It's Getting Lush/Spring Migration

One of my favorites, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Regulus calendula.

Yellow-throated Vireo, Vireo flavifrons.

The migrants are pouring up into the mountains. The trees are finally leafing out, the green is creeping up the slopes slowly every day. The whole system is so alive and in motion. To go outside in the morning is a feast of all the senses--a mixed chorus of birds, a bombardment of color (mostly some shade of light green), the spicy fresh smell of new leaves, a lightness in the air before the humidity sets in, and plenty of yummy fresh "weeds" to munch on as you walk (violets are edible! Garlic mustard, chickweed, and dandelion--a constant foragers feast!).

I will be honest with you, I have been struggling with motivation lately in all aspects of my life, but once I step outside and give myself just a few minutes with the chaotic stimulation of spring, I feel amazed that I could ever have wanted to stay in bed. I really should just pitch a tent and wake each day with the dawn chorus.

Blue-headed Vireo, Vireo solitarius, chowing down a grub.

Same Blue-headed. I had a four vireo day--Blue-headed, Red-eyed, Yellow-throated, and White-eyed.

Today I hiked all around Jones Mountain, where I have three study plots (I have a total of twelve on campus). I'm starting to gather data for my senior research--bird surveys in the college forest, basically setting up a monitoring baseline for further surveys in the coming years (whether or not the college follows through is out of my hands)--so I expect to skip a lot of class and just be lost in the forest for the next month, with the birds. I'll be taking lots of pictures, so keep your eyes peeled for new blog posts.

A Flowering Dogwood, Cornus florida.

Dogwood flowers.

Quaint resting spot at the orchard.