Day lengths are going to get noticeably shorter, and yes, air temperatures will begin to decline a bit and even provide us with a bite of cold. September is here and with it, soon to come that special day called Autumnal equinox, the first day of fall on Sept. 22. The word equinox refers to equal day and night length.

The actual day length for us Marshall County folks on the 22nd will be 12 hours and 10 minutes. Sept. 1 has a day length of 13 hours and 9 minutes. By the 30th, the day will be only 11 hours and 48 minutes.

It is also interesting to note these historical facts of past Septembers in Iowa. For instance, on Sept. 16, 1881, snow fell with 6″ of measured white precipitation in western Iowa.

On the flip side of cold was hot, in the year 1953 at Glenwood, when the thermometer reading was 103F. The average first killing frost date for northern Iowa is Sept. 23.

PHOTO BY GARRY BRANDENBURG — Deer explore the now low water flows and sand bars of the river.

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Shorter days are an important signal to many birds, begin your journey southward toward warmer parts of earth’s surface. Among the reasons to fly south is the availability of food. Eating is important to life.

Finding either insects, berries, fruits or other prey species is a never ending task. Success comes to all forms of bird life by their abilities to relocate to other regions of the globe. As the migration of birds builds, the Iowa River Valley will be just one natural landscape corridor birds will follow.

For people who love to watch birds, and migrating birds of prey in particular. you should make a date to join others at Grammer Grove on Sept. 16 during lunch times for a Hawk Watch. Grammer Grove is one of the Marshall County natural areas they maintain for public recreation

and nature studies.

PHOTO BY CAITLYN BARKER —Sandhill Cranes gather at Cramer’s Field at Fairbanks, Alaska every year in the spring and fall. These large birds are feeling the urge to migrate as day lengths become shorter. Many of these cranes will overwinter in New Mexico near the city of Socorro at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.

A special part of mid September is the distinct possibility of seeing hundreds of migrating Broad-winged Hawks in the air. Bring binoculars and a comfy lawn chair to share time with bird enthusiast Mark Proescholdt.

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Duck population counts are made every year by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They call it the 2024 Waterfowl Population Status Report.

It is a compilation of surveys of wetland ponds and species population estimates in both the United States and Canadian provinces. Survey data is obtained from both ground workers and from airplanes flying specific routes over Prairie Pothole regions of North America.

There were some duck species showing increases, others steady, and few with slight decreases. Overall, compared to the 2023 census for all ducks, the numbers are up a bit.

In 2023, 32.305 million ducks were tallied. In 2024, that number was 33.988 million, a five percent uptick from one year ago but still at a negative four percent from the long term average. Mallards were up, and so were American Wigeon, Green-winged Deal and Scaup. The species showing a slight decrease were Gadwall, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, Redhead and Canvasback.

Pond counts were part of these surveys. Since the Prairie Pothole country in the USA and Canada is a glacially derived landscape with many large, medium to small and even ephemeral wetlands, the ones holding water after drought conditions in some areas are an important indicator.

2023 pond counts were 4.975 million compared to 5.159 million in 2024. Good rains during April and May helped tip the balance for the better resulting in improved wetland abundance.

Ensuring good habitat for waterfowl is a key factor. The Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of North America’s northern Great Plains is that region. It is well known as the “Duck factory.”

Surveys over the PPR began in 1947 and is recognized as the most thorough and accurate survey effort. In addition to duck species, counts on geese and swans are also made.

With good data, effective conservation planning can be made for allowable harvesting.

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I watched the Raptor Resource Center’s recording of a Decorah bald eagle nest a few weeks ago. The tree mounted camera captured the moments leading up to the large nest breaking a supporting tree limb, and it toppled to the ground.

Two young eagles from this year’s hatch were perched nearby and skillfully escaped by flying away. The nest itself was huge, and since it grew in size each year from additions made by the parent eagles, it eventually became too heavy. Rain probably made it heavier.

As an update, earlier this week I watched a new Decorah video of work crews making and installing a new framework for a new starter nest in the same tree. Only this time a series of new steel and wooden beam frames formed the basis for a new nest.

Then a lot of the sticks and twigs from the fallen nest were returned to the new nest by people. They also added mulch and as a final touch, a few small trout from the nearby DNR fisheries hatchery.

There is an excellent opportunity and likelihood that the parent pair of eagles will call the new nest their own in 2025, to which they will add sticks and other items they deem necessary to customize the nest site. If so, a new brood of eaglets will be carefully watched from egg laying, hatching and growth next year while people from the entire world watch.

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Shooting sports are popular for many athletes. The USA teams did well at the recently held Paris 2024 Olympics. According to Joe Bartozzi, National Shooting Sports Foundation President and CEO, the NSSF is “immensely proud of the USA Shooting athletes for their remarkable achievements at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Their performance not only highlights their exceptional talent and commitment but also serves as an inspiration to millions of shooting sports enthusiasts across the country.”

USA team members are Vincent Hancock, who took a Gold in Men’s Skeet. Sagan Maddalena won a Silver in Women’s Smallbore Rifle. Conner Rince won a Silver in Men’s Skeet, and Austen Smith earned two medals in skeet as part of a team.

Katelyn Abeln made history in Women’s 25m Sport Pistol as the first woman to qualify for this Olympic pistol final. She placed eighth overall.

On the archery side of shooting sports, Arizona native Brady Ellison won a silver medal in the men’s category. His opponent from South Korea was the gold winner, which was determined by a shoot-off when at the end of regulation these individuals were tied. A one arrow shoot-off was the deciding factor in which the closest arrow to the center of the bullseye target would be the winner.

Both archers hit the center gold ring, but Ellison’s arrow was only a fraction of an inch too far off of the exact center. So he took the Silver medal. Congrats to all for a job well done.

Find video replays of these shooting sports Olympian competitions on your computer to see for yourself the excellent work team USA shooters accomplished.

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Garry Brandenburg is the retired director of the Marshall County Conservation Board. He is a graduate of Iowa State University with a BS degree in Fish & Wildlife Biology.

Contact him at:

P.O. Box 96

Albion, IA 50005