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What signs of spring have you seen? (1 Viewer)

Guinness537

Guinness537

Well-known member
I know the official start of spring is still a week away, but I was wondering what (bird) signs people have been seeing.

For me a single Red-wing Black Bird has shown up in the garden, along with the first American Robin.

Overhead I've seen several flocks of Common Grackles and a single Killdeer.

Cheers,

B :)
 
I saw my first Tree Swallow of the season 4 days ago at one of the big urban ponds & Killdeer have been filtering through for some little while now. But for me spring doesn’t “officially” begin before the advent of the first big waves of swallows--Barn, Cliff, Rough-winged, Violet-green, Tree, Bank—& that won’t happen for a few weeks yet.
 
no birds yet, although i plan to put that right tomorrow. Primroses and daffodilsare out though and spring is definitely here, at least in the far SW of the country! I hear there's still ice about back home in Shropshire
 
The college students are drinking more. I always think spring starts here when the tundra swans start heading north - around Feb 1st.
 
Saw an American Robin back on Sunday morning and 4 this morning. Also, 3 male Red-winged Blackbirds this morning. A few Grackles as well.
 
Juncos, robins, Am. crows, starlings, varied thrush, tree frogs, Canada geese, moss growing again, new grass, very plump and pregnant cottonwood buds, pussy willows. Very early spring this year, at least two weeks, probably closer the three, warmest winter in decades, very little snow. These aspects of el nino/global warming I can live with.:t:

This time last year it was -28c for a low and nearly a meter of snow still on the ground. Now, now snow at all, twenty degrees warmer.

Aside from these, my main harbingers, and who I'm still waiting on, are the three species of swallows we get, redwings and long billed curlews and first hummer.
 
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I saw a part of a small white egg shell on the local footpath yesterday! Dunnocks are nest building and doing lots of courtship in my garden, the House Sparrows are taking an interest in nesting material, local Moorhen was on the nest yesterday, Mallards mating all over and I saw a female Goosander presenting to a male at the local reseve in town here too recently.

Things are definitely hotting up!
 
Now the frosts have abated for the time being, spring things are slowly moving into gear.Great tits, dunnocks, wrens, song thrushes, chaffinches, greenfinches, reed buntings, treecreepers and goldcrests are singing their hearts out. Tits are probing around the nestboxes, a magpie is building a nest down the road, rooks and jackdaws are collecting sticks for nests. I await the arrival of the first chiffchaff, maybe in a weeks time.
On the flora front little is stirring. The ground is still too cold and there has been little or no rainfall for about 4 weeks![rare for Eire]. Snowdrops are aplenty and daffodils are just waiting for that extra bit of warmth in which to blossom. Plenty of buds on trees and shrubs though.
Hopefully I will witness the spring boxing contests of the local Irish hares around this time of year but due to the cold winter, hares have been harder to find.
As they say in these parts, it's on St Paddy's Day when things really start rolling [and thats not just the pub goers]!
Slainte [cheers].

Si
 
My wife is looking into the ward-robe, telling me what clothes she doesnt have (it's a miracle!!-where can they go-she had some last year:-C)and what she simply must have for the summer.
 
I've seen Dunnocks up to no good, Magpies carrying nest material.

Snowdrops all around, and the shoots of the daffodils have come through, no sign of them blooming yet.

Sycamore tree starting to bud, although it's normally in this state until quite late in spring before the leaves appear.
 
Several daffs out now, and have seen a robin and a blue tit 'speculating'. Also heard a woodpecker tapping a few days ago and the dawn chorus is really building up a head of steam. Am looking out for first sand martins but still haven't heard a returning chiff chaff- everything is a good three weeks later than usual here I'd say.
 
Well... the snow has slowly started melting (and refreezing... so now we have ice everywhere instead).

Heard a Blackbird the other day, saw some Ravens carrying nest material and down in the ice-free patches of the river the Goldeneye males are displaying. Really looking forward to the first Skylark; last year we had the first one on March 15. Don't expect them here that early this year, but maybe the end of next week?

But the biggest sign is that intangible feeling of spring in the air... the way the days get longer and we're finally heading towards warmer times.
 
I spent some time sitting outside with a book this morning, the sunshine feeling quite warm! Spotted my first bumblebee of the year flying about too.

The GSW's are tapping here too Seatallen, I heard one a couple of weeks ago. Mostly seem to be Greens in my neighbourhood though.
 
Our frequent snow storms have been replaced by frequent rain storms. But on the bright side, a crocus has bloomed in the yard and I saw a single Red-winged Blackbird "konk-a-ree-ing" at a nearby pond.
 
bumblebees are about, chaffinches are singing everwhere, pussy willow buds are bursting and the female hazel flowers are out.... no migrants yet though
 
first black kite flew past whilst watching a pair of red kites building anest, storks have been going through for a few weeks now, with a black one going through yesterday, and there is a huge invasion of song thrushes and lapwings going on here.
 
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