Astronomy
For the first half of December look for bright Saturn high overhead after sunset. And the first two weekend of December bring great astronomical shows. On the 6th and 7th look for Jupiter near the Moon. And the next weekend, the 13th and 14th, is the Geminid meteor shower!. The Moon is close to new and will not interfere with viewing. Look in the northeastern sky, and if you’re in a dark area you could see up to 75 shooting stars per hour!
Birds
As long as there is open water on the St. Croix River, look for flocks of geese overhead in the morning and the late afternoon, and mallard ducks, mergansers, grebes, and other waterbirds on or near the water. In 2014 there were reports of over 500 mergansers on the St. Croix – that’s a lot of mergansers!!
Mammals
People used to think that when coyotes moved into an area they would kill any resident foxes in order to reduce competition for food. Recent studies have shown that to be true in rural areas, but not in urban areas. That’s because urban areas generally have an overabundance of prey – large populations of rabbits, mice, and the like due in part to humans providing a landscape with lots of forage. Urban areas also have lots of scavenging opportunities provided by roadkill, human garbage, and compost piles, which add up to more than enough food for both coyotes and foxes. So with regard to coyotes and foxes, is Afton more rural or more urban? To further complicate things, Afton may be home to both Red and Gray Foxes. Red Foxes have black legs, and a white tip to their tails, while Gray Foxes have orangish-red legs, and a black tip to their tails. Which species have YOU seen at Afton?
Trees
Eastern White Pines and Red Pines both grow at Afton. Pines have specialized leaves called needles, and grow cones that hold their seeds. The needles of the Eastern White Pine are about three to five inches long and in what are called “bundles” of five needles. The cones are four to eight inches long and slightly curved, with white at the tip of each scale. The bark of young trees is smooth, but that of older trees breaks into plates separated by furrows. Eastern White Pines grow to be 70 to 100 feet tall, and can live for 200 to 250 years! Eastern White Pines are the largest conifers in Minnesota, and a favorite place for bald eagles to build their nests.
The Red Pine is Minnesota’s official state tree. Red Pines grow to between 40 and 80 feet tall and often live for 150 to 200 years! They have reddish-brown bark in flat scales, and have small egg-shaped cones that are two to three inches long. The cones may hang on the tree for several years. The needles of the Red Pine are in bundles of two needles, and are four to six inches long and dark green. Red Pines look like they are reaching their branches up to the sky.
Mountain Ash trees have striking orange-red berries in the fall, which provide food for birds and mammals, including deer and overwintering robins. They have compound leaves consisting of 11 to 17 leaflets, and light gray bark that may be scaly in older trees. Mountain Ash are sometimes shrub-like with multiple trunks, seldom growing higher than 30 feet.
Weather observations
Here are some weather observations from Afton State Park from past years.
| Friday, December 5 | 2023: high near 40°; 2021: light snow overnight; 2001: record high of 63° |
| Saturday, December 6 | 2024: sunny early then gloomy, 20s; 2013: cold and clear, high in single digits |
| Sunday, December 7 | 2020: murky day in the low 30s; 2015: high of 46° |
| Monday, December 8 | 2024: above freezing overnight; ice melting in sunny areas; 2010: single digit overnight with fog rising off open water |
| Tuesday, December 9 | 2023: rain changing to snow, maybe ½” accumulation; 2020: 52° and sunny; 2012: record snowfall of 10.5” |
| Wednesday, December 10 | 2024: 20s and flurries; 2021: record snowfall of 11.0”, eclipsing old record of 1.8” set in 2013 |
| Thursday, December 11 | 2024: cold and blustery, falling below zero in evening; 2010: record snowfall of 16.3 inches |
| Friday, December 12 | 2024: sunny, cold and calm, single digits; 2012: mild and sunny, with the high in the 40s |
| Saturday, December 13 | 2014: high of 51° and foggy |
| Sunday, December 14 | 2010: single digits below zero |
| Monday, December 15 | 2024: light snow and rain early, melting later when temperature reaches into 30s; 2021: record high of 58°; much higher than the old record of 51° set in 2014; 2014: third consecutive day with highs above 50° |
| Tuesday, December 16 | 2000: record snowfall of 7.0 inches |
| Wednesday, December 17 | 2024: gray and cloudy, 20s; 2011: cloudy, high in 30s |
| Thursday, December 18 | 2000: record snowfall of 6.5 inches |
Photo/Image credits
All photos copyright Nina Manzi, except:
- Richard Hamilton, MN Conservation Volunteer: Red Pine silhouette
- Keith Henjum: Hooded Mergansers
- Bill Marchel, MN Conservation Volunteer: Coyotes
- Gary Sater: Mallard Duck, Red-breasted Mergansers
- John Watson, Trail Camera: Gray Fox
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