New Hampshire Nature Notes
by Eric Orff

It's "duck week" in NH.

Tuesday 03/27/2007

Duck week is on. This week more ducks of more species will be in the Granite State than at any other time of the year. It really started over the last weekend. On Saturday about 1:00 pm I had the first flock of red-winged blackbirds arrive at my house in Epsom. The Suncook River was quickly freeing itself of ice and did so about 3:00 pm Sunday from my view.

Spring is coming very rapidly now and so are the ducks and geese. This week flocks of ring-necked ducks will be dabbling in the now bare fields in the low lying areas flooded by the melting snow. There still is some snow in the woods but the fields are essentially all bare. And not just down here. I had to travel north to Conway yesterday and even the fields and openings up that way were bare of snow. I can't help but crane my head this way and that as I travel this time of year. I spotted numerous flocks of wood ducks and mallards in the opening stream and rivers all the way up and back yesterday. I spotted some hooded mergansers in the air as well. Ducks are like black flies right now. They are swarming everywhere pushing the receding ice northward.

It won't be long and I'll be hearing the distant quacking of the wood frogs in the bog I can hear from my deck with my listening device. I put the earphones on each morning to drink in the sweet sounds of dozens of birds I can hear as I sweep it side to side. What a difference from just a week ago when mornings were on 7 and 10 degrees. The melting snow and warm up has brought the earth to life as no other time of the year. Life is bursting from every direction including the swollen red maple buds. This is one of the best times of the year to make sure you spend time outside....and listen, listen, listen to the awakening earth.