Meteorological First Day of Spring

For the purposes of this blog, I had decided –out of instinct– to make generalized cut-off points at the beginning or end of various months to indicate the four seasons of Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. Little did I know at the time but this is a real method of demarcating the seasons and is called "meteorological reckoning." In this scenario today March 1st would be the 1st day of Spring. I chose this method because I thought it seemed to fit much better with the arrival, departure and general behavior of the birds in our region. For example the Hermit Thrush typically arrives back in Minnesota while there is still snow on the ground. But I wouldn't call a Hermit Thrush a "winter bird." Even hearty Warblers like the Yellow-rumped Warbler can begin arriving earlier than the official first day of Spring. My two favorite sayings and generalization about birds are; a) Birds don't read field guides, and b) Birds don't read calendars! I've come to find both of these very true. So there's my explanation for that. Now on to my hike around the park today! The first thing I stopped to take a photo of was a male Great Horned Owl that was perched surprisingly close to the trail. He was obviously tending to his nesting mate and is the same one I've been seeing frequently. It was nice to see him in such good light for a change. As I walked I noticed that many of the dried up Oak leaves still clinging to their trees from last season are now starting to drop. One more sure sign of the changing season. Later I made a brief trek into the woods and scared up a flock of a dozen or so Mourning Doves. You'll know Mourning Doves immediately because their wings make an unmistakeable noise when they first burst into flight. I stepped further quietly hoping to find one still perched and noticed this one between a small gap in the thick branches. I know for certain that Mourning Doves stay the entire winter in the Palmer Lake Park area. If you would draw a horizontal line across the bottom 1/3 of the state, this is roughly their year-round territory. Shortly after I could hear a Northern Cardinal singing loudly and continuously. Indeed I have heard Cardinals "call" and maybe even "sing" for brief periods this winter, but this was noticeably different in that it was continuous and cheerful. It seemed so out of place that it made me stop to think when the last time I'd witnessed a Cardinal doing so. Likely not since springtime. How could one not feel joy at such a sight? Other birds spotted today included; Dark-eyed Junco, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker and lots of Black-capped Chickadees.