Spring arrivals have been a bit hit and miss so far but today several Rufous Hummingbirds, among them the first mature male, made an appearance , maybe signaling the beginning of a more sustained migration. I have seen three females over the last 10 days but only very briefly. The same is true for my Barn Swallows. The first sighting was about a week ago but none had settled in until 3 days ago when one male started spending the night on the frame above our recessed front door. Yesterday I saw at least two and today there were at least 3 or 4 swooping in and out our front and back porches. Swainson’s Hawks were represented, again, by one individual that migrated through 10 days ago but today four individuals were circling, calling and displaying above my garden and the creek. So they are definitely here now. Tree Swallows have of course been back for 2-3 weeks checking out nest boxes, disappearing when the weather turned cold but reappearing again with warmer temps, as is their habit during early spring. Bushtits are building nests. I have found three so far in the riparian woodland along the creek. House Wrens are singing vigorously in their traditional territories. At least one nest box is occupied by White-breasted Nuthatches already incubating their eggs. They are always the earliest cavity breeders around here. I still found recently a Red-breasted Sapsucker along the creek where I see them more typically during the winter months. There seem to be more American Robins this spring than in the past few years when there numbers around here were down. Yellow-rumped (Audubon)Warblers are plentiful along the creek, some of them starting to molt into their breeding plumage. With warm temps in the offing I think bird activity will pick up and spring will definitely settle in.
Manfred Kusch South bank of Putah Creek 1 mile downstream of Stevenson Bridge
