We've had a wonderfully sunny, warm spell lately, though that doesn't in itself mean the coming of spring. March is still one of the highest snowfall months for Missouri. But over the last few days, coincidence or not, we've observed a series of natural events that really do demonstrate the slow changing of the seasons.
Snow geese moving
Tuesday, as we worked outdoors burning brush and clearing fence lines, we watched flock after flock of low-flying snow geese cruise overhead with their distinctive, high-pitched honking. Each flock was small, never more than 100, but they just kept coming throughout the afternoon. Spring migration is starting.
Cardinals singing
Cardinals are here all winter, but just in the last few days they've starting singing again.
Possible blue jay mating behavior
Recently I observed a flock of around 10 blue jays, clustering close together and being extra-vocal, including a unique clicking/chattering that isn't part of their normal repertoire here. They would cluster in a treetop for a few minutes, hopping around and pumping their necks, then move on. Some research suggested that this is typical mating behavior in which a cluster of unattached males pursue a small number of available females (probably young, as blue jays generally mate for life).
Crocus & daffodil leaves coming up
This is pretty self-explanatory, but a good sign of spring
Trees budding
Both cottonwoods and hickories are developing their first buds. Sure hope we don't have another 2007.
First weeds
We have our onions started indoors, and Tuesday Joanna officially conducted the first weeding of the year, pulling out an unwanted sprout from our homemade potting mix. What better sign of spring?
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