My woods are a living clock. And the clock’s broken.
You usually know the time of year by the fullness of trees and the height of weeds. But, not always.
Right now, the overgrown, over-green woods are saying August, and it’s only early June. We’re experiencing premature summer.
The migration came early and it’s long gone. Everything’s quiet. Even the common birds are rare. But I saw one by luck this morning, unmoving on a fat tree.
It was a Blue Jay, the best of jays. I’ve seen Scrub Jays, Gray Jays, Steller’s Jays, almost all the jays. (In Europe, they even have a jay called a “Jay.” Not worth writing home about.)
There’s nothing as cool as a Blue Jay. Hot and cold blues, big and small stripes, a neck band, a crazy crest, a tail dipped in white.
Hadn’t seen one in a while.
I rarely see one in August, because that’s when birds sit more quietly. And in my June woods, like I say, it’s pretty much August. The clock’s out of whack, running fast.
Two interesting sightings: A woodland that’s lost its sense of timing. And a Blue Jay. I liked seeing the Blue Jay.
I live near Boston, Mass and we see the Blue Jay often at our back yard. I researched and found that Blue Jays are related to crows and are also very smart birds.
At 6,500 ft elevation in Colorado my little house wrens have been replaced by canyon wrens (longer tail). But more so, the beautiful singing of the mourning dove has been totally taken over by the larger more aggressive Eurasian dove. If I blow into my hands to mimic the mourning dove I could be looking up at the growl of this new invasive species as it passes closely overhead.
I live in Saginaw, TX, a small community north of Ft. Worth, and try to make my small backyard a place for the birds. (Not blessed to live in the woods of East Texas) I am always glad to see the Blue Jay pair return to the feeders in my yard. When I see them I start putting out peanuts, then they are on their own to beat the squirrls. Some years they bring thier young to my yard to feeder.–Not yet this year.
Finding the same conditions here is S.W. Missouri…strange weather we are having. We live in the middle of the woods. Tomorrow I travel to a nearby stream…maybe my luck will turn.