Full Speed Ahead
March 9, 2023
Spring is unsettled, moving, changing, growing, uncomfortable, magnificent, hold on to your hats, open your senses, take in the sounds, delight in the treasures, watch it unfold and take in as much as you can.
The changes have been fast and furious this week and the birds have been magnificent and generous. I’ve been walking, sitting still, listening and trying to remember the sounds I know are familiar but I haven’t heard for a while. I’ve taken thousands of photos. If only the other responsibilities of life would pause so I could sort through all the photos and write all the stories that are swirling through me too!
Life is always about choices and right now I’m so grateful I can choose to experience as much as possible. I make notes hoping I can decipher those later for stories. Aerosmith said, “I don’t wanna miss a thing” and Kenny Rogers said, “there’ll be time enough for countin’, when the dealin’s done.” Right now life is here, it’s present and I just want to soak it all in. So without further ado, here are some of the scenes of migration from my tiny dot in the very middle of the United States this week. It’s great to live in a “flyover” state!
Sunday morning (4/2/23) was cold and still. I wandered down what I call “the warbler trail” wondering how many of the songbirds might have arrived. I was delighted to find a Louisiana waterthrush singing away! I’ve rarely seen - never before heard - this bird but by his lovely song his membership in the warbler family was very clear. I didn’t know they nested here, but a local birder told me this species has nested in this spot the past two seasons. I hope he stays!
Several eastern phoebes were vying for nesting spots near the creek. Waterfront property is highly prized among feathered creatures too. This guy landed in front of me as if to say “you will take MY photo now Ms. photographer, waterthrush can stop hogging the limelight for a moment”.
Tuesday morning (4/4/23) was super windy, the kind of day I might not usually get many photos. It’s hard to find little birds in branches when the branches are all moving! But spring being spring it had a surprise up its sleeve. As I walked along one of the docks in the marina I inadvertently spooked a bird I hadn’t seen and certainly hadn’t expected. Luckily he didn’t go far and landed just a couple boat slips down.
There are times it takes my brain a minute to figure out what it's seeing, particularly when it is something I don’t expect to see. This was a black-crowned night heron! I have only seen one a handful of times, primarily at wildlife refuges, never up close and never with his “breeding plume”. This guy let me hang out with him for quite a long time. He wasn’t too thrilled with the tarps and boats banging around in the wind but he didn’t seem to mind me. He was still there when I left. I hope he found what he was looking for, even if it was just a quiet place to rest and hide from the intense winds.
Meanwhile on the main dock, the purple martins have begun setting up homes. They alternatively look like the feistiest birds you will ever meet or starry-eyed love birds as they rattle and click at each other. I took some videos of their sounds too, another project for that mythical “downtime” I imagine in the future.
The barn swallows are arriving as well and singing their songs just like everyone else! This guy was nice enough to pose after swooping over my head.
Wednesday morning (4/5/23) was cold after the winds and storms swept through. There were lots of little birds down by the creek, including plenty of ruby-crowned kinglets. The best thing about so many kinglets was the males were busy challenging each other so I got to see lots of flashes of that ruby crown! There were plenty of other small birds feasting on the tiny tree buds (and the tiny bugs that inhabit them) too:
Thursday through Saturday brought cold mornings, warm afternoons and lots more birds hanging out! (4/6/23 - 4/8/23).
An eared grebe visited this morning, another bird I rarely see. He was between me and the sunrise making it hard to show you his gorgeous breeding plumage. I did capture that plumage last year, you can see it here.
Substack is telling me this post has “exceeded the email limit” which only means it thinks I’ve added too many photos! Hopefully you’ll all forgive me if you have to click on it and view it in the browser (or the Substack app which is available for iOS and Android).
Have a fabulous week. May the treasures of spring bring you moments of delight.
If you enjoy the photos and want to receive them another 2x/week (with fewer words), consider becoming a paid subscriber for as little as $6, cancel anytime. Spring is a great time to do it, even for just one month!
I was able to see all the photos so more of a threatening warning than an outright ultimatum from Subtrack. Spring on the west coast has been very uncooperative and unruly until now, with 'now' suddenly and explosively arriving in full force and color. Such fun reading your week of ever expanding bird sightings and your accompanying musing on them.
I learn so much about birds from your posts, Karen ... thank you. Happy Spring to you!