Bird brained stories!

Sunday, May 08, 2005

New life on Mother's Day

On this Mother's Day, what could be more appropriate than discovering the first brood of baby birds in one's yard? Yes, as I enjoyed the warm weather at long last, digging and readying my patio-side butterfly garden for a new season, I listened to the sounds of the birds in the yard, practicing my ever-increasing birding-by-ear skills. Goldfinches. Robins. Chipping sparrows.
The always-present cardinal pair. A Baltimore Oriole, the first of the season!

And what's this I hear? The plaintive squeaks, unmistakable as the cries of a nest of baby birds in the evergreens. The first nest of babies of the season! What could they be? I took a break in my digging to watch and discover. I didn't wait long...along came...grackles!

Grackles? How ordinary and unexciting is that? They chase the songbirds from the feeders. They strut about the yard making racket. Still, there is hope. I discovered a pair of White-Throated Sparrows hanging about as well. Though I haven't spotted them since yesterday, they have been heard, and would be a welcome addition to my list of summer visitors here in my small town corner lot.

Happy Mother's Day! Grackles or something more exotic, the arrival of a new generation of flying friends is a sign that the world will go on, in spite of our efforts to stop it.

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