The Redwind blackbirds are back.  I heard them while walking outside
three days ago, in the country northwest of Lansing.  They are still
in large flocks, though.

102 responses total.

You beat me to it, Tom  :)

I noticed that my little patch of crocuses were in bloom yesterday.

Our cardinals chose not to overwinter this year, but they're back
now and singing up a storm.  The juncos have all left for the
arctic.  The kids are tracking mud everywhere they go.  Deer mice
are starting to wander into the house in search of food.  Speaking
of which, this is the leanest time of year for most animals.  Winter
stores are exhausted and nothing edible has sprouted yet.  Anything
you can do will be appreciated.

That's funny, i just saw my first red-wing blackbird of the year yesterday,
too. 
 This morning I heard sandhill cranes percolating in my field, as well.
 No sign of any crocus or other sprouts at my house yet, alas.

Hmmm...  At our feeders we still have plenty of juncos as well as tree
sparrows, which I've noticed come down from the arctic later and leave 
earlier in the spring than the juncos.  And as for cardinals, they, as
well as the house finches have been singing their "spring songs" since
about mid-late January.

   (Dairy Queen on Packard opened up)

   I heard a bird on 3rd street the other day.  I hadnt realized I
missed that until then.

  I haven't seen a red-headed woodpecker in a long time.  I see the
red-bellied a lot more these days, but no red-headed..  And it's been
ages since I saw a pileated woodpecker.

I saw a robin this morning.

I saw a song sparrow this morning.

I narrowly avoided several squirrels this morning.

 
 Why, do you owe them money?

Even worse - they were ex-lovers.

A bug in the front yard in suburbia!  Yeah!

I saw an earthworm, leaving a twisted trail in the snow, on a sunny
day early in January.

When I went out this morning, there were several robins sitting around
saying "What the *hell* happend to spring?"

Foul-mouthed fowl, eh?

I saw 6 cranes flying overhead this afternoon (State St. south of the airport,
heading west). I think they made a mistake coming back this early. They are
very elegant flyers.

Warbler migration has arrived!  Now *that's* a sign of spring.  Saw several
Yellow rumped (formerly Magnolia) warblers in my neighborhood.  Is any one 
up for a morning bird walk sometime soon?

 Me me me!!

Me too!  I just need some advance warning.

Ok, let's start with where and when?

  Next week the Baltimore orioles will start showing up.  Get your 
oranges ready now..

Is it next week yet?  Nancy and I saw one this morning while *we* were on
a bird walk.  (Did I get it right this time, Katie?)

I spotted one this morning on *The Walk*.

Is a bird walk anything like a catwalk?

I dunno, is it?

How about signs of summer?  Did anyone notice how warm the rain
was the last couple of days?

Yes, it was like bath water.  Last evening I busy studying something
in the yard when it evidently started to rain quite hard, but I must
not have noticed as next thing I knew John was bringing me an umbrella
and I was pretty much wet clear though.  This Duck Syndrome has nothing
to do with intellect and everything to do with water temperature.

I want to know how Josh's crown vetch is doing?  Also, how does 
Mike Smerza afford to feed birds all summer long?  (We're going
through 10 lbs. of sunflower seeds a week!)  To anyone: should 
I avoid planting foxglove and moonkshood if I have cats roaming
the yard (but not obviously eating anything but an occassional
nibble of tall grass)?  

Our crown vetch is both growing and dying.  We've had to replace 4 plants
already. Good thing they're guaranteed.

I'm about to stop feeding the birds (ok, mostly) in the next few days
after my mother goes back out to Colorado.  And keep your nose out of my
finances, Mary!

Another sign of summer:  the smell of barbeque.

OK, how about signs of fall?  The blackbirds are beginning to mass
in the big trees around the neighborhood.  This is the first year I
have noticed them doing it here on Arborview, but I have seen them
do  this around where I used to work.

It's amazing.  There must be thousands of them.

(When the buzzards start to mass around where you work, it's time
to start looking for another job...)

I did, I did. :)

Sure sign of fall: It doesn't get up into the 90s every day--though it's
still pretty humid and usually in the 80s.  

Though I did see some ducks this past weekend while in MI practicing
their V formations!

I refuse to have fall until we've had summer.  Tradition.

I think they decided not to do summer in Michigan this year.

 summer?  Whazzat?

We went apple picking and then on to the Yates Cider Mill today.

We went raspberry picking then bought cider and a doughnut at Lakeview
Farm just west of Dexter yesterday.  (Picked about 10 "short" quarts.  
They charge by the pound, so no use squashing the barries.)

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