“If you get quiet enough, you will hear that everything is speaking.” - excerpt from “Everything is Speaking” by Julia Fehrenbacher
Hello friends! As I mentioned on Sunday, I’m sending the posts that normally only go to paying subscribers to all of you this week in honor of my birthday. If you wish to receive these on an ongoing basis, you can subscribe here.
Sunrise, May 4, 2023
Hello friends! I chose the quote above because I’ve been walking through the trees for the last few weeks really trying to listen. I’ve been using the Merlin Bird ID app in “sound ID” mode and trying to match the sounds with birds. The most interesting part for me has been recognizing sounds I haven’t paid enough attention to before, realizing they are common and realizing they belong to birds I rarely see! It’s been fun to listen more deeply and start to hear more voices.
I have SO MANY photos right now, the hard part of these letters is choosing which photos to include. In honor of my birthday, I’m going with whimsical today - things that make me laugh! I hope you enjoy:
Remember my little black-crowned night heron friend? Well watch what this bird can do!
He has a telescoping neck! Is that not hilarious?!?
Imagine how useful this would be!
When birds do that weird eyelid thing…and mama pileated shows it so clearly! She's probably tired chasing those youngsters around.
Green herons always make me smile. They are so funny looking, they make a hilarious screeching sound and they too have telescoping necks.
Mr. Indigo bunting pretending to be shy, as if he hasn’t just chased off a competitor and been singing at the top of his lungs.
Little bird attitude from the pectoral sandpiper.
Yellow-billed cuckoos are the bird I associate with my birthday, as they are one of the last to arrive. Not only do they always appear to be smirking, but I mean, they make the most ridiculous sound. When I first saw one and understood that cuckoos were REAL BIRDS and not just birds in clocks (like the one that still hangs in my dad’s living room), I was shocked!
Killdeer might be the most ridiculous birds. They build their nest right next to a parking lot, then spend a month screaming at everyone who comes near. Dude, find a little more out of the way spot! I also laugh because when I was in kindergarten I used to walk all the way out to the edges of the fences at recess. There were killdeer out there, but since our school mascot was the roadrunner and I didn’t know any better, I thought they were road runners all through my childhood.
The double tail-bob strut, spotted sandpiper with his “shadow”, a semipalmated sandpiper.
I’m not quite sure what was happening here - avocet mayhem! I mean, any bird with a long, upturned bill and long blue legs has to be a favorite!
Perhaps the least sandpiper had a hiccup?
Barn swallow says, “you are one funny looking bird lady”.
I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s bits of humor with a side of beauty! Take good care friends.
I love the sound theme here! I have a toddler right now, and he is making me realize how much sound I tune out. What a bird chirps, he points. When a plane goes over, he points. When the heat goes on in our house, he points. When the wind picks up, he points. It makes me realize how very much I tune out.
This post made me happy. Plus it was a great bird lesson.
I love the sound theme here! I have a toddler right now, and he is making me realize how much sound I tune out. What a bird chirps, he points. When a plane goes over, he points. When the heat goes on in our house, he points. When the wind picks up, he points. It makes me realize how very much I tune out.