The sun and warm weather was too tempting on Tuesday to remain indoors. Besides, I was itching to see if I could find a witch’s broom, so, decided to take matters into my own hands and take a stroll around the Cutoff.
The deer have done even more damage to the shrubs, but Kezzie’s tree has weathered well. We watched the squirrels devour it’s crabapples through the winter.
Did you know that some areas actually have squirrel census sites where you can register information about the squirrel population in your area? To learn about becoming a citizen scientist and monitoring the squirrel population, click here. Scientists of the professional bent are quite interested this year in how squirrels have survived this mild winter. They’ve had more than enough food to store up and eat and mild temperatures, so most should have survived the winter.
I love the idea of being a citizen scientist.
I rounded the corner of the house and came upon this western exposure of daffodils. It won’t be long until we have some blooms.
Tom joined me and we headed up the road to see if the spring peepers had awakened. My dear friend Janet tells me the peepers are peeping in her neck of the state, about midway down, which is always a good sign. When the peepers peep near Springfield, we know we have a week or two until they start peeping near the Windy City. For now, I’ll be content to see the emergence of buds on the trees and the return of the red-winged blackbirds.
As we walked, we were also looking for deer. They have certain spots in the road where they tend to cross and their paths are still easy to see. This deer is so well camouflaged, I almost missed it. We stood and watched each other for a few minutes; a silent conversation of sorts. Two others were waiting nearby. Suddenly, they all bounded off, their white tails flagging the warning that the Antler Man and his mate were out and about.
You may have to click onto the picture to find the deer.
As the sun was beginning its descent, we headed back to the house, with nary a witch’s broom to see. We were treated, however, to the moon rising just as the sun was setting. It was a most magnificent ending to my day.
Had I been reading here two years ago, I would have clapped. 🙂
Am clapping today for your lovely photos and for the onset of Spring, beautiful Spring.
LikeLike
Thank you, Karen, I appreciate knowing that. It was a rough year that year, but, we made it through.
Thank you, again. I’m about to go out and see if anything else is poking up. Enjoy your day!
LikeLike
Your nature walks are my favorite posts, Penny! I just love them and feel like I’m with you. Our terrain is quite different, but some of the similarities are interesting to me. Despite the fact that “our” squirrels really do have access to food year-round, their natural instincts are still very pronounced. We watch them bury acorns from our Oak all fall, and now they’re digging them up…even though acorns are all over the back yard. It’s fascinating. I’d like to follow-up on the citizen scientist information–what a great thing! And please tell me what a “peeper” is! I really don’t know 🙂 I am going to count on you to take me on more walks around the Cutoff as spring continues to emerge. That was SOME moon last night, wasn’t it? We all commented! 🙂 Debra
LikeLike
Oh, thank you Debra. That is so nice to hear. Isn’t it a hoot watching them digging – as long as they don’t do damage. We used to find tulips in the middle of the lawn, or the neighbor’s lawn, in our other house. We don’t plant them here as the deer will eat them. I would imagine there is a site around your area for monitoring as well. Here, the squirrels don’t all survive if they don’t have enough to eat, especially if it is a bad winter. This year – it was as mild for them as us.
Peepers are tiny frogs that mate in spring. They are in swampy areas and they are impossible to see, but make the loudest peeping noises you can ever imagine. I have a link somewhere that I’ll post so you and others can hear what they sound like. I’ll post it when they start singing here.
LikeLike
I would NOT have figured out the peepers! I wish I could hear them! They sound so welcoming!
LikeLike
Once they wake up and start peeping here I’ll do a post, Debra, and put in a link. It is a fascinating occurrence that your granddaughters would enjoy.
LikeLike
I love the picture with the deer, it’s like “Where’s Waldo”, you really have to look to see him, just blends in so well. I love those little signs of Spring like my tulips that are about 4 inches tall and the grass is green. Now if the weather warms up it will be perfect….
LikeLike
It is like “Where’s Waldo”. There were two others standing just off to left, next to a fence. They aren’t in the picture. Isn’t it exciting? You’re tulips are tall already. Let’s hope for continued good weather so we get a good spring show.
LikeLike
I’ve been doing a catch up.. and how wonderful your posts are Penny. The witches brooms are intriguing. They look like the mistletoe I saw in winter bare trees in Europe. Loved the nature ramble. I remember asking what peepers were ..but now I greet then in your spring posts like familiar old friends. How we learn from blogging!
