Lake Wicwas Nature Journal: April 4, 2021: March Madness

Sunday, April 4, 2021

April 4, 2021: March Madness

So much for "Out like a Lamb". March ended with a vengeance, hitting us with some of the strongest winds we see around the lakes. And it came at a time when the frost is leaving the ground and the soil is wet and soft, allowing for toppling trees over by the roots. Fortunately we were far enough north that shaded forests still had a decent frost base and most of the trees I saw blown over were snapped off above the ground at a weak point in the trunk. This particular tree was inconsiderate enough to fall right along a trail, which makes a lot more clean up work than if it fell straight across the path.

A white pine snapped off by wind.

A much more thoughtful tree was kind enough to fall away from the house by which it stood for the past 80 or so years, and then, in an extreme case of good fortune, it lined itself up precisely between two other pines that were narrowly spaced and joined forces to grab hold of it right before it completely demolished all of the boats so carefully lined up between them.

Sometimes all the stars just line up right!

Another boat on the land wasn't quite as fortunate. This aluminum rowboat was picked up by that northwest wind and blown, Dorothy-style, over the land and into the lake.

I didn't see it happen so it's possible it landed on the ice and then was blown into this stretch of open water where it got trapped. After the storm I was able to secure it on land and later paddle it back to its home when after the wind died down. So here we are, days before ice-out and the first boat has already been launched.

The animals are taking advantage of bits of open water as well, as I heard my first beaver-tail crash onto the water when I walked along the lake just after sunset. We also have a pair of mallards that appear to have made this small stretch of open water their new home.

"How does this spot look dear?"

Sailing among the icebergs.

They spend all day cruising in these tiny areas, paddling back and forth in the narrow channels, sometimes walking over the icebergs, sometimes using them for a napping spot.

"Ouch that's cold."

Goose and duck down is still the best insulation.

Whenever another pair of mallards shows up these guys waste no time in shooing them away. I didn't realize mallards were that territorial; we've had fun watching them all week. They've also found a good source of food under our bird feeders and are doing a great job of cleaning up all the mess the birds created all winter.

Nature's vacuum cleaner

Those open spots have been freezing over at night so I'm not sure where they go - probably onto land or down to the outlet by the dam which remains open all night.

Cold nights are slowing the ice-out process.

Sadly, with the arrival of April in bear-country, it's the end of bird feeders. We've had a few new appearances this week including the first robin, the first song sparrows, the return of the redpolls, and even a few juncos which we haven't seen all winter.

A common redpoll cracks one of the last seeds from the feeder.

Birds have tremendous memories when it comes to remembering where they've stored individual seeds as well as where they've found food sources. I wonder if these are the same redpolls that were at our feeder in February, coming back to where they previously found a meal on their way south. Redpolls are now migrating all the way up to Greenland and the farthest northern parts of Canada for their breeding season.

As far as the ice goes, Meredith Bay is clear of ice as are many other parts of the big lake. But that wind blew a lot of ice into Wolfeboro, the Weirs and other southern bays so Winnipesaukee hasn't declared ice-out as of today - maybe it will happen early next week. Lake Waukewan shows a lot of blue water with all its ice blown onto the shore of the town beach.