April Snow brings Spring Visitors

Today (April 2nd) I awoke to a heavy wet snow falling. The temperatures seemed fairly warm at around 35 degrees. There was a slight wind blowing. I could tell by the conditions once the snow stopped falling it wouldn't stick around long, the ground is too warm and air temperature is rising rapidly. I could hear a lot of bird activity going on outside my window. I could not believe my eyes when I opened the front door. There were birds everywhere. So many different species all converging on the bird feeders. Fighting for their turn to eat. I took pictures of many of them, but unfortunately I had to take the pictures through the glass of the door and they are somewhat fuzzy or blurry. Each time I tried to sneak the door open they would fly off in a frenzy. So this was the best I could manage. Hopefully they are clear enough to show the diversity of the individuals that visited today. I counted Harris Sparrow, Red-Wing Black Birds, American Goldfinches (males and females), Juncos, House Sparrows, Northern Cardinals (males and females), Grackles, American Robins, Northern Mockingbird, Downy Woodpecker, White-Breasted Nuthatch, and Black-Capped Chick-a-dee. Seemed the wet snow was triggering their appetites.

Robin...Harbinger of Spring?

Most of us grew up hearing from our parents or our grandparents something similar to "The Robins have arrived it must be spring" Many of us still believe that, and will defend our right to believe it to the death or at least to the very extent of arguing about it. I will set the record straight....no, it does not mean that spring has arrived with the first spotting of the robin. In fact those robins have been around all winter...well, maybe not those exact same robins, but certainly robins. In all probability the robins we had around all spring and summer did migrate a little further south, but then the ones who reside up north came south to our area, so in effect we have robins year around. For most of us seeing these lovely singers, brightens our spirit and represents the ending of a long cold winter. Even though I know they are here year round, I will stick to my right to believe that spring is right around the corner.

Baby Robin

This young fledgling left the nest and stayed near our chicken coop for several days, the parents came frequently and fed him (or her) and made sure he was safe. Often he would hide under some overgrown flowers nearby and come out when he heard his parents.