Eastern phoebe.
Last night I smelled it. Tonight, the smell is stronger. I’m referring to the smell of new spring.
I can’t describe it well. It’s a sort of musty, throaty smell—a sense of new, complex particles in the air. Mould? Fungi? Buds? Grass? I can tell you my lawn needs mowing already. And the rose bushes have begun to leaf out. The bulb flowers have been blooming for a while, and the forsythia flowers are wildly yellow by now. But this is something more. Some rising thickness hanging above the moist, warming earth. The smell of promise.
Cloud.
Today was a busy work day for me, so Jack and I didn’t get out until late in it. Still, as always, ours was a good hike. Lots of goldfinches at Beech Hill, lots of robins in the trees. No crazy new birds yet—but the familiar ones were satisfying enough. Phoebes, a bluebird, at least one flicker. A little rain fell early in the day, and an overcast marked the afternoon, but by evening the sky had gone blue and large cumulus clouds rose above the bay. Just about everywhere you look, little green shoots and leaflets are appearing. I got to thinking how now is the time to appreciate the view through the trees, because in a couple short weeks, that view will be obscured by curtains of green.
And with the green will come vireos. Flycatchers. Warblers.
In deep twilight, I heard a turkey gobbling out back. Tonight the spring peepers are riotous.
And, man, do I love the tantalizing smell of the air.
Beech Hill List
Beginning at 5:30 p.m., I hiked the wooded trails.
1. Herring gull (voice)
2. American goldfinch
3. American robin
4. Eastern phoebe
5. Eastern bluebird
6. Song sparrow (voice)
7. Northern flicker (voice)
8. American crow (voice)
9. Black-capped chickadee (voice)
Elsewhere
10. Northern cardinal
11. Tufted titmouse
12. House finch
13. House sparrow
14. Rock pigeon
15. Double-crested cormorant
16. Mourning dove
17. Wild turkey
Tags: American crow, American goldfinch, American robin, black-capped chickadee, double-crested cormorant, eastern phoebe, herring gull, house finch, house sparrow, mourning dove, northern cardinal, northern flicker, rock pigeon, song sparrow, tufted titmouse, wild turkey
