I’m constantly amazed at how quickly the sun returns to us. It’s just under two weeks since the return of the sun and already it is rising before 09:30am. The House already feels warmer with the heat gain of three hours or so of direct sun, and everything feels renewed. People are walking with more of a bounce in their step, and smiles seem to come quicker. You can already feel this renewal in nature as well.
The House Hare has returned. We’ve not seen much of him/her all winter, but the past week has given evidence of his taking up residence under the House in the form of tracks, his attempts to dig down to the sustenance buried beneath the snow, and um, the end result of that sustenance.
But more than anything else you notice the renewal of the Ravens, my constant companions up here. You always saw them through the dark season, but it was always a furtive view. They didn’t seem to foray much, conserving their energy to find their food in the hours of twilight. Ah, but now… now they demonstrate how they own the air, tumbling and chasing each other, flocking to the dog team that just got fed. And they are, for a lack of a better word, enjoying their last large gatherings at the dump, before they disperse to the land, to take advantage of summers bounty and to raise their young. During they Great Backyard Bird Count I twice saw over one hundred gathered there, lining the hills around the dump, in pockets of up to thirty birds.
They’ve also returned to visiting our decks, and I daily enjoy two or three while they preen and converse just outside of my window. Two days ago as I returned from an errand two of them sat near the back door, and rather that springing away as I exited the truck they stood their ground, and we watched each other from ten feet away, renewing our acquaintance and the small amount of trust that they show me.
This is an incredible land, one that changes daily with the growing light. You can tell just how incredible it is, the Ravens like it, and they gather here.
Comments
9 responses
Thanks for giving us such a good feeling of what things are like up there! We have ravens too, but they are shy birds here.
It is a long term goal of mine to visit the Canadian north. This embolds my goal.
The House Hare sounds like a great topic for a children’s book.
Thanks Dave, ours are wary also, but at times they just seem to stand their ground. Usually they’re wary when I want to try and take a great picture of them.
The north is a great place Michael. We look forward to your visit.
It does sound like a children’s book title larry. Another writing project…
I and the Bird #69
This is it, what you’ve all been waiting for, the 69th edition of I and the Bird, roosting on my blog today!
Interesting, your observations of nature observing us.
And so true how we all perk up with the added light–common bonds over the earth.
Amazing descriptions, Clare. Thank you! I have some moments of communion with the ravens here. They are more skittish being at a school — so many noisy, running kids here. But sometimes they will look at me and let me be close to them. Only when I don’t have a camera, of course.
I can relate to Liza Lee. I enjoy the ravens but they seem to hide from my lens when they play most of their games.
Thanks Nina. I like to think that the ravens enjoy observing us. They do have a habit of looking us back straight in the eye as we check them out.
Yes Liza Lee and dave, they do seem to be camera shy at times. I think this spring I’ll try to be a little more patient and try and capture them on camera, if they’ll let me.