Duck Watching.

4-9-14 VERMONT: We both came up yesterday, leaving rain behind in NJ and finding sunshine and 70° in VT. The house was closer to 50° inside, so I put the heat on for a while. I changed all the storms for screens and put away all the snow clearing tools—something I may yet regret, even in June. Then I filled the bird feeders, turned on the outside water, and when Judy showed up, we did a walk around the pasture. There was a fair amount of floating debris on the pond, leaves, grass, dead stalks from last year, so I got the long-handled net and the wheelbarrow and scooped it all up.

The pond is full and full of frog, newt and salamander eggs masses. The frog opera is being performed nightly. The yard was cleared and mowed by Josh and his crew and looks fine. The beds are a bit messy, but that’s my job.

After I came in the house yesterday evening, a pair of ducks landed by the pond, and I got to try out the new camera again. They were not the usual, everday kind of ducks.

Today was another busy one. It was supposed to rain, but we only got a few light showers so I got to work. In the morning Judy and I put out all the benches and rockers and moved the picnic table back on the deck and put the rowboat in the pond.

I put up all the flowerbed fences. They’re supposed to keep the dogs out of the beds. It’s a chore to put them up and then take them down in the fall. I also did some weeding and pruning in those beds. More ducks today, the usual Mallards. They were here for a long time and busy eating frog eggs. Maizie ultimately chased them away. They left reluctantly.

The water outlet at the barn has a big leak. The plumber is coming Monday.

In bloom: snowdrops, crocus, daffodil, pachysandra, bloodroot, primrose, trillium, wild ginger, forsythia.


These are the odd ducks-everyone welcome to diagnose.


After the chickadees, this Rose-Breasted Grossbeak was right in line at the feeder.

 
Today's ducks, the usual Mallards.