Moving Toward Spring

February is undoubtedly a winter month around here, but then March starts to bring the first hints of movement and growth, and now we're inching gradually toward spring. (It's coming!) I love getting to witness these scattered signs of the changing seasons. I have several sights to share from our home over the past month or so, and I'll start back in wintry February.

On February 21, I wandered into our woods in the afternoon sun and ended up admiring some little living things that I would probably overlook in other seasons. This fallen branch had quite a pretty collection of lichen (I'm guessing the bright yellow one is Common Sunburst Lichen, Xanthoria parietina):

And I noticed the delicate tracings of some species of liverwort (genus Frullania) on many tree trunks:

Here's a closer view of one of those liverworts; I wonder how long it took this tiny, tiny plant to grow to this size:

This moss looked especially green and fuzzy surrounded by melting snow:

This Black-capped Chickadee was checking out tree trunks, too, and it perched for a bit on an old, thick Virginia Creeper vine:

On February 27, I stepped outside the front door to see an immature Bald Eagle wheeling over the house -- what a big bird!

I also admired the sight of our Tulip Tree still carrying many of last year's dried seeds against the clear blue sky:

On March 5, there were hundreds of Snow Geese and Canada Geese streaming northward overhead in big flocks. Yes! Let the spring migration begin! I am so happy that our property is apparently right under a regular flight route, because I love seeing -- and hearing -- these travelers each year in early March. These flocks made such interesting patterns in the sky:

Here's another big flock, this one with all Canada Geese:

And here's a closer view of one of the Snow Goose flocks (with a couple of Canada Geese mixed in):

Meanwhile, a male Northern Cardinal sang out from the top of a big spruce tree in our meadow:

We've actually had a cardinal (or maybe more than one) singing around here since December this winter, which seems very strange to me -- I'm used to hearing cardinals starting up in February. I suppose they're really interested in establishing this territory this year. Go for it, cardinal!

In early March, I learned that the Entomological Society of America has adopted "Spongy Moth" as the new common name for Lymantria dispar (formerly Gypsy Moth), and yep, we've got this moth's spongy egg masses all over the trees in our front yard, after this invasive moth's big population boom last year; here's hoping we'll see a decrease in their numbers this year:

On March 6, I got to see a couple more cool birds flying overhead on a sunny and clear day. This Cooper's Hawk crossed over our house a few times; I love those puffy white feathers at the base of its tail:

And it was wonderful to see a Turkey Vulture in the sky again after their absence during the winter:

A wet snowfall on the afternoon of March 9 made for a really pretty scene on the steeply sloped woods across the street from our house:

Here's a closer view into those woods:

Our first Song Sparrow of the year arrived in the midst of this snow, and it dug a hole at the base of the feeders and spent quite a bit of time feeding on dropped seeds there; I don't think I've seen a sparrow in a little snow burrow like this before:

What an industrious little bird. It flew from its hole to a nearby shrub a few times while I watched through a window, and I can't help thinking it looks super grumpy in this picture:

The next day, it was nice to see our newly-arrived Song Sparrow (the same bird?) in the sunlight:

This White-throated Sparrow also posed for bit in a tangle of wild grape vines:

In the woods, at least three recently awakened Eastern Chipmunks were scurrying around a snow-covered bank:

And perhaps because of the extra moisture from the melting snow, the various mosses and lichens on tree trunks in the woods were looking especially bright and verdant this day:

Here's another scene of tiny mosses and lichens among the crevasses of an old White Pine's bark:

Many of the trees had fuzzy socks made of moss:

And this moss almost seemed to be pouring out of this tree:

Back at the house, the persistent snow cover that's been around for months was receding, and our first Snowdrop buds were peeking through:

Then a storm brought another foot of snow, delaying things a bit.... But spring is certainly coming. Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackles are back in the area and singing, and as I write this, we're having a stretch of 60-degree and sunny days. Right now, I can see nearly equal parts bare ground and snow, I hear a Song Sparrow singing, and a pair of Eastern Bluebirds are checking out our nest boxes. The Snowdrops are uncovered again and I think they'll open today, our first flowers of the year. Here comes spring!

Magee Marsh

I've been hearing a lot about the Magee Marsh Wildlife Area recently, and especially about its reputation as an amazing hotspot for migrating birds in May. This preserve is on the southern shore of Lake Erie, and as the high concentrations of birds pass through the area in the spring, so come the birders! There was a huge birding festival at Magee Marsh all last week. Since I'm not a big crowds person, I waited until this past Tuesday morning to go check this place out. And yes, it was pretty great; a bit crowded, but still fun! Long boardwalks wind through marshy forests with lots of low bushes that help bring birds down to eye level. It was cold, cloudy, and windy when I visited, and there weren't insane amounts of birds (it wasn't one of those heavy-bird days at Magee Marsh that I've read about, when birds are practically dripping from the trees). But there were many, many cool creatures to see!

