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May 29, 1975 - Spring ChangesMay 29, 1975 The Suffolk Times focus on nature by Paul Stoutenburgh Morris Desmond, author of "The Human Zoo ", tells us that today's world creates pressures that somehow must be relaxed. Some of today's releases could be an in- volvement in anything from football to stamp collecting. The array is endless and so it has to be. Some of you are theater- goers, others television fans. All happen at a particular time and place. So it is with those who are involved in the great outdoors. On this stage, at this particular time of the year, new and exciting changes take place. The event that takes place at this time of the year, of course, is the coming of spring. Here with new growth springing up from the once cold earth and the world of animal life shaking off its sleepy winter dreams, we find a new activity moving in from the south. Longer days and warmer tem- peratures have tripped that inner mechanism that stimulates the bird world into a mass northern migration. We begin to see every size and shape from the tiny ruby - throated hummingbird to the large beautiful white egrets. Then to top this whole display of birds the grand finale of warblers move in. These "special days in May" are what we've been waiting for. Most of us look forward to the month of March, when the first sign of spring would be brought from the south by the red- winged iblackbird. This seems to signal the spring migration to start north. From then on we see our old friends back from the south. Kildeers, wrens, robins, thrushes, catbirds, orioles, towhees —they start showing up everywhere. Driving to work we would see the swans pairing up or the first beautiful snowy egrets stalking in our awakening creeks and marshes. Even before we got used to these, the warblers moved in. They always come just about the time the Shadbush blossoms and only stay for a week a° two. Then they're off to their northern nesting grounds. Spectacular in color, like tiny ballerinas, they flit around the newly - opened buds, snatching up tiny insects and worms. The challenge now to get a "list" of these can only be appreciated by those eccentric birders who get up at dawn with binoculars in hand, and go to their favorite warbler spots. Each species has its own particular area where it can be found. Some will be in tree tops, others in the under story, while still others seek out swamps and wet spots throughout the woods. Most of these jittery, colorful jewels have spent their winter down south, some as far away as South America. They usually move through the woods as a team, chattering back and forth in their super high voices, that only a few are privileged to hear. They remind me of our winter birds, such as the chickadees, woodpeckers, nuthatches, kinglets, and the like that travel in groups during the winter. It seems birds, like people, enjoy each other's company, the exception being when they have young and then it's to each his own. I've been incapacitated for the past three weeks and have had to rely on crutches to get around. This, of course, has limited my being completely involved for these "special days of May ". Right now I'm sitting on a specially built deck we designed and built that thrusts out into our woods, This gives one the feeling of being surrounded by vegetation. It's the right time of the year, the temperature is warm and we've had good winds for the migration of warblers. And they are here! Trees are not out full enough to make it too difficult to see with binoculars, yet the buds are opening up to attract tiny insects that lure and hold our warblers. Perhaps this is the time for a particular insect to hatch out or a worm to develop. Whatever it is, this provides that super high energy food for these warblers. Many people are disappointed when they go on these spring warbler outings because of their lack of success. It's like anything else, the first time you went to the opera or to the football game, you had to learn a new vocabulary, new tools of the trade, so to speak, so that you understood. So it is with birding. But the old adage "practice makes perfect" applies doubly here. The most frustrating part, and then the most challenging, is trying to locate these ever - moving tiny bits of color in your binoculars. We all know what the word "skill" means and I'm afraid here the skill of locating and identifying small birds, continually moving in the top of a tree, presents to those who real challenge. Some of the birds I saw from our deck during these days of May while recuperating are as follows: (listed in order of their appearance) Baltimore Oriole, Myrtle Warbler, Black and White Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Oven- bird, Rose - breasted Grosbeak, Hermit Thrush, Catbird, Blue- winged Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, Magnolia Warbler, House Wren, White -eyed Vireo, Green Heron, Downy Woodpecker, Kinglet, Kingfisher, Hairy Woodpecker, Black -poll Warbler, Chestnut -sided Warbler, Black- throated Blue Warbler, Blue- headed Vireo, Redstart (warbler), Hummingbird, Black- throated Green Warbler.