Faithful correspondent Koni Sundquist of Duluth called today to say a friend of hers had crocuses coming up, surely a rare occurrence in Duluth in January. But this spell of warm weather is exceptional. Four times so far this winter, Duluth has set a daily record for warmest temperatures ever. And the snow cover is so skimpy that any crocus brave enough to poke its head up is sure to be noticed.
Sundquist, an avid birder, said another friend had seen two robins trying to build a nest. Duluth nearly always has some robins around in the winter months, but nest-building? Those birds are sure to have their hopes dashed.
I stepped outside a couple of balmy days ago and heard a cardinal calling. I know a few cardinals hang around all winter, but I can’t remember one calling in early January before.
Have you observed or heard any other natural events that seem to be out of kilter because of the warm winter? I’d be interested in hearing from you.
Meanwhile, enjoy the warm weather.
We have pussy willows in bloom along our driveway.
That’s the best answer by far! Thanks for conrtiubntig.
Definitely been hearing more birds than usual, but I couldn’t tell you which ones. This reminds me of living on the west coast — little to no snow, low temperatures in the 30s… tulips start coming up in mid-January and by the time Valentine’s Day rolls around it’s full-on spring. The only thing that’s missing is the rain….
On Jan 7th, we had 8-10 robins in our back yard (Onamia,MN), blue jays, various sparrows and a Downy Woodpecker. The robins were chasing squirrels away as they went through the dried fallen leaves – then we saw 2 robins literally chase (of all birds) a Pileated Woodpecker out of a pine tree! The robins’ behavior reminded me of nesting season…hence your mention of Koni’s observations. Well, we are all back to MN reality with the temps, and little snowfall…what are the robins and other birds thinking now?
Just like us…what is going on…?