Ken Lassman has been keeping this almanac for over a decade, He invites you to share your observations and photos in the comments section. You can find his book Wild Douglas County at The Raven Bookstore and The Community Mercantile in Lawrence.
Deer Mating Moon – October
The Osage called this time Deer Mating Moon to commemoratee the very noticeable ree-appearance of the bucks, who are beginning to “rut,” which they literally do with their hooves. They find a prominent place and scrape the groundcover clear of vegetation as part of their mating ritual.
Hackberry, ash, box elder and elm trees are the first to turn yellow this month, providing nice contrast to the reds of sumac, poison ivy and Virginia creeper as their green chlorophyll plays out leaving either the yellow or red chlorophylls to collect the shorter day’s sunlight. Mid-late month spells the end of the growing cycle for annuals with the first killing frosts coming then most years. Mid-month is a great time to find native prairie patches, looking for the coppery colored grasses that distinguish them from the greens of cool season grasses such as brome, fescue and, of course, wheat.
Bird migration is building all month, with seagulls that breed in Canada passing through the area, along with pelicans, geese, and various ducks. A trip to Clinton or any other area reservoir, or the Wakarusa Wetlands is almost always a rewarding outing, whether it be for the migrating fowl around sunrise or sunset, or the changing colors of fall. This is the favorite time of year for many folks who like to be outdoors–what are you waiting for?
Kaw Valley Almanac 
I am an avid follower of the Almanac since moving back to Jefferson County 4 years ago. For the first three years I had a pair of barred owls in my woods, and every evening in the warm months they would hunt in my yard every evening, even bringing their young. This summer I have heard or seen nothing of them at all. This concerned me since when I lived in PA, we lost all the great horned owls, who moved out due to the noise of fracking. There is not that problem here. Another friend who lives 10 miles north of me has also heard no barred owls this summer. Has anyone else experienced this? Of course the owls might have simply changed territory, but seems unlikely since we are near Lake Perry and there is ample habitat, and this property has over 40 acres of woods.
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I have not heard of any reduction of barred owl populations in eastern Kansas, rather my guess is that they seem to be increasing if anything. They do not necessarily stick around after breeding season. You might post your question to the KS Bird listserv or the Kansas Ornithological Society web site (www.ksbirds.org) or their page on facebook. Feel free to post again if you find out anything more or they return, and good luck!
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Saw your wonderful talk on climate change at library tonight and wish to download your handout.
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Sorry for the delay: it is available here online: https://kawvalleyalmanac.com/climate-change-online-resources/ and I keep it updated on a regular basis to make sure the links are still current, adding new resources as I run across the best new ones. If you want to download a copy, just “select” the text on that page, copy it, then paste it into a word processor of your choice and it should keep the clickable links when you do this. Or just bookmark the online link I provided at the beginning of this post and that way you can ensure that you have the latest updated links. Hope this helps!
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