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I jumped out of bed and reached for the alarm clock. songbirds/palmwarbler.jpg

Two things struck me immediately. First of all, I don’t have an alarm clock. I have two boys who serve as my alarm clock.
Second, I realized through my sleepy grog that it was a white-throated sparrow, not an alarm clock. Usually I hear white-throated sparrows — those birds that sing “old sam peabody, peabody, peabody” — from a distance and their songs sound rather half-hearted.
There was nothing half-hearted about this guy’s song. It literally sounded as if he were sitting on my nightstand belting out his song, it was that loud and crisp.
Then I realized the robins were already singing, too, filling the neighborhood with their spring songs. Wide awake by this point, I checked my watch and noticed that the birds allowed me to sleep in until 5:57. Thanks, birds. My kids finally sleep in a little and you wake me up before 6 a.m.
Oh well, if you’re going to be startled out of bed early, it may as well be from a white-throated sparrow and not a down-shifting truck or an over-ambitious yard crew firing up their leaf-blowers.
Among the many joys spring brings for a birdwatcher, listening to the songs of the various species is among the best. It is particularly satisfying to hear the birds from your own yard. Sure, it’s great to hear the warblers and songbirds in the woods, but the robins, nuthatches, chickadees, titmice, blue jays and crows you hear while standing in your driveway are especially welcomed.
Nor are the songs the only signs of spring in the bird world. Signs have been popping up on a daily basis for more than a month now, but it is reaching a fever pitch.
Warblers are back in our woods already with dozens more species to follow. Osprey have returned to their platforms and natural nest sites throughout New England. Hawks are setting up nests in our woods. Egrets are back at their usual spots along our shorelines and inland waters. Their numbers will grow daily.
Andrew and I have already seen a few butterflies in the backyard, and Will asks me on a daily basis to overturn rocks so he can see the worms, centipedes and various other wiggly things that lurk underneath.
Spring will reward us with new treats every day until we settle into summer many weeks from now.
On the negative side (there’s always two ways of looking at things) the arrival of spring means the disappearance of winter. Our coldest — and seemingly longest — season certainly has its advantages to birdwatchers. Being particularly fond of finding ducks, it’s hard to beat the winter, as long as the water isn’t frozen. Winter is also my favorite time of year to watch the birds in the backyard.
But I won’t dwell on the winter — especially this past winter, which seemed unusually long and cold. Spring is here and it is bringing new delights for us to see every day. Feel free to share your spring sightings with me (and other readers) by writing to the addresses listed below.

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