October 23, 1986 - Ruminating On Arrival Of AutumnRuminating
On Arrival
Of Autumn
By PAUL STOUTENSURGH
What a weekend we've all just had.
I watched the high pressure system
move in from the west on TV and
knew we couldn't have anything but
perfect weather for four or five days.
When conditions like this come up,
it's hard to figure out what to do first.
As it worked out, Barbara and I de-
cided to be practical, which was un-
Focus on
Nature
usual, and not go canoeing, beach-
combing, traveling or any of the
many things that lure you on beauti-
ful fall days. Instead we took down
screens and put up storm windows
how boring. Yet we did and we did it
when the temperature and condi-
tions were good. Usually we wait
until the coldest, rawest November
days when the job becomes intolera-
ble and everything seems to go
wrong.
The presence of chickadees,
nuthatches and woodpeckers spurred
us to get out the birdfeeders and fill
them up. A friend of mine used to
band his feeder birds with small col-
ored bands on their legs to see just
who was who each year. It was re-
markable how one pair would con-
tinually show up at his feeder.
Chickadees and nuthatches, along
with woodpeckers, don't migrate any
long distances. Usually it's the abil-
ity to find a suitable nesting site that
either keeps them around or takes
them away from our feeders for the
nesting season. Then, after their pa-
rental duties are over, it's back to
their general habitat to spend the
winter.
These little bundles of fluff are
quite apt at surviving without our
help. Hibernating insects, dormant
eggs or even dried berries make suit-
able substance for their winter diet.
Our birdfeeders only make it easier
for them to survive. The chunk of
suet or seeds we put out must be like
Thanksgiving all the time for them.
The Suffolk Times /October 23, 1986 /Page 9A
Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
FALL REFLECTIONS - -Our marshes, like grain the rich color of our fall oaks, they add much to these
fields, have turned to golden brown. Blended with perfect fall days.
Keeping Birds Close By
We feed these little gems because
we want them around. We want to
feel that they are part of our life, that
we haven't completely .divorced our-
selves from the world around us.
They are a never - ending joy and
satisfaction to those who watch
them.
Just the other day, I stopped into a
business office right off the Main
Road where the secretary had one of
those small plastic feeders attached
outside the window of her work area.
She had that special feeling that
feeder people have, even though she
was far from the wooded areas of the
country.
The beautiful weather finally
lured us away. Bright sun and warm
temperatures said only one thing.
"Go sailing before it's too late." So,
with some friends and a packed
lunch, we headed out. The tide was
extra high because of the passing full
moon and I was glad to see cleaner
water in contrast to the brown tide of
summer.
Our boat welcomed us as it swung
at its mooring, and as we climbed
aboard we could see she had been'
washed clean by the past week's rain.
Down below, the cabin still held onto
the coolness of the night before. I
thought back to the frosty blanket
that greeted me in the morning in
our pasture. It was our first frost and
a true indicator of things to come.
Out in the bay we put up the sails,
but the day was overdoing itself, for
the wind had dropped to but a
zephyr. Hoping it would pick up later
on, we anchored for lunch below the
tall bluffs overlooking the bay. Here
it actually got so warm we all shed
some of our layered clothing.
Birds Return From North
A curious loon swam up to investi-
gate us and disappeared without a
ripple on the quiet waters that had
taken over. Further out, old squaw
ducks popped up from feeding below
in their endless pursuit of food. These
handsome, black and white winter
sea ducks have just returned along
with the scoters from up north where
they've raised their young during the
brief, but productive, summer
months. We'll see these ducks from
here on until spring when once again
they'll head north to breed.
Needless to say, we ate in the
splendor of the outdoors with the
brilliant warm sun spreading a spell
of contentment over us. It was good
to be on the water even though we
missed the excitement of the sail. A
lagoon lay just a short way from
where we anchored, so we decided to
explore it while waiting for the wind
to come up. We had trailed our din-
ghy for just such a purpose and with
our tiny two -horse motor on the back,
we made our way inland.
The marsh edge had turned to a
golden brown and the seed heads
bent low with the fruit of fall. As we
swung around one bend, a small
group of bufflehead ducks flew from
the mirrored waters in front of us.
They too had just returned. In and
out we eased the bow of our dinghy
through the quiet waters. All about,
the oaks were in their splendor of fall
color. A kingfisher dropped from its
perch and flew to another favored
one further up the creek. We were
mesmerized by the beauty about us.
An hour or so later, we were back
on board and all seemed satisfied
with our day. There was no busy
world, nothing spdctacular; just good
friends, fine food and some local
exploring -- a perfect day where the
heart and soul were glad to see that
some of "the best things in life are
still free."