mdoran's Journal

I have my buddies back.....every morning I wake up, open the curtains to my sliding glass doors, and see the bright colors of the birds that are feeding. Downy woodpeckers, black-capped chickadees, northern cardinals, blue jays, and the occasional red-breasted nuthatch have already made this winter beautiful. I find myself looking outdoors every night to check on the amount of seed left in my feeder, almost neurotically telling myself that I need to fill them up the next day. The woodpeckers and chickadees seem to be the busiest, especially in the wee hours of the morning when the sun has barely risen.
Those precious little beings have to eat almost 10% of their body weight during the day just to survive these cold months. I complain about getting bundled up to go the grocery store; I can't imagine shivering all night like a bird trying to stay warm.
I'll make sure to give them a little Christmas present when I get home tonight. I'll even brave the world of retail on the day after Christmas to get them more sunflower seed. I must really love them..........

I don't know about you, but I feel like winter has already arrived in Northeastern Ohio. I am looking outside, longingly, for I miss the sunshine that greeted me when I was done with work each day back in September. Now, the time has changed, it is dark, and yes, I heard the four-letter word from more than one person in the last week. Snow flurries were seen in various locations the other day, and what did I do about it? I turned the other way!
The feeders at the Nature Realm are bringing in some of our favorite winter birds: dark-eyed juncos, white-throated sparrows, and red-breasted nuthatches are feeding daily. We also spotted a Pileated woodpecker on the suet feeder, which usually happens during the colder months.
I guess I better stop being in denial and dig out the mittens and scarf. Uggggghhhhh!

You know that fall is soon to arrive when you are stuck amongst the trees, seeing beautiful colors of the migrants moving through. Who said fall warblers aren't beautiful? Not me! This morning I had a beautiful experience, that reminded me that the natural world is constantly changing, adjusting, adapting, and living. I sometimes get enclosed in the bubble of my personal life, and all it takes to unwind me is to know that one small, actually tiny, bird may be using the constellations to find his way south this month.
We saw warblers feeding on caterpillars, insects, and flitting about the trees as we walked the lower portion of the Oxbow. I don't think that any of us expected that on a cool, August morning, our life would change, even if just for a day.

I had such a joyful experience this morning. Something simple to me, turned out to be a new adventure, a new discovery, and time spent with loved ones for my visitors. I packed a rubbermaid bin full of bug nets, jars, magnifiers and other things for little hands to hold. They each grabbed a few pieces and off they went running, into the park! There excitement and light made me realize that I have my dream job. And I feel so blessed.
The look on a little one's face when they have caught a bug might be the best experience I could ever have as a naturalist!

I was driving with my window down on a gorgeous spring evening, remembering when I used to do this as a much younger me, when I realized that I truly love the people I work with and the area in which I live. My mind was thinking of this when I came down Sand Run Parkway and realized the spring pepers were calling just as loudly as they were in March on some of the warm evenings that we had. Then I heard the gray treefrogs kick in; there had to be quite a few there. I laughed to myself thinking that only a few years ago (7 to be exact), I would have thought that call was a bird.
My mind continued to wander as suddenly I came to a screeching hault....much to my suprise, I came across a huge American toad. He looked just as grumpy as he did the night I photographed him along the parkway.
I like to think it was the exact same toad......here is a photo of the one I took in March! I put on my hazards, unbuckled my seat belt, and jumped out. I gently picked him up, kissed him, and put him on the other side of the road. Well, maybe I didn't really kiss him, but I wanted to.
Perhaps I saved him from the tires of a speeding car?