PEAK BEAK

Spring has sprung bigtime. Tulips and daffodils have had their glory and the next round of showoffs glow in the morning sun. Can you match these pictures with their common names:

Haskap         dandelion       apple       cherry       phlox      service berry (hint: with 2 native birds!)

We're also springing into the annual startup chores. Lots of ash chips to spread on the beds. Bailing the little pond. Safely(?!) servicing the mower and straightening the blade. Doing the hula like DWTS before the hoop swims with the floating oxygenators.

Also returning for another season are the frogs, salamanders, and another batch of "feeder" fish. Who are they feeding in  this pond??

But the real highlight of May is the absolutely magnificent parade of returning and/or migrating birds. Peak beak is here!! Last Sunday's snow didn't bother any of them. The gold finches have quality AND quantity. A red-headed woodpecker that's actually called a red-bellied! Brilliant orange orioles light up the green branches. Ruby hummingbirds stake out their turf at the sugar water. Rarities like the American Redstart and scarlet tanager (book photo) are here but too fast to pose. And the bird that made this place famous last year --- the Summer Tanager --- is back for an encore! In the meantime, all this chirping has drawn the attention of predators like this redtailed hawk that swoops down on the ground feeders. Watch out juncos!!

But it's a holiday weekend in Canada and time for some R&R. Boaty McBoatfaces cruise by. Ontario's official triliums show up on time at the campgrounds. And the BBQ's are smokin'. Guess where MY beak is peeking?