Like a groundhog tentatively emerging from my winter den, I ventured out yesterday to enjoy our first official day of Spring.
The first stop on my trek was the big old garage out by the oil well. My first major discovery was a family of
Southern Flying Squirrels nesting in our woodshed. Although Flying Squirrels are Ohio's most common squirrel, they often go unnoticed because they are nocturnal. Contrary to their name, they don't actually fly, but rather glide from tree to tree using flaps of skin that connect their front and hind legs. I've only seen them in action once, a few years ago, during an evening campfire. These little guys are a sight to behold, speedy and energetic and utterly adorable.
My next stop took me down to the pond where I noticed that the
Wood Ducks have returned, right on schedule. Like last year, there are five...two females and three males. Each day this season, they will arrive at daybreak to lay a single egg in the nest box, then spend the next couple of hours working their way around the pond shore eating invertebrates and other pondly delicacies.
Next, I headed into the woods to see what, if anything, might be in bloom. It's still too early for the dogwoods or redbuds, but I could see some Tulip Poplar buds way up high in the canopy. In a few weeks, the woods will be filled with their fragrant smell as the buds open into huge, beautiful yellow-orange flowers. Tulip Poplars are actually members of the Magnolia family, and they are one of Ohio's most ancient trees, having been in our woods since the time of the Wooly Mammoths.
While hiking up the aptly-named Morel Trail (not yet - they won't be out until May), I
heard some of our earliest Spring arrivals including the Eastern Phoebes. And even though the Cardinals, American Robins, Eastern Towhees and Carolina Wrens have been around all winter, they get more vocal and active during mating season, which offered audible reminders that Spring is officially here.
So....thirty degree temps and a few flurries notwithstanding, I'm happy to report that everyone - even me - is moving forward with their various Springtime responsibilities.
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About the photos:
- Southern Flying Squirrel - Copied from the Ohio Wildlife Center's website
- Wood Duck - mine
- Tulip Poplar buds - Copied from flikr
- Eastern Phoebe - Bill's, summer of 2009
My next stop took me down to the pond where I noticed that the Wood Ducks have returned, right on schedule. Like last year, there are five...two females and three males. Each day this season, they will arrive at daybreak to lay a single egg in the nest box, then spend the next couple of hours working their way around the pond shore eating invertebrates and other pondly delicacies.
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