Saturday, 19 March, the day before the first day of spring, seemed a good time to check the progress on campus of Spring emerging from Winter—and to see how may signs of Spring were about. I was not disappointed. For starters, I enjoyed two butterflies and one small spider. No dragon flies yet.

But, with climate change and the practice of several species of overwintering here instead of going south, it is rather dicey to know who’s newly back in town and who braved the cold. Most notable examples are the Canadian goose and the great blue heron. I saw turtle (mourning) doves and heard the call of the European collared dove. Had many sightings of the ubiquitous robin, but hard to tell which of them normally breed here and go south for the winter or come south to spend the winter with us before again heading back north to breed.

I’ve read that some bluebirds and wrens overwinter here. Bluebirds are early nesters. But on 19 March “all was quiet on the western front.” I recall that during past summer hikes along Donner Tail, I often would be blessed by a Carolina wren at the upper end of the trail and by a house wren at the lower. Saw no sign of the American sparrows that come south to over-winter here. Same with the adorable juncos who bless our winters but are in the process of heading north. Cardinals, as always, showed their beautiful flashes of color.

Although not so much a seasonal thing, on any given night I might expect to hear either the barred of the great horned owl calling from the woods behind my cottage on Meadowlark Valley. But a few nights ago, something different: a call that suggested the presence of the slightly smaller long-eared owl. Let’s hear it for variety!

Time out for Bayer Pond. Being some three feet below maximum water level before the recent rains, the exposed banks held an unusually large number of opened freshwater mussel shells. Not commonly known is the fact that Kansas is home to just over forty species of fresh-water mussels. Countless raccoon tracks, and a few of deer, skunk, and great blue heron splattered the banks where rocks gave way to mud. Part of a bobcat track, or that of a very large domestic cat, piqued my interest.

I saw three of the five species of frogs one might expect to find along the water’s edge:  bullfrog, leopard, and northern cricket frogs. The two species of tree frog are less likely, except during their breeding seasons, to be found crowding the pond’s edge.  One member of the large population of pond slider turtles was sunning on a rock but saw none of the few snapping turtles that live there.

Back on dry land, I will give a nod to a group of common animals that neither migrate nor hibernate. Will mention three of them—and leave the prairie vole rodent and other species for another time.  The coyote, the “defiant song-dog of the West,” is found in almost every county of every state, the Maritime Provinces, and much of both Canada and Mexico. If I listen, I can, from my cottage, hear them many evenings each week as they sing to themselves, to other coyote groups, to the cosmos, or to whatever or whomever.

The fox squirrel brings much spirit and physicality to our woods and lawns. The bane of those who maintain bird feeders in their back yards, Sciurus niger must, at least, be admired for its ability to rapidly haul its body weight straight up a tree trunk. Variety and physicality!

Few appreciate the number of raccoons around and how closely they can live in relation to us. Ricky Raccoon is alive and well. All three species mentioned have a wide and varied diet. Variety, physicality, and flexibility!

As time goes by, I intend to spend a significant number of column inches extolling the reasons why we should marvel at all living creatures—and give them a much larger billing in the business of keeping this planet safe for all of us.