Bears are emerging. Colorful birds are returning. Love is in the air.
Levi has three competitors here that are still puzzling to identify. All four are males.
Woodchuck
Green grass is growing and being eaten by deer, bears, and woodchucks.
Fisher
Birds add color as they return and molt into their mating colors.
Bald eagle
Meanwhile, the excitement of winter visitors continues as the bald eagle does his swoops and grabs and the fisher carries off his share of the same foods the eagle comes for.
Red maple blossom
Red maples that are known for their red leaves of fall are now sprouting red blossoms while redpolls move farther north and are replaced by purple (actually red) finches and red-winged blackbirds.
Purple finch
The flocks of male-only red-winged blackbirds that come north in April keep their red shoulder patches covered by their scapular feathers except in flight. They show their shoulder patches most when they establish territories that hold several mates and are singing their songs.
Grackles at odds
The grackles that are now here in number have a different kind of beauty—iridescence that glows in the sun, especially when they puff their feathers competitively. The picture shows two grackles competing for food while two red-winged blackbirds ignore them and keep eating.
White-throated sparrow
I am glad to see white-throated sparrows coming through. To me, they have the prettiest faces of all the sparrows.
I’m looking forward to the field courses and hoping we can identify every bear we see by the time the courses begin in July.
Thank you for all you do,
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center