Almost Spring?

I wrote this March 18, but never published it:

Ah, it has been a long time since I've written on here... But the winter of 2013-14 has been phenologically significant (to the point where phenological occurrences are a topic of everyday conversation among everyone, not just the nature nerds out there).

It has been, and still is, a particularly brutal winter.  The month of January brought more snow than our annual average.  We cancelled school four times -- not due to snow, but due to the extreme cold temperatures brought on by the "Polar Vortex."  I don't have data for this, but it seems like we have had more extremely windy days than usual.

And it's been long.  Apparently the average temperatures for early March in this area are in the low 50's.  We have hit the low 50's once or twice, and had a handful of days in the forties.  But those are still rare treats, between days like yesterday, which stayed in the 20's, and today, which might hit freezing.  Might. So those of you mathematically inclined readers out there will see that we're not average.  We haven't gone above the low 50's at all -- which we'd certainly need to do to average out there...

It's hard to believe that the equinox is this week.  And spring break is next week.

We are still waiting for the first crocus to penetrate the frozen (and partly snow-covered) ground.
We are still waiting for the vernal witch hazel to flower.
We are still waiting for catkins to swell, and water to open, and sun to feel warm on our faces.
Please come, spring!

There Are Signs!

A few updates:

1.  Sandhill Cranes are flying north... This afternoon I heard their unmistakable, primitive call, and felt a shadow as they flew between me and the sun.  I looked up to see a "v" of about 40 of them.

2.  I heard a red-wing black-bird, but I couldn't for the life of me find it.  (By the next day -- Mar 18 -- they were all over!)

3.  Plants are starting to do things, too... slowly, to be sure, but there are some aspen catkins emerging.

That's right...

Amid a snowy and icy world... this:

Cold Spell

A frosty morning... like a little "ha! ha!" to all the people who planted things outside for Mother's Day!  Last frost of 2013 spring = May 12-13???

Growing Pains

Birds mature so quickly, relative to humans, that it's as if our entire youth is encapsulated in one short season.      I watched a juvenile robin the other day, and it seemed to have the clumsiness of toddlerhood simultaneously with the awkward appearance of the middle-school "'tweens" and the cocky idiocy of the teenage years.  A dangerous combination, to be sure.  He (or she) hopped around, his flight feathers looking spiky and messy, unsure of his destination... but sure he was going somewhere!

When I was in 7th grade, my teacher had a poster hanging in the classroom that said (this is paraphrased), "Teenagers -- tired of being harassed by your stupid parents?  Act now, move out, get a job, pay your own bills, while you still know everything!"  That poster was being derisive towards human teenagers, but in the animal world, this over-confidence must have great evolutionary value.  The time to figure it all out -- and I mean all... flying, nesting, mating, all the challenges of being an adult -- is so terribly fleeting.  Hesitation is tantamount to death.

So enjoy fledgling season, folks, and be thankful you don't have to go through any of those life stages again... let alone at the same time!

D-Day!

I have been waiting for this day for months!  As I ran through the newly flooded back loop of Rollins Savannah... clad, I might add, in shorts and a tank top... a dragonfly swooped past my head.  YEA!  It wasn't the only thing that the strong wind carried my way... the cloyingly sweet perfume of blooming magnolias.  The aroma of outdoor grilling.  When the mercury first tops 80, everything comes out to play.

Also seen:  trout lilies blooming.  Baby geese (on 4/28).  Pasqueflower blooming.  First prairie smoke blooming.  Dandelions in full bloom.

Ick.

The nice weather lasted... 1 day!  Yesterday was rainy -- a cold front coming through, and by evening the rain was really sleet.  This morning dawned COLD.  And muddy.  

Still, spring is marching on.  Goldfinches are gold, and daffodils are blooming.  Some shrubs -- black currants, lilacs -- are starting top leaf out, so that we can see a springy green haze in some places when we look across lawns and fields.  Catkins are finally fluffy on willows, aspen, and other trees...