Rainwater from the showers of earlier that day, March 25, spattered from the newly-emerged leaves on the neighborhood trees and flowed down the roadside drainage ditches. Most of the low-lying yards in the neighborhood held puddles of at least an inch or two deep. Still, it wasn’t raining now, so a couple of family members and I decided to take advantage of this lull in the drizzly weather to exercise a little. As we walked along the roads, Brown Thrashers chattered from their secluded perches in the shrubby woodlots.
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| Brown Thrasher |
The thrashers had been doing this for the past month or so,
actually; like their close relatives, the mockingbirds, they’re typically early
nesters. So are Eastern Bluebirds. A couple
of pairs of these birds displayed their gorgeous cobalt-blue plumage as they
flitted around the open fields, probably seeking out cavities in the large oaks
and sugarberry trees that might serve as nest sites.
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| Eastern Bluebird on wire |
As I made my way down the road, multiple Carolina Chickadees
and Tufted Titmice sang loudly from the woods all around the neighborhood. In all likelihood, the bluebirds in this area
compete with these two species and a variety of other animals, including
squirrels and nuthatches, for nest sites.
I’m not sure that the forests here are quite swampy enough for another
small, cavity-nesting bird, the Prothonotary Warbler, but since it’s nearly
time for these yellow-and-blue birds to be winging their way back to their
breeding territories, I suppose I’ll find out soon enough.
A brief sequence of wheezy notes sounding from deep within
the cedar thicket made me stop for a moment.
Was that a Black-throated Green Warbler?
I pished loudly for a few
seconds, then heard the call again. No, it
was the first few notes of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet’s song, the entire phrase
sounding like Sisisisi see see see liberTY liberTY
liberTY—all things considered, a boisterous song for such a tiny bird. Although kinglets start singing during March
and April in Mississippi, they breed elsewhere, migrating to Canada, the very
northernmost United States, or the western U.S. to claim nesting
territories. Unlike most of the other
birds I saw on the walk, the kinglets will soon be moving on. I’m glad to have them around for a few more
weeks, anyway. That also goes for the
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker that gave one squealing call from the trunk of a large sugarberry tree and then quietly slipped out of view.
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| Ruby-crowned Kinglet painting |
Obviously, migrating birds were not the only noticeable
changes in the environment. Vegetation flourishes
at this time of year, and with new plant growth and rain typically comes an
increase in insect abundance. That
seemed to be the case here. A profusion
of wildflowers—spring beauty, wild garlic, henbit, Carolina anemone, and
others—covered the lawns, and new, green leaves showed on branches.
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| Carolina anemone |
