Summer residents are arriving

The summer migrants and residents are pouring through. This morning I heard my first black and white warbler of the year and the first great-crested flycatcher. The yard is full of blue-gray gnatcatchers and I spotted a band on one. Most likely I banded that bird in a previous year. Hopefully it will go into a net and I can find out.

I just checked a nest box that a pair of bluebirds have adopted. Five eggs inside. The adults have stayed even though a local mockingbird really tried to run them off.

The climbing roses are in full bloom; some of the clematis are covered in saucer sized blooms (well a bit smaller than a saucer). In the vegetable garden I'm picking radish and the other cool season crops are coming along.

Oh and talking of nesting. Across the lake there was a pair of Canada Geese accompanied by goslings munching grass.

Banding news. No banding in February or March as weather unfavorable or other commitments. The rain and wind finally gave me a break in April and I'll write these sessions up separately.