LikeLike
I always love it when you stop by, Joan. Aren’t they interesting occurrences? Mistletoe can be a cause of witch’s brooms, so there might have been some around that you thought were nests. I know you did and I posted a link to help my New Zealand friends out then. I will be posting the link again for my newer readers that don’t know what they are. I am constantly amazed at what I learn from other bloggers, especially you. Thank you, Joan.
LikeLike
It was such a delight to join you on your nature walk. I especially liked finding the deer who was so well hidden. I’m happy that your flowers will soon be blooming. Since we have so many squirrels here on our property, I’m going to participate in the squirrel project. We always have a few in the yard. Their nests are huge, high in the tall pine trees. No matter how hard the wind blows, they are not damaged. We noticed yesterday that one of our dogwoods is blooming. I’m not surprised as it is 78 degrees today. The wood peckers, cardinals, and robins are in abundance. It reminds me of a poem my mother would recite when the robins would appear that began, “I have seen the first robin of spring…” Have a happy week.
LikeLike
I’m so happy to know that, Marilyn. We almost walked by the deer when something told me to look. I wondered how long they had been watching us. How wonderful that you will participate. It is satisfying to be part of a bigger effort, and with your hot weather, you will have some higher numbers to report. Oh, how I envy you the dogwood blossoms. What a welcome sight they must be, and how sweet to remember your mother’s recitation of the poem. Isn’t if funny how such things come back to us? Enjoy yours as well, Marilyn.
LikeLike
What a beautiful walk. It is full of anticipation, as the earth warms, the daffodils appear, the peepers are not far away, and Kezzie’s tree is safe. The moon is like a crowning glory to your day.
LikeLike
Perfectly put, Juliet, it was the crowning glory and I love these simple things of life and all the memories they evoke. Rather like your little garden fairy who visits you once a week.
LikeLike
I enjoyed the peepers again last night and today I heard the red-wing blackbirds shouting “KREE” to each other. I haven’t spent too much time outside because the wind drives me in, but I have put sheets and blankets on the clothes line just as an excuse to be outside.
I love your hiding deer picture. I used to tell my children to walk quietly so we might see some of our “deer friends”. We always imagined that Mama Doe was saying “be still little ones, you might see some of those funny two legged things.” I am sure they were looking for us just as we were looking for them.
LikeLike
“Kree”. Yes. That’s exactly how the sound as they shout back and forth. Soon, very soon, we too will hear the peepers. Don’t you love it when they get quiet as they sense humans nearing?
I am sure you are right, Janet. I’m always amazed that they can even sense from outside when I open the refrigerator (yes, they are that close). Maybe they want some of our lettuce.
I hope you enjoyed, or will enjoy, those sheets and blankets that dried in the wind. What a wonderful scent they hold of sunshine and wind. It’s been windy up here, even today. I notice a birdhouse was down, not to mention several branches. Nature’s pruning.
LikeLike
I too love your nature walk, Penny as it reminds me how different our environments are, despite many of the same animals. We don’t have peepers, but there is fresh frogspawn in what was our little fishpond and our blackbirds (no red wings) are singing their heads off. 🙂
LikeLike
There are some similarities and so many differences to be certain, Perpetua. The red-winged blackbirds have gotten rather aggressive around here in the past several years. They are looking for places to nest since their natural habitat is increasingly encroached upon and if there is a nest in a residential area, they will attack. I do love to see them in late summer and early fall as they hang on the cattails. I will have to look up the frogspawn. You’ve made me curious as to what they are like.
LikeLike
Penny, I didn’t realise that frogspawn is only a British term. It’s what we call frogs’ eggs. There is also toadspawn as well. We truly are divided by a common language. 🙂 🙂
LikeLike
Perpetua, I’m sitting here giggling. I thought you were talking about something called a “Frogspawn”. Oh my. Soon you will have what we call tadpoles floating around. Thanks for getting back to me.
LikeLike
We call them tadpoles too, Penny, so language doesn’t divide us completely. 🙂
LikeLike
Lots of lovely signs of the year to come, Penny 🙂
Maddie would adore being a citizen scientist. I wonder if they have that sort of thing here?
LikeLike
They most certainly are, Kate. I love it!
