January NATURE NOTES
By Katie Andersen

Here are a few things happening in the natural world this month.

  • Rare gulls can be found along Lake Erie - check along Presque Isle Bay for some of the winter specialties like Iceland Gulls.

  • Ducks, loons, and swans will continue to stay around the county as long as water remains unfrozen. A family of Trumpeter Swans have been hanging around with Tundra Swans this winter at Presque Isle, so scan flocks carefully!

  • Black Bear cubs are born starting in late January.

  • Listen for Great Horned Owls duetting as they pair up for the mating season; males have deeper hoots and the females will have slightly higher pitched ones. They will be sitting on eggs by the end of the month.

Northern Shrike by Shawn Collins

  • Northern birds may continue to visit local feeders. Watch in particular for possible Pine Siskins and Red-breasted Nuthatches this year.

  • Keep an eye on pine trees with good cone crops for visiting White-winged and Red Crossbills this winter,

  • Saw-whet, Short-eared, and Long-eared Owls may show up. Using your binoculars to scan from a distance, carefully and quietly check stands of dense pines for these and other owls.

  • Northern Shrike are showing up in slightly higher than normal numbers this winter. Keep an eye out for these diminutive predatory songbirds.

Snowy Owl by Katie Andersen

  • There appears to be a small irruption of Snowy Owls in the eastern US and Great Lakes region this winter. Scan fields and beaches for any strays we may get this month.

  • Flocks of American Robins travel the area feeding on the fruits of various trees, shrubs, and vines. Yellow-rumped Warblers, European Starlings, and Cedar Waxwings may join up with these foraging flocks.

  • Winter provides the best conditions to create foraging flocks of Northern Cardinals. These territorial birds will gather briefly in foul weather, creating a beautiful spectacle at the feeders. As daylight grows and hormones surge, however, the flocks will break apart and their territorial behavior will resume.

  • White-tailed Deer bucks shedding antlers; breeding season ending.

  • As the days lengthen, Tufted Titmice and Northern Cardinals start singing, first with short versions of their songs and then in full song by late January or early February.

January 2025 Dates of Note