Rewards of volunteering

I'm now working 2 Sundays per month at the bird rescue, whose mission is "rehabilitation of injured, orphaned, and oiled native wild birds, with the goal of returning healthy birds to their natural environment". Note the word, wild. And yet, occasionally a domestic bird is brought into the center, and the staff work to find a home for it when it's ready for release. This is just what happened on my first shift, and that very day I brought home two domestic ducks. They have assimilated well into our little flock.

Much to my delight, last Sunday I was once again in the right place at the right time. Same supervisor on duty, too. In reviewing the caseload, she mentioned two adult domestic geese, who came to the center after someone released them, and they were struck by a car on a busy road. The supervisor said they were looking to place the geese when they were ready, and she cast a glance my way. How could I resist? I went to see them in their enclosure, and even snapped a photo on my phone to show the family. And today they were ready to come home.

I think I'm developing a reputation there as "the volunteer who will adopt domestic waterfowl" ... and I have no problem with that!

Spring Growth Spurt

The garden has suddenly taken off! After some rain this week, everything is growing:

About 2 weeks after sowing, the lettuce is just peeking out of the ground. And the potatoes are producing nice leafy bunches nestled between mounds of dirt , which stand at the ready to form hills around each plant when they get a bit larger:

We have some nice rows of peas, after about 5 weeks, although the snap peas have not done as well as the shelling peas. We think that side of the bed might not get as much sunlight.

The berries, which were planted a couple of years ago, are coming along quite nicely. The fence has made a world of difference by protecting the plants from the deer. We have both strawberries and raspberries blossoming:

And here's the best surprise of all !

Just when I had resigned myself to not having goslings this year, on Monday another pair of geese turned up with four goslings in tow. I have no idea where they nested, but then this is the "magic" that's occurred almost every year now. Yea!

No magic, after all

I promised goslings. Like magic, I said. Happens every year. Sadly, there will be no goslings in 2008.

This year followed the normal pattern at first: hundreds of geese in the winter, with a pair remaining through the spring. Unlike past years, the couple chose to nest in plain view. Mama started spending her days on the nest, which was right at the edge of the pond. Papa took up sentry duty, staking his claim to the entire pond and chasing off anything that came near. The poor ducks had to make do with a few nearby puddles.

Papa was just starting to relax and allow us to pass through the area when suddenly the pair disappeared, leaving behind a nest with visible signs of disturbance.

A closer look at the lower part of the nest reveals a damaged egg:

The couple returned the next day, but one of appears to have an injured leg. A fox, perhaps? We don't know, but I'll really miss watching them raise their young this spring.

And then there were two ...

Our Canada Goose population has dwindled from hundreds, just a couple months ago, to two. I'm not alarmed, this happens every year, and is a harbinger of spring. What happens next is even better: by the end of April there will be goslings!

The goslings appear like magic every year. We have never seen mating behavior, or a nest. This completely surprised me four years ago, but now it has become an annual event. We suspect this pair of geese has been here before. They don't raise a fuss when we come out to the pond, and when we feed the ducks they actually walk over to grab some morsels for themselves! I wish I knew more about this pair: how old they are, whether they were born here, or if they raised young here last year. In any case, the annual cycle never ceases to amaze me.

Stay tuned ...

Weekend visit from a pair of Snow Geese

A pair of Snow Geese decided to crash this weekend's Big Goose Party. They were first spotted on Friday, strutting about about in a flock of Canada Geese. One is pure white; the other is the Blue Goose variety (located to the far left of the white goose in the photo).

Saturday morning they were back, this time on the pond. At first I thought they were our Pekin ducks, but a quick beak count proved otherwise. Eager to get a shot of something other than their posteriors, I tried stealing down to the pond for more photos, but despite my zeal failed to capture them. Either I missed the birds entirely, or the shot was an unfocused blur. Eventually I managed to scare them all off. To really show off how fine these birds are, the best I can do is this photo, courtesy of eNature's entry on the Snow Goose:

The flock has returned to the pond several times over the course of the weekend. The Snow Geese are quite beautiful!

Mysterious Big Goose Party

No one knows who they were, or what they were doing...but their legacy remains...

"Stonehenge," from This is Spinal Tap.

I know many people consider Canada Geese a nuisance, but since arriving in droves on our pond last week, I have been fascinated by their comings and goings. During the week, my observations were limited to nighttime, so I could only hear them: usually a muffled clucking as we drifted off to sleep, or as I was getting ready for work. This morning I was able to enjoy a prolonged period of goose-watching while we had breakfast and tackled a few chores. The population looked to be about the same size as we started with last weekend, but of course a precise census was impossible. At about 8:30 the geese began flying off in groups of 10-20, and within 30 minutes they were gone. A little mental arithmetic suggests there were initially as many as 200 birds on the pond.

I'm fascinated by their behavior. I can understand the attraction of our pond. But when they fly away, where do they go? What prompts them to return? Are they one big flock, or several smaller ones? Is there a hierarchy or social order? Do they have families, jobs, chores? OK, maybe not that last part.

Our own ducks had been patiently waiting their turn, and were able to enjoy their pond again for a while. Around 10:30, the geese returned. I didn't see or hear them arrive, but suddenly there they were. And not only were they swimming about on the pond, but a sizeable phalanx was marching up onto land. The Normandy invasion came to mind, until I hit on a more pleasant image: the treetop dog party in the classic children's book by P.D. Eastman, Go, Dog. Go! But lower to the ground. And without the party hats.

Where else can you go from Spinal Tap to Go, Dog. Go! in one blog post?

Incoming!

The geese were late this year. Because our pond is spring-fed, it never completely freezes. So every winter, large groups of geese come to visit. This usually happens around Christmas. Today I noticed a larger than usual number on the pond, and decided to take a picture. My timing couldn't have been better:

First, there were a few geese on the pond:

Then, I heard them coming ...

... in for a landing!

Then it looked like the Jersey shore in July!

A few hours later, many of the geese have moved on. But I know we'll be seeing more of them over the next month. Come spring, we'll be down to just one or two couples who will raise their young here until summertime. We often wonder if any of last year's goslings are in the crowd now. I like to think they are ....