Canada Geese.

I was awakened in the wee hours by hard rain and wind, then near lightning strikes and rolling thunder. Few thunderstorms blow through up here on the 44th parallel anyway—far fewer than my old hometown of Austin, Texas—but I don’t believe I’ve ever encountered such a phenomenon in February. When daylight revealed a dim overcast and I checked the outdoor thermometer, it showed 50-something degrees (F).

Torrent.

The stream out back was tumbling, roiling. Birds were singing, flitting, anxious.

By mid-afternoon, when Jack and I headed up to muddy Beech Hill, the clouds had gone, the sky was blue, and a haze hung over everything. I saw a flock of northbound geese. And later, back at my desk, I found a deer tick crawling across the back of my hand.

It’s still February, according to my calendar. I can’t fathom how anyone can doubt that ours is now an anthropogenic atmosphere.

Beech Hill List
Beginning at 3:15 p.m., I hiked the open trail.

1. White-breasted Nuthatch**
2. Black-capped Chickadee*
3. Downy Woodpecker (v)
4. Yellow-rumped Warbler (v)
5. Canada Goose
6. Tufted Titmouse (v)

Elsewhere

7. Blue Jay (v)
8. American Goldfinch
9. American Crow
10. Herring Gull
11. House Sparrow

v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere