May 4, 2025: Fiddleheads Erupt

A few sunny days in late April really get things moving - the sun is as strong now as it is at the end of July.  In warm, damp, sunny spots ferns are shooting out of the ground, their fiddle heads mimicking the top of a violin.  

While on shaded forest floors, the Trailing Arbutus are now in full bloom.

They are so small you may have to look carefully to find them.  Trailing Arbutus, along with Partridge Berry are some of our forests' more common ground covers, helping to maintain moisture in the soil as well as providing food and cover for the smallest of animals.  I saw my first bee of the year buzzing among the Trailing Arbutus - it was a bumble bee, the primary pollinator of this plant.  These large bees with a hairy coat can stand colder temperatures, and are the first  bees to emerge after winter.  If you find Trailing Arbutus flowers, pinch one of their flowers and smell the strong, sweet perfume that attracts the bees. 

More birds arrive daily now - this week there's been a flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers here every day.  

Yellow-rumped Warbler.

They flit erratically among the bare branches picking off insects and caterpillars. 

Caught this one in action.

Yellow-rumpeds spend the winter farther north than most warblers so they arrive early, allowing us to see them rather than just hear them since the bare tree branches give them no cover.  

How they got their name.

Bare tree branches let me watch a Tufted Titmouse forage around in a young successional forest picking off insects and spiders.  

We'll lose those bare branches in just a few more days so the birds will be well hidden up in the treetops.  The trees are now starting to put out leaves; the view down on treetops from Crockett's Ledge shows tinges of pale yellow-green aspen and dark red maple buds.

Just a smattering of color against brown branches.

Other new arrivals this week include Oven Bird, Common Yellowthroat, and Veery.  But my bird of the week was this Broad-winged Hawk which spent time hanging out amidst the warblers.

Broad-winged Hawk

I was surprised that while it was here the warblers will still flying around in the trees.  The hawk wasn't trying to be secretive because it twice flew from one tree to another. 

It also walked up and down a branch, showing off its talons.

So the warblers were certainly aware of its presence.  Are warblers smart enough to tell a broad-winged hawk apart from the smaller Merlin and Kestrel, and know that broad-wings mostly go after small animals on the ground?  They should keep in mind that these hawks do occasionally take a bird on the wing.

One quiet morning as I was listening to the birds' sunrise serenade beside the lake, I jumped a foot in the air when a beaver gave a loud slap just a few yards away from me. I hadn't seen it coming and it really is startling when you're not expecting it. I watched it swim back and forth, and it presented me with a couple more tail slaps.

There was another noisy event on the lake this week:  The loons are back to fighting over either territory or mates.  Two days after I took a nice trip around the lake and was pleased at seeing two pairs of loons peacefully enjoying their separate territories, I witnessed the most intense loon battle I've ever seen.  I heard a ruckus and looked out and saw two loons in a wing-rowing chase winding back and forth across the lake at breakneck speed - they looked like waterskiers carving up the cove.  When they reached the end of the cove they went back and forth multiple times, chasing, diving to make sharp stops and turns, barely losing a beat.  I had watched for a long time not wanting to look away, but eventually I got my camera.

They went out of my sight, but then came back and I took more video until they went far down the lake.  I checked my watch only after they'd been at it for at least a few minutes - I have no idea how long it was going on before they caught my attention, but it was ten minutes that I watched before they went back out of sight, still in active combat.  

I'm amazed at their endurance; that video was only two and a quarter minutes of a fight that went on well over ten minutes and they never once stopped going full tilt.  I can only assume one of the contestants is the north territory male.  It seems it would be one doing the chasing to drive another away, but it could be the other way around.  It could also be two females fighting over who gets to pair with the male.  Hopefully someone will give up rather than fight to the death.  But what will happen if the weaker bird gets so exhausted it can't escape?  I was happy to see a pair together fishing peacefully in the northern territory the next morning.

Some of the trees and shrubs I like to watch progress in spring are Service Berry, Black Cherry, and Hobblebush Viburnmum, all of which are pushing out small leaves now.  The viburnum is the furthest along, already forming flower buds.  

Hobblebush Viburnum early buds.

All three of these shrubs/trees might have blossoms by next week - stay tuned!

April 20, 2025: Hungry Beavers

Happy Easter!

While we're waiting for the wildflowers in the forests to bloom - the Trailing Arbutus will be first - we can enjoy cultivated crocuses, daffodils and Hepatica.  

These hepatica were planted by us, but at least they are native to North America, unlike the crocuses.

Hepatica are native in a wide range across the United States, from Canada to northern Florida.

