Outdoors

Colder temperatures invite winter activities on Minnesota’s frozen lakes, but Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) officials are concerned that many lakes or aren’t ready for recreation.
On Dec. 7, an ice skater died after breaking through thin ice on Medicine Lake in Hennepin County.

“Lakes in many parts of the state had open water until a couple of days ago,” said Tim Smalley, DNR water safety specialist. “Then we got a few inches of snow, which slows down the freezing process and creates a hidden trap for people who venture out.”

A new lifesaving technique, plus the cooperation between officers of the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources recently saved a Sauk Rapids man from death when he fell through ice while ice-skating on the Mississippi River.

James Christensen, 62, had been in the water for about an hour on Nov. 29.

By Stan Tekiela

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about migration. At first blush, you might think migration is a simple and basic process, so much so that most people take it for granted and don’t give migration a second thought. Birds leave in the fall and return in the summer. Enough said, right? But that is not what I think of when I think of migration.

As the old saying goes, “birds of a feather flock together.” But have you ever stopped to think about why or how birds flock?

The term flocking is a general termed used to describe many reasons why birds gather in large groups. Some birds, such as crows, gather in large groups to roost at night during winter. This is certainly considered a flocking behavior. Shorebirds gather in large groups along shorelines to feed. This is definitely flocking behavior. And many birds gather in large groups for migration. This is the kind of flocking behavior I want to look at in this column.

By Stan Tekiela

There has been some interesting news lately concerning the world’s mammals. First the good news. There now seems to be a consensus on the number of mammals that inhabit the earth. It has been generally accepted that there were somewhere around 4,500 mammals walking the face of the earth.

A couple weeks ago, a new number was released and it seems the agreed number is now 5,487. It amazes me that we are still finding new mammal species on this planet ever since scientist started counting mammals back in the 1500s. It just goes to show how large and complex our world is.

Forty-two members of the Carver County Shooting Sports Project took part in the Minnesota State 4-H State Shoot recently in Anoka County.

They were just a part of over 840 youth from all over the state. The youth participated in all disciplines that are offered in 4-H. They did very well as individuals and as teams.

Pictured are, from left: Jake Bartz, Joe Bartz, Elizabeth DelMain, Ryan DelMain, Jan-Henrik Innvaer, Michael Lundeen, Clay Sauter, Cole Sauter, Emily Mae Stelten, Sara Stelten, John Stelten and Luke Stelten.