New Hampshire Nature Notes
by Eric Orff

What a roller coaster ride we have had the last ten days and more. It sure looked like we were going to have a very early spring with a good two weeks ahead of normal. wrong! It's now looking more like a late spring kind of like last spring. Well except for the piles of snow everywhere last year until mid April. But this Tuesday's snow followed by a record all time cold of 4 degrees the next morning had me wondering when spring would arrive. Even by yesterday afternoon I noticed all the local small ponds had a coating of slushy ice from the snow and record cold. Kind of slammed us good back into winter this week. But today a warm 50's rain just started falling about 11 am that I am sure will make quick work on dissolving the last of the snow and ice. My poor daffodils that were in bloom out my office window are now drooped to the ground from the load of heavy wet snow and the near zero temps. It doesn't look like they will be looking up any time soon.

 

The snow covered field across from my house that was glistening white in Wednesday's morning sunshine had recovered it's green spring blush by the afternoon. So things really can change by the hour this time of year.

 

Within days of my return from Florida March twelfth my good friend Rick a mile down the road from me heard peepers calling. Then with the big chill everything grew quiet for the next two weeks. It was just late last week on a 60 degree evening that I heard my first peepers in town. Then Four days later the pond was skimmed with ice.

 

I have yet to hear a redwing blackbird. Robins galore about and the phoebe has returned to the old camp down back to make their nest under the eve. Waves of migrating ducks have no doubt swept through although I haven't seen the numbers I normally do this time of year. I relate that more to the jumbled up spring as well. But turkeys and deer are out most days in numbers. In fact numbers I have never seen before. All the more a reflection of our non-winter we just had. At least I hope it is over.

 

As far as I can tell the salamanders have not run here locally yet. I'm betting it will be tonight. I was a bit worried I was going to miss it with my late stay in Florida and the early spring happening back home. So maybe the cool down is a good thing after all. I'd hate to miss my salamanders I have got to know over the last decade or so. So, so many things to connect to right now.