I had my first paddle on the lake this week and appreciated the clear water and the chance to see new shoots of various aquatic plants pushing up from the bottom of the marshes.  There were also lots of birds to see and hear.  The Pine Warblers were the stars of the audio broadcast, but the Song Sparrows were a strong supporting cast and much more musical than the raspy call of the pine warblers.  But the most populous birds were the geese.

I passed by at least five pairs on the lake.  

Guard duty

Many were arguing with competitors for territory, but at least one pair was already on a nest.  I came around a corner just as one of the pair, likely the male, went off in the other direction to drive away an intruding goose, which left the female unprotected on the nest.  

Well camouflaged on the nest.

I was able to glide by without disturbing her, but she held her head low to the water just like loons do, and was absolutely motionless the entire time.

I saw only one loon on my paddle, but quarrels between loons have been seen and heard this week.  I was able to confirm that at least one of our banded loons is back on the lake.

That's a green and silver band on the right leg.

This is the female from the pair that has nested in Harris Cover for several years now.  It was interesting to find her far into the northern territory.  The long-time male in the northern territory lost his mate last summer so it will be interesting to see what happens there.  I haven't determined if the northern territory banded male is back on the lake this year.

We still have a few Ringed-neck Ducks  and many Wood Ducks.  

A couple of male Wood Ducks.

At one point there were five male Ring-necked Ducks courting a single female.

The main attraction was swimming away to the left of this picture.

It might seem like she was being harassed, but she was more likely assessing which one is best suited to be her mate.  The boldest male would often fend off another male if he approached her.  Five courting one makes me wonder if there are more males than females, and if it may be near the end of the pairing-up season.  

And the beavers - they are so much fun to watch.  In addition to seeing them swim across the lake every evening, one morning a beaver was feeding on submerged branches from a White Pine tree that had fallen into the lake.  It was just floating calm as can be enjoying its breakfast.

Look at that tail and those dexterous fingers!

When it finished with one branch it would dive down, gnaw off another from the tree and come back up to dine some more.  You can follow its path under the water by tracking the bubbles surfacing.

The beaver family creating a new pond near the Hamlin Forest trailhead continues to expand their domain.  I'll give an update on that situation in the coming weeks.

Ice-out on Wicwas was called on April 11th, three days before Lake Winnipesaukee was declared ice free.  That gave Wicwas a total of 105 days of ice cover, well below the average of 119 days due to the warm fall and late ice-in.  As of mid-week, I was still able to find a few patches of snow and ice around Meredith.

It's a different story in the mountains where it's still definitely winter.  Passing through Franconia Notch on our way up to Jay Peak in Vermont we saw Mt. Lafayette was freshly blanketed in white.  And at Jay, yes, it's still winter there!

It's easy to see why hikers that don't do their research get into trouble in the mountains this time of year.

April 13, 2025: Spanish Moss and Soggy Snow

We spent the past week in South Carolina where it was nice to see something other than snow in the tree branches.  When we returned to the lake on Thursday night we found quite a change had taken place in the days we were gone.  Not only was all the snow gone, but the lake was almost completely open.  We were greeted the first night home with the call of a loon drifting over the lake.  The next morning was dull and gray - a perfect day if you're a duck - and we were immediately treated to a smorgasbord of ducks on the lake including mergansers, wood ducks, mallards, black ducks, and these ring-necked ducks which are always a treat to see.

Ring-necked Duck.

Later in the day a pair was having an afternoon siesta near the shoreline.  

Sleeping with one eye open at 1:00pm.

I was careful not to disturb them, but eventually they woke up and perked up a bit.

When they suddenly leapt out of the water, I thought I had startled them.

But in fact, their flock, which was hidden around a point of land, had taken flight, and they were just heading off to catch up with their friends.

Can you see the mallard on the rock near shore?

Another early migrant was an Eastern Phoebe.

Eastern Phoebe perched over the lake, hoping the insects are out soon.

And no surprise, with the ice out, the beavers are back on their evening cruises across the lake in search of food and timber for building supplies.

There were branches nibbled clean of their bark showing they had been on shore, and sure enough, come night fall, one arrived to feast.

That's one big beaver that seems to have stored up plenty of winter food, but nonetheless is looking for something fresh to eat.

Now, South Carolina.  Our hostess arranged for perfect weather in the mid 80's all week and not a drop of rain.  A fun part of visiting new areas is finding unfamiliar things to investigate, such as these blossom-type items scattered all over the ground in a Low Country forest.  I figured they were pollen-producing blossoms of a tree and it didn't take long to identify them as Sweetgum.  

The dried up, brown spikey-thing (a "gumball") tucked into the leaf litter on the left was a helpful clue.

