As I trudge through deep snow to fill the bird feeders or gather sap from the maple trees, it feels like winter still has a strong grip on the season. With all the snow we got this winter, it will probably take a while before the ground is fully bare. According to the National Weather Service from mid-December through the end of February, the Concord area received 42.5 inches of snow which is about 3 inches below normal. So, if it felt like a more “normal” old-fashioned winter in terms snow fall, that feeling was confirmed by the data.
Yet, evidence of the changing seasons is all around us. If you take time to look, listen, smell and feel the subtle, and sometimes not so subtle signs, you’ll know that spring is just around the corner.
One sign I heard the other day was the drumming of the downy woodpecker. Many birds have a melodious song that they sing to announce their presence and declare “this is my territory.” Woodpeckers are not among the virtuosos of the avian world, but they have distinctive ways of advertising their home turf and attracting a mate.
Drumming, as it is called, is a rapid and repetitive tapping of their beak on a surface that has some resonance. They may choose a hollow tree, a metal post or a portion of your house. In most woodpecker species, both males and females may drum. The rate and speed of drumming do not vary by sex but can be used to distinguish the species of the woodpecker making the sound.
Downy woodpeckers deliver a relatively slow drum pattern, about 17 beats per second according to Cornell University’s “All About Birds.” By contrast, another locally common woodpecker, the Hairy Woodpecker, drums at a rate of 26 beats per second. A bit later in the season when the yellow-bellied sapsuckers (another woodpecker species) return, their drumming has a very distinctive pattern. Instead of rapidly repeating taps, it delivers a quick rat-tat-tat and ends with a slow and deliberate, tap-tap-tap.
If you are baffled by trying to identify the source of these sounds, check out Cornell’s Merlin app. It helps to identify bird sounds using your smart phone. Widespread use of Merlin has drastically reduced the number of phone calls I get from friends who want me to ID a bird sound that they’ve been hearing!
Even if you can’t ID the species of woodpecker, it’s enough to know that they are out there and are paying attention to the changing seasons, reminding us that spring IS coming.
Woodpeckers aren’t the only ones who have something to say about longer days and warmer temperatures. I heard my first red-winged blackbird singing on March 5. I usually associate their return with town meeting time, so they are right on schedule. Like other short distant migrants, they return to breeding areas early in the season. The males claim wetland territories even when there is still ice on the marshes.
The distinctive “conk-la-ree” call of the red-winged blackbird piercing the cool late winter air always puts a smile on my face. Yes! Spring is coming. When males are singing, they also spread their red epaulets — the feathers that give the species their name. The males are black with red wings, or at least shoulder patches. The females, however, are streaked brown and white, like a large sparrow. This helps them remain camouflaged among the wetland reeds where they typically build their nests and raise their young.
Another bird that changes its tune or uses song to announce spring is the black-capped chickadee. Their nasally chatter “chick-a-dee-dee-dee” call is joined by a bright “spring’s here” whistle. Barred owls have been hooting their distinctive “who cooks for you?” call in the evening as their nesting season begins. Cardinals, bluebirds and other resident species are adding to the chorus.
Many people still consider the American robin to be a true sign of spring. However, since the early 2000s some robins have overwintered in New Hampshire, thus seeing them in the spring is a bit anticlimactic. Still the melodic song “cheery-o, cheery-me” is enough to cheer us as the season shifts and spring eventually answers the call of our avian announcers.