a year that went from summer to late summer then late, late summer then right into winter, skipping right over fall.
It all started with warmer than usual temperatures in October and basically no early winter storms blowing out of Canada. The effect of this autumn weather pattern meant that the flocks of migrating waterfowl stayed up north in Canada longer than usual. Instead of the usual flocks of migrating ducks, what was left were resident flocks of Canada Geese and a few scattered Mallards moving from around lake to lake. Now that the cold weather is upon us the ducks are on the move and it appears they will not be stopping, leaving us with an autumn without any ducks.
From points further north, the Tundra Swans are also running late or are non existent. A swan that nests on the tundra of northern Alaska and Canada the Tundra Swan migrates diagonally across North America and makes frequent stops in the Dakotas, Minnesota and Wisconsin. This year in stead of flocks of thousands of white swans resembling a snow storm blown in on the wind, we have only seen a light dusting of these huge white birds. They too will blow on through on their way to the east coast forsaking us for this autumn.
However, arriving much earlier than usual, some parts of the upper Midwest are seeing an invasion of northern owls. These include the Great Gray Owl and the Northern Hawk Owl. These predators of the north woods are moving in large numbers not seen in many years. These owls don’t migrate in a predictable pattern each autumn like the ducks and swans, but rather irrupt out of their natural range and move south only in years of short food supply. Apparently there has been a crash in the vole population in Manitoba leading to this early visitation. This situation is being monitored closely to document the extent of this owl invasion.
The nonexistent autumn affected more than just the avian world. Mammals were also influenced by the lack of autumn. The White-tailed deer rut (breeding season) seems to be extended a few weeks longer than usual. While a few individuals may still be in rut in late Nov and early Dec in normal years, this year many field observations seem to indicate more breeding activity is taking place later in the season. Why this is can only be speculative at this point.
So now that winter is upon us what can we expect? Well, knowing nature, the only thing we can expect is the unexpected. When will we learn that Mother Nature is dynamic and ever-changing. Nothing in nature is regular and predictable, despite how much we think we know and understand about nature. However, that is what I find so interesting about being a wildlife photographer and naturalist. Everyday I go to work is different and unpredictable. Ain’t nature grand? Until next time…