Bluebirds are back!

Kim and I spent today at the farm, the whole time wishing it were about 15 degrees warmer so we could enjoy being outside more. We still got a good little hike in and did some general spring maintenance. The chilling wind from the north, however, reminded us that we're not in the clear of winter just yet.

So we kept our outdoor tasks simple. We cleaned and installed the 4 Eastern Bluebird boxes we use for our monitoring trail, a project we started last spring. We placed 4 Bluebird boxes in the Oak Savanna. Last year had a pair that occupied one of the boxes and produced 3 eggs, only of of which hatched and fledged.

While we worked we enjoyed the cooing chatter of flocks of Sandhill Cranes as they slowly worked their way north. Flocks ranged in size from 5 up to ~100. I estimate we saw upwards of 1000 Sandhill Cranes fly directly over the farm during the course of the day.

Then we were offered the biggest treat of all. Just before leaving the farm, we spotted a male Eastern Bluebird gathering insects in the Oak Savanna, almost as if to come and say "Thanks for the spring house cleaning!" What a beautiful sight! His blue was so intensely bright against the wintered, drab background. Spring is really coming!

Species observed:
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
European Starling
American Crow
House Sparrow
Song Sparrow
House Finch
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-tailed Hawk
Coopers Hawk
Ring-billed Gull
Turkey Vulture
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
White-breasted Nuthatch
Blue Jay
Northern Cardinal
Mourning Dove
Killdeer
Sandhill Crane (1000+ flyovers)