Spring has sprung!

I have been tracking bird spring migration arrivals since 2000 when we moved back to the farmhouse. This year the daffodils began poking through the soil the last week of February on the warm south side of the house. What a surprise and I giddy with expectation of things to come. Then a lone Common Grackle spotted my bird feeders in the honeysuckle bush on March 1st. Here again, the arrival was about 2 weeks early at my 1730 elevation in western Massachusetts. The following days saw the arrivals of Red-winged blackbirds, a Song Sparrow and the rest of the black birds who announced their arrival with a cacophony of trills, squeaks and crackles (music to my ears!) As the second week of March rolled around, the temperature climbed into the high 60’s and dropped into the 20’s at night (perfect for sugaring with the sweet scent of maple syrup in the air). The robins are beginning to return and one female bluebird has been scouting out the summer accomodations located strategically in the pasture.