Spring Natural Events
We hope this calendar encourages you to come up often and explore the trails! Dates are approximate; a hurricane or early frost may shift the schedule! Collecting animals (including insects) and picking/digging out plants are not permitted.
Spring Natural Events
Last Two Weeks of March
American Robins should be on your lawn by now. As soon as Pfister’s Pond is ice-free, look for Ring-necked Duck, Wood Duck, Hooded Merganser, Mallards, and Canada Geese.
Read More... First Two Weeks of April
Yellow borders on dark brown wings make the Mourning Cloak butterfly hard to miss as they fly up from the trails. They are joined now by tiny Spring Azures (pale blue). Wood Frogs start their soft quacking calls in vernal pools. Look for the delicate white petals of Bloodroot in front of the Redfield Building. On the lower section of the Red Trail, the first yellow Trout Lily blooms should appear late in this period. This is a good time to look for migrant Pied-billed Grebes, Ring-necked Ducks, and the nests of Canada Geese. Belted Kingfisher and Great Blue Heron appear on the pond.
Last Two Weeks of April
Stand quietly near any vernal pool and you may be rewarded with the loud, shrill chorus of Spring Peepers. At times from the floating dock they can be almost deafening!
Read More... First Two Weeks of May
Birders, botanists, & naturalists of every stripe wish this could be a two-week holiday! Each day brings new flowers, birds just arrived from the tropics, and a flush of scents, sounds and colors to delight our senses. Weather patterns determine when the best “waves” of migrant warblers will occur.
Read More... Last Two Weeks of May
A few days either side of Memorial Day, thousands of tiny green caterpillars parachute down from the trees on silken threads. Scores of Cedar Waxwings appear as if by magic to eat as many as they can! If you are lucky, you may hear the rolling trills of Mourning Warblers and the “quick, free BEER” of an Olive-sided Flycatcher, as these late migrants pass through.
The white sprays of False Solomon’s-Seal can be seen along all the trails.
The white sprays of False Solomon’s-Seal can be seen along all the trails.
First Two Weeks of June
Dragonflies and damselflies are now conspicuous over Pfister’s Pond. Now is the time to look for some of the 50 species of birds that nest at TNC. Signs of breeding include adults carrying food in their bill (rather than eating it), or carrying white fecal sacs away from the nest.
Read More...