I was thinking of your Maddie as I wrote this with her curious nature and kind little heart. I did some quick googling and found this site you can check out from BBC4. I think there are some international sites out there as well. A citizen scientist records information regarding weather, nature, even the sun shower we are experiencing. Our garden club has just started a project monitoring plants and first buds, but, we have two members, our butterfly ladies, who have been involved in a wonderful program monitoring monarch butterflies, which are just found in parts of North America. Here’s the link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/citizenscience.shtml
LikeLike
What a lovely springtime walk! We don’t see deer like we used to, just their tracks around the pond, so I enjoy your pictures and writing about them.
We had thunderstorms last night and when I went out to feed the cats this morning had quarter size snowflakes falling on drooping daffodil flowers. Yes, they are all flowering! A few minutes later when I went to work there was sleet bouncing off the car. By the time I got to work – 2 1/2 miles – it was back to light raindrops which soon tapered off. Puddles from the rain last night though. The air smells so fresh and the grass has greened almost overnight AND the wind has stopped trying to blow us up to the Dakotas. I’m going to havehave to listen for the peepers.
LikeLike
They must be finding food elsewhere, Joyce. I am glad to share our deer with you.
Daffodils already! Yes! You give me hope for them opening soon up here and I long for that fresh smell of new growth. The wind did die down this afternoon. Cooler weather, but sunshine coming this way. Let me know if you hear the peepers.
LikeLike
I had no idea we could be citizen scientists, Penny. We have hordes of squirrels in our backyard. They must find plenty to eat back there. We’ve also had a family of cardinals return again this year. I love to listen to them call back and forth down the driveway.
I love the deer photo. They are skittish buggers, so much fun to come across in the wild.
LikeLike
I heard our first cardinal yesterday, Andra. Their calls are lovely, aren’t they? Yes. We can all be citizen scientists. I’ll bet you can write one fabulous story about being one.
Thank you. They are skittish. We have a herd of them that lives near our home. This one was hiding near someone’s fence down the block. The deer and I have a love/hate relationship, heavy on the love. They eat all my plants.
LikeLike
Dear Penny,
One word you used is an unknown to me–so it’s not just Perpetua across the pond who wonders at words! What are “peepers”?
Keezie’s crabapple tree with its white blossoms is lovely. And I did click on the photograph to find that deer who stood so alert.
Thank you for this lovely walk. The weather here is really warm now and my foot is healing–I haven’t been able to take a walk outside for almost two months. So today or tomorrow, I’d take a short walk and feel all the better for it.
Peace.
LikeLike
I have a link that I’ll use in a post soon that will introduce you and others to peepers, Dee. Until then, know that they are very small frogs that are now just starting their mating and make the most wonderful noise as they call to each other in ponds and swampy areas. They haven’t awakened yet here near our house, but we took a walk today in the woods and there was a chorus of them performing this afternoon.
We are so grateful the tree has survived. Deer, a buck, used this very same tree to rub his antlers against a few Autumns ago and we thought we would lose it. Those wonderful white blossoms should greet us soon.
I’m so glad to hear that your foot is healing now, Dee, and hope you’ll be enjoying some walks soon. I know how that can be and how slow recovery seems. Enjoy you day.
LikeLike
Just now taking the time to catch up with your blog Penny! Don’t feel like you have to answer every comment I leave. Isn’t it something when you think that you wrote this on the 8th and it is STILL warm? I just can’t get over this weather. We have daffodils in bloom now, as I’m sure you do, and when I was driving through the east side of the Arboretum a few days ago I heard the peepers in full force! Everything is coming early this year and I heard that it a lot to do with the ground never freezing below 2 inches.
LikeLike
Great photos by the way – and can you believe that the top one of the hands holding the bird looked to me, before I clicked and got a clearer view, like you had stumbled upon the remains of a skull during your walk!
LikeLike
I’ll answer both of your comments at the same time, Janet, and appreciate your sentiments about replying, but do have to say that yes, it is really amazing to have this weather. I just love to hear the peepers, especially the ones on the east side. I’ve uncovered some plants today that don’t normally show their faces until late April or early May. We never had a sustained hard freeze, so, beware, we will have more summertime bugs and see them earlier.
Now that I look at the photo, it does look like a skeleton. Ha! Thankfully, it is just a garden decoration.
LikeLike