After many days of raw and cool weather, the sun has graced us once again.
The stray snowflakes that taunted us less than a week ago have been replaced by 90 degrees. It is hard to get a handle on where we are in the natural scheme of things as we scratch our heads and wonder, “Where is Spring?!” The wildlife seemingly just takes it in stride and follow their inner workings...
Only recently the warblers have been joined by Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and the greening woods echo with new birdsong each day. Early this morning I heard the dulcet tones that I eagerly await all winter to hear. A male Wood Thrush is practicing the first notes of the season. In a few days the full repertoire will performed and at early morning and early evening until late August I will be aurally transported to heaven by his recital…
The peepers keep up a steady chorus throughout the evenings now and the owls enter in from time to time with unexpected vocalizations from a nearby branch that can literally startle me awake. I laugh at the absurd and exotic calls loudly proclaimed and listen for the response from deeper in the woods.
How wonderful it is to have windows open again and to hear the stirrings of life all around. This is the reward for living in a rural area and surviving the challenges of winter in New England…. a deeply satisfying one that is worth the price in my book (though whining does occur in those last few weeks…)
The hummingbirds are yet to arrive, though last night, a raccoon helped himself to the nectar I have had waiting and tipped over the birdbath to boot.
I suspect he is the same little guy who curled up on my doormat to escape the slushy snow and sticky mud weeks ago to nap in full sun.
The uniquely eerie squeals of black bear cubs scampering after their mother were heard on the evening of April 12th, the exact date that I have recorded for the last few years.
It is comforting to note some familiar patterns in these topsy-turvy times.
Usually by the end of May I manage to get photos of these shy creatures as they check out the birdfeeders in the noonday sun. Only a few visits and they will silently disappear back into the woods.
This year even skeptical friends admitted that the enormous impressions deep in the boggy backyard could only have been made by a moose. Now that would be a sight I’d love to see…
It is hard to believe that a full turn of the year has come to pass since I started this little blog last April. The blackflies are popping faster than the daffodils at this point and who knows what the weeks ahead will delight us with.
Thanks to each of you for stopping by from time to time to see what’s happening here in the hills and here's wishing you happy sightings of the wondrous things in your own backyard!
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