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Tom Kalinowski

Tom Kalinowski is an avid outdoor enthusiast who taught field biology and ecology at Saranac Lake High School for 33 years. He has written numerous articles on natural history for Adirondack Life, The Conservationist, and Adirondack Explorer magazines and a weekly nature column for the Lake Placid News. In addition, Tom’s books, An Adirondack Almanac, and his most recent work entitled Adirondack Nature Notes, focuses on various events that occur among the region’s flora and fauna during very specific times of the calendar year. He also spends time photographing wildlife. Tom’s pictures have appeared in various publications across the New York State.

Nocturnal Nature: Skunks On A Night Hike

February 25, 2021 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

Hiking Thomas Mountain in Bolton Landing at nightWith plenty of snow on the ground and a full moon on Saturday, this weekend promises to be one of those occasions when enough natural light will exist to venture outside and explore the nocturnal side of nature.

Taking a night time stroll can be quite exciting, especially during the latter part of February, as this is the time of year when the yelps and howls of the coyote, that signals the onset of its mating season, can often be heard. Likewise, both the red and gray fox will soon be entering their breeding periods, and their vocalizations may also break the stillness of the night.

[Read more…] about Nocturnal Nature: Skunks On A Night Hike

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: hiking, nature, small mammals, Wildlife, winter

Deep Snow And White-Tail Deer Mortality

February 7, 2021 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

White-tail deer in winter Courtesy SUNY-ESFWith its long legs, the white-tail deer has the ability to travel through a snow bound forest when there is up to 12 to 16 inches on the ground. As the snow pack becomes denser, crusted, or deeper, the mobility of this hoofed creature becomes greatly restricted. [Read more…] about Deep Snow And White-Tail Deer Mortality

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: nature, weather, whitetail deer, Wildlife, winter

Daddy Longlegs During Winter

November 25, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski 1 Comment

Daddy Longlegs by Marcel ZurreckDespite frosts, there continue to be many types of bugs that remain active into late autumn around New York State.

Among these hardy invertebrates, and the ones that are quite conspicuous to anyone that spends time working in the yard, garden or on the wood pile, are the harvestmen, known to most as the daddy-longlegs. [Read more…] about Daddy Longlegs During Winter

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: insects, nature, spiders, Wildlife

That Late Season Moth: Fall Cankerworm

October 25, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

Alsophila-pometaria-US-Forest-ServiceFrom the onset of November, periods of mild weather become fewer and further between; however, there are always occasions when hats and coats can be left in the closet, and the fire in the woodstove can be allowed to die out for a day or two.

It’s during such balmy spells when several species of hardy moths take to the air and can be seen after dusk fluttering around a porch light or a window next to a lamp. These small, drab gray insects are all closely related, belonging to the Geometridae family of animals, and are best typified by the fall cankerworm (Alsophila pometaria). [Read more…] about That Late Season Moth: Fall Cankerworm

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: fall, insects, nature, Wildlife

Red-Spotted Newts In Autumn

September 28, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

Juvenile Eastern NewtEarly autumn is the time fog frequently shrouds valleys in the morning, and a heavy dew regularly coats unprotected surfaces for several hours after sunrise. As the atmosphere begins to cool with the change in seasons, moist conditions often develop at night and can continue well after dawn.

This is ideal for our various terrestrial amphibians, which require damp surroundings for their survival. Among the members of these moisture sensitive vertebrates is the red-spotted newt, a unique form of salamander that goes on the move as the foliage changes color. [Read more…] about Red-Spotted Newts In Autumn

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: amphibians, nature, Wildlife

Beavers Are Building Their Lodges

September 22, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

beaver lodgeAll mammals that employ the use of a shelter in winter instinctively attempt to find a place completely hidden from the view of humans for their home, except for one.

When the time comes in late summer or early autumn for establishing a protective enclosure for the coming season of cold, ice and snow, only the beaver places its residence in a spot that can be readily noticed by a person passing through the area. [Read more…] about Beavers Are Building Their Lodges

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: beavers, nature, small mammals, wetlands, Wildlife

Black-Capped Chickadees: Our Year Round Residents

September 20, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

black capped chickadeeAs many birds prepare to abandon their summer ranges at this time of year, others are altering their routine to allow them to better survive winter. The regular appearance of numerous, year-round avian residents around homes and camps suggests that the behaviors of these hardy species do not change from one season to another. [Read more…] about Black-Capped Chickadees: Our Year Round Residents

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: Bird Migration, birding, birds, nature, Wildlife

Birds Of A Feather Are Flocking Together

September 15, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

Flock-of-Birds-DEC-PhotoThis time of year is when the foliage begins to turn and when birds are more regularly seen in flocks, rather than individually, as they perch on a wire, forage in a field or fly across a road.

The territorial nature and belligerent behavior exhibited by adults toward neighbors from early spring through the end of the breeding season now fades like the chlorophyll in leaves during the latter weeks of September. Thus, a more gregarious lifestyle develops among the members of the same species and results in the formation of flocks for resting, foraging, traveling, and roosting at night. [Read more…] about Birds Of A Feather Are Flocking Together

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: birding, birds, crows, nature, waterfowl, Wildlife

New York Fish: The Redbelly Dace

August 15, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski Leave a Comment

Northern Redbelly DaceSummer is the season for being on the water, and a canoe or kayak is the perfect way to explore the many ponds, slow-moving rivers and marshes that exist throughout New York State. While these shallow, muddy-bottomed settings may not be great for swimming, the rusty-tan water occasionally covered with patches of floating leaves and strands of submerged vegetation does teem with life. Among the residents of these quiet, weedy waterways is the redbelly dace (Phoxinus eos), a common and widespread member of the minnow family of fish. [Read more…] about New York Fish: The Redbelly Dace

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, Recreation, Western NY Tagged With: fish, Fisheries, fishing, nature, Wildlife

In The Dirt: Earthworms and Drought

July 19, 2020 by Tom Kalinowski 1 Comment

Earthworm courtesy Wikimedia user ArunaHit and miss rain showers and scattered thunderstorms have provided much of the precipitation over the New York State during this past month.

This has allowed some locations to maintain an adequate level of soil moisture while causing conditions in other places to become especially dry. [Read more…] about In The Dirt: Earthworms and Drought

Filed Under: Adirondacks & NNY, Capital-Saratoga, Hudson Valley - Catskills, Mohawk Valley, Nature, New Exhibits, New York City, Western NY Tagged With: drought, gardening, Invasive Species, nature, Wildlife

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