SONG OF SPRING. Song Sparrows can be generally identified, and separated from other ‘little brown jobs,’ by the brown spot in the middle of their breast. Their eponymous song, too, is unmistakable. [John Galluzzo photo]
What’s Been Seen: The changing of the guard is taking place as planned. Despite a sluggish start to spring, as we continue to fight colder than expected temperatures, the natural world is pushing forward with its seasonal plans.
Although some natural phenomena are driven by temps (the flow of sap in maple sugar trees, for instance, is dependent on a good level of viscosity achieved through warm air; spotted salamanders and wood frogs will only report to vernal pools on a rainy night over 48 degrees), others are not dependent on warmth. Birds make migratory movements based on the number of available daylight hours. So, despite the cold, we now see an absence of Horned Larks at the HRA land; an absence of large flocks of scoters offshore; the absence of those Snow Buntings behind the high school.
In March we saw the arrival of Great Egrets and Ospreys on the Weir River and the congregation and passing through of various species of ducks on Straits Pond, including Common Mergansers, Lesser Scaups and Greater Scaups. The first Killdeers were here by the first few days of April. Don’t be surprised if a pair nests on top of the high school.
What to Expect: The ducks and the birds of prey are already in migration, and so, too, are many smaller songbirds. Chipping Sparrows should be here immediately and if you haven’t heard an Eastern Phoebe yet, you will soon. Piping Plovers will be on the beach, or, if they don’t choose Hull, you’ll be able to find them on Plymouth or Duxbury Beaches. Snowy Egrets will join those Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons out on the marshes and Tree Swallows will soon be darting back and forth over Straits Pond looking for bugs. As the days lengthen, so will the list of bird species sightings. By the end of the month we’ll be bracing ourselves for the warbler migration and the true beauty of the season, when the “morning chorus” is in full song.
