Naturally

 On an unseasonably seasonable day, the birds act as cheerleaders. The white-throated sparrows whistled, “Old Sven Peterson, Peterson, Peterson” and chorus frogs sounded like a thumbnail running down the teeth of a comb. 
 There was a first spring male summer tanager in my yard at the end of April. I thanked him. A Cooper’s hawk hunted the yard. Birds flee or freeze in place when this happens. The first bird to return to the feeders is almost always a chickadee.
 As I fled a store, I heard a purple martin cheerleading practice and looked up to see American white pelicans flying low enough that the nuptial tubercles on their bills were exceptionally evident and above them, a red-tailed hawk circled. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology says the pelican’s wingspan reaches 114 inches and the hawk’s stretches to only 52 inches. I love being astonished.
 Dragonflies, brown thrashers and song sparrows kept me company as I looked at anthills in sidewalk cracks. I used to wonder while wandering what it’d be like to fall into an anthill. It would have been a tight fit, no doubt. I listened to Canada geese playing their vuvuzelas. I love this time of the year when the blue-winged teal bloom wherever there is a puddle and the drakes entertain me with their enthusiastic peeping. The joy of being a birder is immeasurable.
 I watched grackles and red-winged blackbirds mob a crow in the air, forcing the bigger bird to the ground. As the crowd dispersed, the crow flew into a spruce tree. Bad decision. The tree was filled with blackbirds, most of whom joined the fray and chased the crow from the scene. Later, I saw a crow bothering a bald eagle in flight and buzzing the tower of an American coot feeding on the grass.
 My yard welcomed red admiral butterflies and their black, orange and white coloration. They came from the southern United States. Red admirals can’t survive the cold, so each fall they flee south, spending the winter in the deep south. They lay eggs, die, the eggs hatch and when spring comes, a new generation begins migrating north at 30-40 miles a day, repopulating the northern states. Stinging nettles are the host plant that the butterfly lays its eggs on and the caterpillars feed upon.

Q&A

 “Why do red-tailed hawks soar in circles?” Hawks often travel on thermals or rising air currents to conserve energy. A thermal is a column of warm air that rises from the ground. The heat from the sun causes the air to rise and a hawk rides the thermal upwards, staying in the air for long periods without expending much energy. This allows them to hunt over a large area. That’s why they fly in circles. When a hawk spots its prey, it dives and catches it with its sharp talons.
 “How many sports teams have bird nicknames?” I haven’t a decent guess, but I think birds and members of the cat family have the most teams named for them. In the MLB it’s the St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles. The NBA has the Toronto Raptors, Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans. The NFL has the Arizona Cardinals, Baltimore Ravens (the mascots are named Edgar, Allan and Poe), Philadelphia Eagles (mascot is named Swoop), Atlanta Falcons and Seattle Seahawks. There is no such thing as a seahawk, so an augur buzzard is the live mascot. The NHL has the Anaheim Ducks and Pittsburgh Penguins. The Toledo Mud Hens minor league baseball team was made famous by Max Klinger in the show “MASH.” When he wasn’t wearing dresses, Klinger wore the team’s gear. Other minor league teams are Rochester Red Wings, Idaho Falls Chukars, Sioux Falls Canaries, Akron RubberDucks, Delmarva Shorebirds and Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks. Some interesting nicknames for college teams include Rice Owls, UTSA Roadrunners, North Florida Ospreys, Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens, Delaware Blue Hens and Oregon Ducks. The Virginia Hokies have a turkey for a mascot because no one knows what a Hokie is, the University of Iowa's mascot is Herky the Hawk, and Louisville’s mascot is Louie the Cardinal. The Miami Hurricanes have Sebastian the Ibis as a mascot because folklore maintains that the ibis is the last to take shelter before a hurricane and the first to reappear after the storm. I wish the U of M Gophers would become the Marsh Hawks or Minks. Then they wouldn’t have a 13-lined ground squirrel as a mascot.
 “When do pocket gophers breed?” They breed in the spring and produce one litter of up to six pups. One adult is found in each burrow system except during breeding.

Thanks for stopping by

 “Be not forgetful to cherish the gifts each moment brings.”—Mother Teresa.
 “The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.”—Ralph Waldo Emerson.
 Do good.

©️Al Batt 2023

This first-spring male summer tanager visited my yard.  One day, it will molt into a completely red adult. The summer tanager’s breeding range extends into the southern half of Iowa. Some males wander into Minnesota during spring migration. This bird is noted for eating bees and wasps it catches in flight. It kills its prey by slamming it repeatedly against a branch and removes the stinger by wiping the insect on the branch.  Photo by Al Batt

I look forward to seeing goslings each year. The Canada Goose gander eschews cigars and passes out stern looks instead.

Take me out to the ball game, take me out with the crowd. Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack—and scuba gear. Catch the wave at the New Richland, Minnesota, baseball field.