Imagine how much pollen can be expelled from all those blossoms.  

Male flowers of the Sweetgum tree.

Not far away at food-serving facility beside a lagoon I saw a large bird we don't have in New England but is easy to identify.

A Black Vulture looks for easy pickings.

Black Vultures don't venture north of Massachusetts, but maybe soon they'll make their way up here like the Red-bellied woodpeckers and winter Bluebirds have.

On the Isle of Palms we saw the usual culprits such as Laughing Gulls, Egrets, and Boat-tailed Grackles, but also a new bird for me, Willets.

Willets foraging in the surf on Isle of Palms.

It took a bit for me to recognize them as they were wearing winter or immature plumage.  (Thanks RB for the confirmation!)

Along Shem Creek in Mount Pleasant, a pair of Barn Swallows was dashing around over the marsh collecting insects, but then perched on a railing just for our enjoyment.

Barn Swallows at Shem Creek.

There were also pelicans gliding low over the creek watching the fishing and shrimp boats for cast-off fish.

Over at Folley Island we saw Pelicans performing their freefall crash into the Atlantic Ocean.

Searching for targets.

On the attack.

Contact!

No trip to the Low Country would be complete without a visit to a stand of Live Oaks with their Spanish Moss.

This is "Oak Alley" at Boone Hall Plantation which also provides much history of the slave trade and life in South Carolina.  It's worth a visit, for the history lesson as well as the flowers.

Some of the gardens in front of the plantation Mansion.

And then, after a beautiful trip through the Shenandoah Valley where we drove along miles of Red Buds and flowering trees, watching summer return to late winter, we were back in New Hampshire.  And yesterday, mother nature made sure we knew that as we woke up to this on Saturday morning.

Back to snow in the trees - we should have stayed down south another week!  Thanks for a great visit!

October 6, 2024: Wildife in Action

Fall is progressing, most evident by the cooler temperatures and changing leaves.

North from the White Mountain Ledge on a perfect October day.

Wildlife is noting the changes too and their behavior is seen in many ways.  For some time now the songbirds have greatly reduced their singing.  Some have already left the Lakes Region, and much of the sounds of those remaining are the raucous alert calls of birds grouping up to drive off something they sense as a threat.  Chick-a-dees and Blue Jays are loud examples of this.  Sometimes I can determine what they're concerned about - crows, raptors, or even my presence in their house - but other times I have no idea.  I never realized just how acrobatic crows are until I saw a mob of them fighting over nesting rights on the cell tower atop Eastman Hill yesterday.

There were at least ten crows circling and dive bombing here.  The nest is in the center.

The Red Squirrels also get annoyed as I walk a trail through their home.

"Who's in my forest?!"

Beavers have resumed their daily cruises across the lake as they prepare for winter by searching out material for their homes, food for their winter pantries, and marking their territories to dissuade other beavers from entering their claimed domain.  Beavers' actions on land aren't easily observed as they work under the safety of the dark of night, so when I saw a scent mound being formed on the shoreline I set up a camera to see if I could catch the action.  Sure enough, that night the landowners stopped by.  

A big beaver at a small scent mound.

First, at 2:20 in the morning one beaver came by to check on and freshen its scent mound.  

Rubbing scent from its musk glands on the mound.

Then later a pair of friendly beavers were there, with at least one of them having an evening snack.  The camera took video of both moments:

As an added bonus, I got some daytime pictures of Gray Squirrels at the shoreline, including a couple that appeared to be getting a little frisky one morning.

It appears our three banded loons are still on the lake, and one of them is starting to lose its bright summer plumage, another sign of the season.

Breeding plumage is fading fast.

This is our south male as shown by the bands visible in the last photo.

The north male is still here as well and has been seen a few times fishing with another loon.  He hasn't started to change his appearance much.

Still looking dapper in his formal suit.

He's quite accomplished in his fishing skills.

Down he goes.

On one dive he came up with a keeper, way too big to swallow underwater which loons do with most of the fish they catch.

Yes, he's going to swallow that whole.

This big sunfish had to be worn out before swallowing so he wouldn't have a large fish thrashing around in his gullet:

There's a lot of activity to be seen as wildlife - as well as we humans - prepare for the change in season, some moving south for the winter and those that stay put preparing to survive the New England winter.  Trees have to stay here; deciduous trees prepare by storing in their roots the energy their leaves generated all summer and then letting the leaves go.  That process gives us the great fall foliage which should be just about at peak for the upcoming holiday weekend.

Here's hoping for good leaf-peeping weather over the coming week!

A foggy sunrise on this fine Sunday morning.