We Just Might Get Spring.

2-26-21 SHORT HILLS: We walked with Bill, Lynn and Bella today at Loantaka Park, or rather we so intended, but the trails were snow covered, so we walked on the road. The big pond there has thawed and lots of water birds are swimming and diving. I took some pic with a pocket cam that were terrible so I went back with the real cam after the walk.

Open water and a couple warmish days have me believing that the thaw will happen. Our driveway is still a narrow path for cars to get in and out surrounded by Alps created by the plowers. The terrace table has only a snowball’s worth of snow now. It had 18 inch deep pile not that long ago.

I always feel that spring will happen once we get to March 1, and say 'bye' to February. We’re forecasted for precip tomorrow. On weather radar it looks like the rain-snow line goes through our yard. I sure don’t want more white stuff.

A Ring-necked Duck, male, in breeding format splashing around Loantaka pond.

Here he is with the missus. Looking for a nest site??

They weren't alone. Here's a bunch of Canada Geese and Mallards.

A blue heron also made the scene. He/she is busy grooming. Don't you wish you had a built-in back scratcher?

This oak at Loantaka looks the way I feel some days.

Back in the yard, this red-breasted nuthatch posed for me.

Enough With the Snow!

2-22-21 SHORT HILLLS: Once again we’re getting snow, yet another winter wonderland. I am so ready for warmer weather. Actually it’s turning to rain, which may melt some snow, but it will freeze tonight. 

We walked yesterday with Ron and Bebe on a blue sky day. Looking at 10 Day forecast, I see highs in the forties and fifties and scattered rain, which may make the snow go away.

Lady Cardinal looking a bit soggy.

There are two male cardinals in this pic. Can you find them?

About 2.5 feet of snow in February.

A Warm Day!

 2-16-21 SHORT HILLS: We continue to get forecasts of snow and ice, but the last two storms were no shows. Last night we got rain that didn’t freeze. It melted a lot of snow, and this afternoon it’s in the forties and sunny. We did a nice walk.The gutters are running with water, and you can hear the water flowing into the sewers that are still  buried under the snow cover. It made me feel that the unlikely arrival of spring was actually conceivable.

I cleared some snow from the mounds in the driveway to make the paths a little wider for the cars. Then I opened up the sewer on the street at the top of our driveway to keep us from getting flooded if there’s a lot of melting in a hurry. 

When I let the dogs out this morning I roused a deer near the back yard feeder. That explains why that feeder has been emptying so fast.   I confirmed that suspicion by finding deer tracks mixed in with the dog  and bird footprints. I also saw something moving high up a tree, something that stayed in the same place for 20 minutes or so. I took a pic, and, of course, it was a squirrel, but it was eating the fat buds on our elm tree—another sign that we will probably have spring some day. 

I took some pix outside sitting on the porch of a couple birds on the suet feeder. The image quality is so much better than shooting through the window. 

I couldn't tell what the squirrel was from the ground and why it didn't move until i got this pic of all those fat elm buds that made for breakfast.

Camera shy deer headed behind the pool when the dogs came out of the house.

White-breasted nuthatch and downy woodpecker posing on the suet feeder.

A couple of the woodpecker, she sat there for a while withput moving at all.

La Nina Makes an Appearance.

 2-11-21 SHORT HILLS: Since the big snow, we’ve had another 8 inches and then a light dusting and again last night another 2 inches. January was fairly mild and dry, but February is turning into the winter month from Hell—except it’s not warm. 

I checked the Climate Prediction Center at NOAA, and we’re in a La Nina, the strongest since 2010, and that condition usually makes the Northeast US snowy and cold. Expect more snow. 

The birds are draining the main feeder every day, and I can’t stop taking pictures. The dogs have made trails all over the yard. We would use them except they’re under bushes and shrubs. 

Judy and I have each had our second vaccinations. I start volunteering at the vaccination center next week. In three months it will be May.  

After the second storm, we have a big serving of snow on the table.

Customers come in all sizes and colors.

Everybody gets a turn, if they're a little aggressive.

The red catches one's eye.

Nice sunset through the trees. The sun now sets further north on the horizon.

A Very Big Snow.

 2-5-21 SHORT HILLS: The forecast big snow was a very big snow. We measured 16 inches at the table on the patio, but that doesn’t take into consideration that the first levels are compressed by the upper levels so the true amount would be about 18 inches. We were trapped in the house and yard until the driveway was shoveled and plowed two days later. Now we have a narrow pathway to back out of the drive and huge piles. 

It has started to melt, but very slowly. There was an inch of new snow this morning, but it has melted. There doesn’t seem to be major tree damage from the snow.

The feeders have been swarmed, and I have some bird pix to post, some from before the snow. At one point, all the feeders birds vanished. When I looked out the window, there was Peregrine Falcon in the tree above the feeders. He/she moved to the holly tree and I went for the cam, but the falcon was gone by the time I got back. After fifteen minutes or so, the birds were all back. 

By the time February rolls around, I’m done with winter and am ready for spring, especially when the snow is as deep as this. The days are noticeably longer and the sun a little higher is the sky at midday. 

The meterologist is at work, that black thing behind her is Bally the dog rolling in the snow.

Red-bellied woodpecker pecking at the suet.

White-throated sparrow and junco below the feeders.

Song sparrow came to the party.

Val asked how do birds stay warm in winter. Besides calorie loading, they fluff up their feathers to make a down coat. This cardinal looks twice as big as usual.

Three birds easily confused are the Chickadee, seen here and...

The White-breasted nuthatch. This one's eye is in the white part of the face, while the chichadee's eye is in the black cap. The nuthatches also have longer beaks and often hang up-side-down.

The red-breasted nuthatch has the red color and a white stripe on the head.

Snow Flics.

The birds eat to stay warm.

It's snowing as hard as predicted, who would have expected that?