You can’t imagine how much I look forward to April and May.
Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy getting out in snow-covered landscapes, and it’s hard not to love the beauty of fall.
But spring’s arrival brings an influx of birds, amphibians and reptiles, too. Throw in the scattered serviceberry trees’ white blossoms dotting the Mahoning, Blue and Pohopoco mountains to finally break up the dull gray slopes and how could you not like April.
The only bad thing of anticipating each April arrival is that I get another year older. These aging legs are still holding up, and over the next two months will cover a lot of territory as I seek to find what new has arrived.
Probably by now you have noted that the robins, red-winged blackbirds and grackles have all claimed territories and will soon begin nesting, or already have so.
The earliest flycatcher, the Eastern phoebes, have been here since the end of March. Gulls are now showing up at our lakes, and just a week ago I saw a herring gull checking out a farm pond in East Penn Township.
I hope the accompanying photos help you pay attention to what to expect to see as the cold of winter loses its grip, the trees bud out and we all enjoy the fresh new look of spring and its fauna and flora.
Test Your Outdoor Knowledge: Cowbirds are nest parasitic birds, laying their egg in unfortunate host birds’ nests. They do not raise their own young. You may not know that one duck species does build its own nest but also seeks out other duck nests to lay some of its eggs, much like the cowbird. It is a ______. A. hooded merganser; B. black duck; C. redhead; D. wood duck.
Last Week’s Trivia Answer: Surprisingly, mallard ducks have been documented having bred with 40 other duck species.
Email Barry Reed at breed71@gmail.com
LEFT: By the time you read this article, many of the broad-winged hawks that wintered in Peru or Colombia have found their way back to their birthplace in this region. Their migration north will continue until late April. BARRY REED/SPECIAL TO THE TIMES NEWS
ABOVE: Like the broad-winged hawks, many ospreys wintered in the same regions in South or Central America. Now that the ponds, rivers and lakes are ice free they will find plenty of fish, probably including a few of the trout the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission has stocked in our local waterways. Only a few nest in this region, as most head farther north. But I often still see them fishing the Lizard Creek until the first week of May.
Already out of hibernation, the garter snake is one of the first snakes to leave its hibernation area. I’ve seen them as early as March 31, but usually they appear the first week or so in April.
As the ponds’ muddy bottoms slowly warm, painted turtles find warming spots above the cold water’s surface to bask. They too are ectothermic, like snakes, and rely on warmer days to become more active and begin feeding.
The American goldfinch has probably spent the winter here in its drab winter plumage, but as daylight lengthens, it molts into its beautiful summer attire. The summer breeding plumage is usually completed about mid-April.
I’ve seen Facebook comments and questions regarding the spring arrival of ruby-throated hummingbirds. I generally put out my hummer feeders about April 20, but the earliest I had a sighting was April 26. With some warm air incursions predicted, they may arrive a bit earlier.
Eastern towhees have already arrived in our area. According to my bird log, my first sighting this year was about a week earlier than usual. Listen for their “drink your tea” song to help locate them. They mostly feed on the forest floor, where you can see and hear their leaf scratching.
A few tree swallows have already returned, and in short order the remainder will follow. They’ll be checking out your bluebird boxes and, on a colder morning, coursing above a local lake or the Lehigh River.
About the time this column is printed, the number of juncos at your feeders will drop drastically, but by then chipping sparrows will take the “spring shift” and gladly accept the white millet seeds scattered about the ground.
April 15 is the average date that I observe the first barn swallows. In weeks, they’ll seek out barn rafters to begin their first of two nests.
Generally seen in small flocks, cedar waxwings can remain here all winter. Most are just making their return around mid-April. On cooler days I often find them eating the few remaining blue fruits of greenbriers.
One of the main reasons I keep at least one feeder filled with black oil sunflower seeds is to entice an early arriving rose-breasted grosbeak to my yard. Late April is usually their arrival date here in our region.
Arriving about the same time as the barn swallows are rough-winged swallows. So look for them, too. They seem to prefer drainage pipe openings in bridge supports over many of our smaller local streams for their nest building.
Not emerging as early as wood frogs, which already laid their eggs, are green frogs. They emerge from hibernation as it warms, but weeks before their larger cousins, the bull frogs.