The past few days have seen the arrival of our first brown thrashers, first
heard singing at dusk on Friday. I haven't actually seen one yet, but their
distinctively paired mimic calls always delight me.

I finished cleaning out and repairing the bird boxes for the upcoming
season on Saturday, six of them, and re-installed a seventh that was
knocked down by the horses last fall, now located in a different spot. We
have had eight or so bluebirds overwintering here, and I'm expecting tree
swallows any time now. I have always noticed that the swallows arrive
statewide a week or so before "my" tree swallows show up, and I think this
is due to our upland location on Flint Ridge, with the birds arriving in
the lowlands, wetlands, lakes, rivers, etc. before the higher, drier
ground. Has anyone else noticed this?

I heard our first phoebes on March 17.

Juncos are singing. Field sparrows are abundant.

I had mockingbirds engaging in a full-blown cockfight on Saturday. It ended
with the perceived loser cowering in the undergrowth, muttering softly, and
the prevailing bird perched on high sharing his full repertoire with the
world. A third, silent individual, presumably the female, perched quietly
nearby through the whole contest. Fascinating. Mockers overwintered in two
locations here, at least I regularly saw them in two spots separated by a
fair distance, 350m.

During our walk at dusk last night I had a somewhat unusual sighting, a
pair of mallards. I often get overflights of Canada geese, ring-billed
gulls, or a stately great blue heron, but ducks are out of the ordinary for
us - no pond or real wetlands, only some springs and seeps and adjacent
boggy ground. Thus, any ducks, even mallards, are out-of-the-ordinary.

"My" Louisiana waterthrushes haven't been heard yet. I expect them any day.

Bob Evans
Geologist, etc.
Hopewell Township, Muskingum County

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