How the weather does change; Sunny but cold, there is though the gentle unfolding of all the buds, we go from the white of the snowdrops to the yellow of daffodils and celandine and of course the pussy willow soft catkins. Garden plantings have tulips and crocuses to add to the mix, and even my little cowslip I planted last year is beginning to thrust up flower buds.
The sense that is most used at the moment though is hearing the sound of the birds, dawn chorus, the squawk of the pheasant, he now has a family of five hen pheasants, the call of the barn owl that glides so softly around Bridge Farm in the morning, there is another strange cry from the young of the crow up in the copse behind the house, but of course my favourite call has also returned, the lovely sound of the curlew, this video happens to be in Ireland, which always reminds me I am in Yorkshire and need to visit the moors. There is one more sound that I hear on a morning walk, and that is the river as it falls ever so slightly over the stones in the river. We have a sulphur spring bubbling up in our river. The river also rises very quickly the water coming down from Rosedale Moor, which means that flooding is always a worry.
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| Butterbur
This strange alien plant has made an appearance, related to coltsfoot, which also appears in flower form early on in the year. I have traced it to another part of the river bank as well, the flower heads wander along in fairly straight tracks, they disappear very quickly and then the giant butterbur leaves appear, to wrap, of course, the butter in 19th century England before the dreaded plastic appeared.
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Love the dawn chorus at the moment, but not so keen when it gets earlier!
ReplyDeleteWe have the chuck chuck noise of Moorhens in the drainage ditch by the house,but not running water....sadly
Always scuttering away moorhens, but they live in a the peaceful backwaters. You have to admit the return of the light is marvellous, even though it makes the day begin much earlier.
DeleteNo matter how many times we experience it, the sights and sounds of spring are always glorious and satisfying. My favorite sound is the mating call of he frogs. They sing every morning and night in April and May and I never tire of it.
ReplyDeleteHappy spring to you and yours.
One thing we haven't got are frogs, dug two ponds years ago in another house, and the wild life was was wonderful. Frogs erupting from everywhere to mate with the poor females, newts and then later on the damsel and dragonflies. A whole ecosystem.
DeleteLove that spring orchestra and you have a good ear! Those curlew are so interesting and not like anything we have here.
ReplyDeleteSometimes it gets too loud, there is also the night time chorus from the blackbirds, thrushes and robins. Soon it will be the time of the cuckoo, middle of April, sadly the cuckoo is getting scarce and then the swallows.
DeleteNot unsurprisingly, there is a LOT of Butterbur growing just inside the lowest walls of Hay Castle, close to the Buttermarket . . .
ReplyDeleteIt's lovely to hear the birdsong again, but golly gosh, today was cold with what they call "wintry showers" - did you have any snow?
Let's hope when the clocks go back this weekend we can have some more spring days come and visit.
Well it is a true tale then about butterbur, it is interesting how they wrapped food in the olden days... No snow but cold winds and hailstorms, spring has vanished. Not 'back' Jennie for the clocks, "spring forward, fall backward" as Paul would say.
ReplyDeleteThe photo of that blossoming tree is absolutely beautiful!! I pinned it to one of my Pinterest boards. : ) I love that you have pheasants on your lawn. We have wild turkeys but I haven't seen any pheasants in the wild before. One of my favorite things about following blogs from other parts of the world is seeing the different sights and wildlife. It opens up a whole new world, doesn't it? : ) xo
ReplyDelete~ Wendy
http://Crickleberrycottage.blogspot.com/
Think that it is blackthorn, hawthorn comes later Wendy. The stately procession of pheasants was a pleasant surprise, the male had appeared the day before eating the daffodils. There are lots of rabbits as well, luckily they can't jump down from the grave yard.
Deletethe sound of water is one thing I miss here, having lived by the sea previously it is the only thing amiss here in our new more arid climate
ReplyDeleteWater when it tumbles over rocks as it does on the moors in the becks is a magical sound, river sounds are larger. Of course the sea laps gently, unless in the midst of a storm.
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