Spring rambling

We took another jaunt to Ithaca on Saturday. We didn’t see as much of the hawks featured in the nest cam this time, though we did look for Ezra hunting. We saw some other hawks hunting, and even a pair that were mating, over in the general direction he went when he left the nest. So the main thing we learned was that there are plenty of hawks around there! We also discovered an enormous pheasant farm that seemed to be an attraction for hawks — maybe for the mice and rats that hang around in hopes of stealing pheasant feed.

We checked on the herons as well. The male heron was on the nest when we got there, and as we watched, the female returned. He trumpeted his approval.

Then he set about gathering home improvements.

It was neat to see the different places around the pond where he gathered the sticks he brought. He made three trips while we were there, each time taking care to present the sticks to his mate and not just stuff them into the nest. The herons have been attacked by a great horned owl three different times now, and they seem to work together as a team quite well building and defending their homestead. They certainly have more human fans rooting for them than any other herons in the neighborhood.

There were other birds around as well, including white-throated sparrows. I think they’re exquisite, discreetly colored except for that dash of bright yellow, and their song is very sweet and lonesome. I associate it with the Adirondacks, one of the few places I ever go where I don’t hear traffic noise humming in the distance. To me they stand for wilderness… even though I saw them scratching up the earth under the feeders at the Cornell Lab. They are on their way through, heading north.

I also saw a bluebird — New York’s state bird!

Here are a few more sights that have made me smile lately. All of them suggest spring in some way, and all are fun to think of captions for. I’ll post them here without any further commentary…