4-14-08 Observations

- Cool and cloudy early AM on the mountain properties.

- After last week in the 70s, Mother Nature has done yet another about face.....

- After a sunny and pleasant stretch of days, the weekend became windy and a bit blustery...and today intermittent sleet pellets and snow showers....and then tomorrow along with the next two days are forecast to be sunny with a warming trend! Great hiking weather!

- I heard my first Whippoorwill (Caprimulgus vociferous) of the spring season at dusk last Thursday.....and the unusual notes of this terrestrial avia never fail to remind me of the quiet and tranquil evenings back on the farm. They have wintered along the Gulf Coast-northern South America.

- The Barred Owls (Strix varia) were quite vocal in the forest behind the cabin on both Friday and Saturday nights.... due in part to the fact that it is mating season.

- Attached is a recent photo, taken at great distance, of an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) on Lake George in our mountain developments. They seldom stay long with us....usually a few days, and then they are on the way to larger lakes further north.

- Also attached is another photo of the male Northern Cardinal.

- The Flowering Dogwoods have started to bloom within the last few days and many are talking about the beauty of the blooms of the Eastern Redbud, which are common throughout deciduous woodlands and along roadsides across the Southeast.

- It is a great time for bird watchers.....as a great variation of species seem to be on the move....either involved in the nest building process or on their way to nest building locations.

- Hiking along Stone Bridge Park Trail recently, a huge deer ran through the forest, crossed the trail perhaps 40 yards in front of me, and then bounded down the ridge and out of sight. Though antlerless (they usually shed their antlers here from late January to early March), this deer was easy to identify as a male. Huge body, almost a royal appearance, and a characteristic not to be underestimated when trying to identify the sex of Odocoileus virginianus with limited visual contact....the animal was alone. It is quite rare to see does alone this time of year. For big bucks, a solitary existence is the rule rather than the exception. About the only time I see bucks together is late summer, when, for whatever reason, they seem to socially tolerate each other. The yearlings (most are born in our location within three weeks of June 1) stay with mom until the newborns come along...and then they part ways, usually for life.