April 12, 1984 - Some Hints of SpringApril 12,1984
The Suffolk Tunes
Some Hints of Spring
By PAUL STOUTENBURGH
The other night our dog barked as if
something was disturbing him. Once or
twice I vaguely remember him waking
me with his barking but nothing he did
was meaningful enough to get me up.
The next morning as I pulled back the
curtains from the picture window, there
he sat, head lifted up as if he was in
command. And in command he was, for
high in the top of the tree was a raccoon.
Evidently, "the marauding bandit" had
trespassed into his territory and that
brought the wrath of the protectorate
down on him with his only escape up a
nearby tree.
There atop the tree, the raccoon stayed
all morning as Barbara and I worked
around the place while "Hick" watched
reassuring himself with a glance upward
now and then that his trespasser had no
road to escape.
Springtime is the most dangerous time
as far as predation goes to our chickens.
Raccoons, opossums and fox like most
animals have been waiting all winter to
have their young and now during this
time extra food is in demand. Already
the fox has taken our only guinea hen and
without our security guard I'm afraid our
chickens will be next in line.
I had to go off, leaving Barbara still
working around the place with the dog.
As a break, they went down to get the
mail at the end of the driveway. Can you
imagine in the short time the guard was
let down the raccoon shinnied down the
tree and made his escape?
Evidently from his vantage point in the
top of the tree, he saw the coast was clear
for those few moments and took
advantage of it. Let's hope the wrath of
the dog will linger with him and keep him
from trespassing around our place for
from here on in chickens will be setting
on their eggs to bring forth new broods. It
is this time they are most vulnerable.
More Signs of Spring
Each week there are more and more
signs that spring is doing its part to break
the clutch of winter. People who spent
the winter in the sunny south are heading
back. Shore birds that I watched on the
beaches of Sanibel Island a month ago
have moved north and can be seen by the
hundreds along the flats of the south
shore.
Asparagus has broken through the rich
brown soil of the garden and hopefully
will find its way to our dinner table in the
near future. Of course, the crocus and
daffodils are truly the most obvious
harbingers of spring for their color
captures the eye no matter where they
bloom.
'Greeks for a Day'
MATTITUCK - -March 25 was
proclaimed Greek Independence Day in
Southold at the Transfiguration of Christ
Church in Mattituck.
An overflow crowd filled the church for
the ceremony. Among those present
were Supervisor Frank Murphy and his
wife, Betty. Poetry readings were
offered by Presvitera Sitaris and Mrs.
Christaleni Loukaidou, and a flounder
dinner was served.
Mr. Murphy read a proclamation from
the Town Board, establishing March 25,
1984, as Greek Independence Day.
4oQd� cw
A rather uncommon harbinger is the
appearance of a cattle egret in our
pasture out back. Here it seems quite at
home walking among the cattle and
picking up insects that are associated
with these areas. This all -white bird is
seen commonly down south stalking
along roadsides for small lizards and
insects and as the warmer weather
moves north it travels with it.
I first became aware of this beautiful
white bird many, many years ago when I
saw it on the backs of rhinos and other
animals in photographs of African
wildlife. They are native to that continent
and have just recently moved into the
New World. From a single pair that
appeared in the Caribbean they now have
moved with the seasons as far north as
Maine and Nova Scotia.
Sometimes we confuse the cattle egret
with the more common snowy egret in
our creeks and marshlands all along the
coast. Cattle egrets are inland birds and
are found in pastures and other open
areas. They can be distinguished from
the all white snowy egret by the rusty
coloring that blends into their head and
breast. If you see a white bird inland, it is
bound to be the cattle egret. If you see a
white bird in our creeks it is most likely
the snowy egret.
Back to Grazing
In the last few weeks the cows have
shown me there is a change taking place
in their pasture. They no longer,
appreciate the hay I put out for them but
rather are content with grazing once
again on the tender green that is
becoming more noticeable. I can just
imagine the relief from dried hay to fresh
green they must enjoy. It's like our fresh
vegetables compared to canned ones.
They have another trait that tells me
spring is in the air. Their frolicking,
bucking, snorting and general playing
around give me an indication of things to
come.
The titmice that come to our feeder
have already started nesting. We saw
them pulling threads from a piece of
material that hung nearby. A nesting box
or cavity is where they will end up.
Seeing this was enough to make Barbara
and I spend the afternoon cleaning out
old and putting up new bird houses
throughout our area.
We opened one box up and a pair of
dazed beady -eyed deer mice jumped out
and scurried away; one taking shelter up
Barbara's pants leg, which needless to
say brought on quite a song and dance.
For a moment I didn't know which I
wanted as tenants the mice or the birds
so I put the reconditioned house back in
the same spot. If they liked their
homestead enough they can go back and
the birds can use one of the other 15
houses we put up. We'll just have to wait
and see.
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Page 19
Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
YOUNG FOX OUTSIDE DEN --It won't be long before young mouths must
be fed. During this time, the fox, raccoons and opossums become more
adventuresome and raid garbage pails on back porches or sneak into
the farmer's yard to dine on chicken or other fowl.
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