Checking Things Out

My friend Rosemary gave me a gourd birdhouse on St. Patrick's Day.  

I hung it in one of the Weeping Crab apple trees out front a few days later.

The next day a pair of Chickadee's started to investigate.

I see them going in and out - but only on sunny days.  

I suppose there is no way of knowing if it is the same pair.

Stay tuned.

Walkabout

Winter is not over, but the beautiful warm weather today offers a glimpse of spring.  

I took a walk around the yard this morning before the wind picked up.

The Snow Iris have pushed through the mulch.

Black Capped Chickadee

White Breasted Nuthatch

male Goldfinch - still in his winter garb

Snowdrops coming up under the Hydrangea

Hyacinth near the front door

One of two flies buzzing around the wildflower beds

Only one of the native bee nests remains untouched - so far.

The current Toledo Naturalists' Association newsletter has an article about one of our native bees, the Blue Orchard Mason Bee.

The female bee lays eggs in holes like these.  There may be as many as 6 in one hole, divided by mud walls.  

So, there is a chance that there are viable bees left to hatch this spring.

Daffodils pushing up through the leaves.  

The lighter colored greenery is Feverfew.  

The leaves of the Feverfew remain green most winters, following the soft rule that non-native herbaceous plants often remain green through the winter. 

This is helpful when trying to extirpate some of the more invasive non-natives, such as Garlic Mustard and Buckthorn.

I find the leaves and flowers of Feverfew attractive, however, and they are helping to stabilize the dry, wooded hillside, where not much else seems to grow.

More Florida Birds

Male Hooded Merganser just up from a dive

One male and two female Hooded Mergansers

Tricolored Heron

Pileated Woodpecker

Two Anhinga and several Herring Gulls

Hissy Fit

A few weeks ago we visited our friends at the home they rented in The Villages in Florida.  It was a  nice break from winter.  The bird watching was pretty good, too.

One late afternoon on our way to get dinner we spotted a pair of Sandhill Cranes feeding on a lawn.

As we rounded the corner we could see that a woman had come out her front door with two small dogs, ready for their walk.  

The pups spotted the cranes and went ballistic.

Rather than take flight, the cranes became alert, stretching to their maximum height.

They proceeded to have quite a fit, honking and flapping and hopping (the other crane was close to a street sign, which prevented attractive photos).

The woman wisely took her dogs in the opposite direction.

Changing Seasons

Our autumn and early winter were mild and colorful and wonderful.  

The big Black Oak by the patio

Fall color on the southern shore of the Maumee in the evening light

Hawthorne berries

Steam rising from the river with the first frosty morning

Finally, last Sunday, winter arrived.  

By yesterday morning the river had frozen, but warmer temperatures during the day resulted in a thaw this morning.  

I thought I had seen the last of the Herons, but I was wrong.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Last "Monitoring" of the Season

The plant monitoring season ended October 23.  

There wasn't anything to actually count, but we collected seeds for the Metroparks to plant and reintroduce to new park sites.

It was a beautiful morning.

Ostrich Barrens
You can just see the "blow out" on the right at the crest of the hill. 

Diane walking along the pipeline with Mary's Savannah on the right

Denise, Louise, Diane and Larry collecting seeds

Red Oak in Mary's Savannah

Red blueberry leaves under the Oaks in Mary's Savannah