One of the most interesting parts of the visit for me was getting to walk around in an area entirely populated with birders: all these people with their soft voices and reserved movements, pointing their lenses at spots of interest in waves. I walked by one clump of people who were all staring at the base of a tree and passing around the word "Gray-cheeked Thrush," and yes, there it was (a bird I'd never seen before and would've had trouble identifying on my own). A few yards further along the boardwalk, another group was muttering "American Woodcock" and cooing happily whenever a new person managed to see the well-camouflaged bird; it was all super adorable, both the people and the bird:
 

An adult Bald Eagle perched in a nearby tree got a few points and exclamations, but it was much less of a celebrity than the woodcock:
 

So yeah, there are definitely some benefits to being around groups of other people looking for birds; I almost certainly wouldn't have noticed this slowly-moving woodcock on my own (it was trying really hard to stay hidden)! Most of the time, though, I did what I prefer to do, which is just wander around quietly on my own and see what creatures I can see.

Gray Catbirds were all over the place in these woods. This catbird was singing directly overhead near the boardwalk's entrance, and I got a clear view of the rusty feathers under its tail:
 

Gray Catbirds are quite handsome birds, and I'm glad they've returned for the summer:
 

This Eastern Kingbird was hunting for flying bugs at the edge of a small pond; I'd never noticed how beautiful these birds' wing feathers are, with those white outlines, although this individual's normally white-tipped tail was quite bedraggled:
 

Is it just me, or are those feet really small?
 

I love this bird's wide flycatcher beak:
 

Another Eastern Kingbird was hanging around on the beach. I think flycatchers look really cool:
 

Hordes of iridescent Tree Swallows were swooping through the air all along the beach, and this one paused to pick at something in the sand:
 

A flying Great Blue Heron strangely touched the water for a moment on the open lake, as if it thought about landing and then changed its mind; I love this dangling/dancing pose:
 

A male Baltimore Oriole lit up the overcast woods:
 

And I was surprised at how bright this American Robin looked; it's no oriole, but it's not too far off:

With so many leaves on the trees now, the smaller songbirds were pretty difficult to see! This Red-eyed Vireo only showed itself briefly:
 

And this is the best picture I got of a male Blackburnian Warbler who was working his way quickly through the trees:
 

Male Blackpoll Warblers showed up a few times, hunting for bugs in low branches:
 

It looks like this guy found something:
 

I love this warbler's stripey back:
 

Yellow Warblers were all over the place, males with their fancy striped chests:
 

And plainer (but still very bright) females:
 

This female was being chased by a couple of males, but she still managed to do some foraging:
 

Yellow warblers can look so cute from some angles:
 

My visit to Magee Marsh didn't yield the most birds I've ever seen, or the most amazing/impressive diversity, but it was still a great trip with lots of awesome creatures! I'm very glad I got to visit this place while I'm still living in the area.

May Yard Birds: Week 2 (Plus Driveway Bunnies)

May is just zooming by! The second week of May brought more avian visitors to our yard, and the resident birds have been busy establishing territories and raising families.

Our Eastern Phoebe neighbors have babies in their nest now! I haven't seen the chicks myself, but I've watched the parents travel back and forth from the nest with food, so I can only assume there are hungry little creatures hiding in there:
 

One of the adult phoebes perched for several minutes near one of our windows, giving us a great chance to admire this handsome bird:

That's definitely some sort of small meal item in its beak:

Even aside from the fact that there are Eastern Phoebe babies on the back of our house, it's been such a treat to have these adults constantly flitting around and catching bugs nearby. I do love these charismatic little birds.

I've seen a male Ruby-throated Hummingbird perched on the power line along our driveway a few times now; this looks like such a strange setting for this tiny bird:
 

But I guess it's a nice vantage point from which he can survey his territory and flash around his super-bright throat feathers:
 

The Barn Swallows are back (probably nesting in a neighbor's barn) and I love watching them zoom around in the open air above the fields:

Swallows are so cool (and so hard to photograph!):

Speaking of birds in flight, this adult Bald Eagle made quite a sight wheeling over our yard:
 

At ground level, I watched an American Goldfinch nip a dandelion stem so it fell over:
 

He then proceeded to munch on the dandelion seeds; I didn't know that goldfinches made use of this extremely common and early seed source, but it's cool that they do:
 

Song Sparrows continue to sing their frilly songs:
 

And I was delighted to meet this gorgeous White-crowned Sparrow, an uncommon visitor to our yard, and presumably just passing through on the way to its northern breeding grounds:
 

Veering off the topic of birds, at least two Eastern Cottontails have become regular visitors along our driveway. I was surprised at how long this bunny stayed put while I walked by before it finally bolted:
 

The rabbit in this next picture is desperately hoping that you can't see it:
 

What a flat bunny:

I can't believe May's already more than half over! I'm very curious to see what happens in the rest of this awesome month.