Springtime for Critters. 3-22-2025

Still no sure sign of migration yet this Spring. Most nights are well below 40° still. We took a chance looking at the local dens on Friday, March 21st on Andrea's lunch break but it was frigid and we didn'tstay long. Long enough to photograph a couple of Redbacks, though.



The next day, Saturday the 22nd, was supposed to be warmer but cloudy. Much to our surprise and delight, it was sunny, too. We decided to go to our Spotted Turtle spot to see if anyone was enjoying the Spring sun. Umm... yes. There were plenty up, giving us instant gratification.

I got distracted by a wriggling group of Garters groping nearby.

All the while, the Spotted Turtles paid us no mind.

We finally moved on. On the river side of the path, I could see some Painted Turtles basking on a log but they were long gone by the time I got close enough for a photo. This distant pair stayed put for a photo, though.

Our crossroads path had a few Garters waking up to enjoy the warmth.

We got up to our usual turn-around point where one pond floods the path into a wetland on most days. Oddly enough, we have seen Two-lined Salamanders there before. I usually associate them with running streams, but I always check here now. My tenacity paid off this time.

The other fork of the crossroads handed us another two Garters.

We'd been hearing tons of quacking Wood Frogs in certain areas along the walk but they were impossible to see when you stopped to look. But knowing Wood Frogs as we do, we decided to stop and stand still and await their return to the surface of the water. Eventually, they started to pop back up into sight.

Ride 'em, cowboy! Sadly, we never got our eyes on the few Peepers we heard.

Heading back to the car, we passed the place where we'd seen the Spotted Turtles earlier. Five were still up. The same five? Who knows?

One Garter was still floating around. One of the lucky males?

We still had some gas in the tank (well, after a good sit-down) so we headed over to our local dens on the way home to see if any Water Snakes were out enjoying the sun. Again, instant gratification. Our first two Nerodia on the year!

The periscoping one has a bum eye. She'll probably lose it but it won't impair her too much.

This Redback was our 7th species on the day!

The Cottonwood Dens were snake-free but on the path on the way out, we saw two Garter individuals on the crawl.

One more Redback on the way out and we're calling that a fantastic day. Seven species on a March day! This guy splurped into a hole like a piece of spaghetti!

Unfortunately, it has been really cold and horrible since that day. I'm writing this eight days later! Our only other attempt was a visit to the dens on Friday, March 28th. It seemed nice out but there was a brutal cold breeze. Still, we tried and up in Robles' den area, we saw a pair of Redbacks.

Then Andrea noticed a pair of tenacious Garters right on Robles' hill, trying to grab some warm rays.

They were chill (literally) enough to let me remove a leaf from covering the bottom guy's head.

So ends our March. I'm not going to complain about what we saw with such narrow windows through which we could get out to explore. I'm eager to get out to see more critters but the temps haven't really been cooperative. May April bring us new and exciting nature walks.

Winter Be Gone! The First Half of March! 3-1 thru 3-15-2025

Winter has been rough but as I type this, it is all over. We spent the first part of March going out and walking whenever it was possible. Here is what we saw...

Saturday, March 1st

It wasn't absolutely bone-chilling so we went out in hopes of some birds or maybe a dumb snake poking out of its den in our local spot but no, we saw no critters and had to be happy with just a lovely walk. I needed something so I pulled into a nearby parking lot and headed through the slush and ice (alone... Andrea had better sense!) with a net and bothered a bunch of Two-Lined Salamanders. I only got a photo of one, in hand, because they're speedy little devils.

First amphibian of the year!

Wednesday, March 5th

It had been warmish the previous night and it was going to be pouring so we threw caution to the wind and decided to head out to the Haunted Swamp. I'd said over the weekend "I'd drive 40 miles for a Wood Frog" and I felt that we just might see one that night.

It was more like 50 miles, there and back, but we did see three Wood Frogs! I call that a win!

Life is better with frogs. We got absolutely drenched to the skin but it didn't matter.

Thursday, March 6th

The next day was fairly sunny so we took a look at the dens on Andrea's lunch break. No snakes were about but we managed our first Redback on the year!

Birds were pretty happy with the sun and we saw the sexiest of them all, a Common Grackle (#31) who was making some fun electronic calls.

My favorite sound of Spring... the first Red-winged Blackbirds (#32)! Got this guy giving it his all!

I didn't need a Black-capped Chickadee for the year count but he was posing so nicely right in front of me that I couldn't resist!

We saw another pair of Redbacks before lunch was over.

Thursday, March 13th

The following Thursday was sunny but only 40°. Now just why did I say we had to go out? There was a cool breeze keeping it cold. We figured that we'd rather spend a lunch hour walking in the woods than sitting around the house, so we went out. The Valley was empty but Andrea spied a 3-pack of Garters in the Cottonwood Den, the breeze being blocked by a fallen tree, First Garters are alway a treat!

While photographing those, I noticed a solo Garter to my left in a neat coil.

That was time well spent.

Saturday, March 15th

I was sick (still am) and played the night before and had about 2 hours of sleep, but I knew what I needed to do. It was sunny and warm, in the low 60s!!!! We knew we'd see shit tons of snakes! Well, we didn't see any. What the hell do I know? We did see lots of nice stuff, though.

Hey look. An Eastern Bluebird (#33).

Finally, the first turtle since late October 26th, 2024. A wee Painter.

We continued our search for snakes but still saw none. A White-tailed Deer was in the distance, though.

We saw a couple on the path with binoculars and figured they were looking at the deer. They said no, an American Woodcock. Now, I've been wanting a photo of one for years because I'd gotten a few shots many years ago (when I almost stepped on a nest and the adult almost took my head off) but hadn't had a chance since I started my Life Count. That incident was 12 years ago! So I was very happy to finally add it in. I thanked the couple profusely.

#34 American Woodcock, Lifer #205.

We continued along the sunny path and were rewarded with an adult Painted Turtle.

It does my soul a world of good to see turtles again.

Andrea spied our first Bullfrog of 2025.

Heading back to the car, we ran into the delightful birding couple again who were trying to get a long-distance shot of a Green-winged Teal. My photo was so-so but then we started watching Muskrats being cute and that seems like a good place to end this. 

Goodbye Winter. You ended nicely. May Spring bring us lots of good sightings!

February

It has been the coldest and shittiest winter in memory. It finally got about 20° (a balmy 35°) so we went out to try to see if there would be a February post. We hit a nearby marshland/ river area. Luckily, we saw a few birds to add to the count.

Some Black Ducks were resting on the ice while a group of Mallards were dabbling. They were out cold.

We were eager to get to the marshy area where we usually see stuff. Sure enough, there was a Red-tailed Hawk (#27) looking for some lunch.

Much of the area was frozen but in the distance, we could see waterfowl frolicking in an open area. Canada Geese, Mallards and a few Wood Ducks. Here is one of the latter for #28.

It looked like another hawk was in a tree but upon closer inspection, it's a birdhouse... with a wasp nest growing out of the bottom!

On the way back, we noticed that a Mute Swan (#29) had joined the others in the open area.

And the Black Ducks were up and eating by the time we went past again, making them our official #30 for 2025.

That's it for frigid February. Next month should bring out amphibians, if we can get it above freezing for a few days.