Scarlet, Ruby, Indigo, Rose—the birds visiting our yard this past month have brought splashes of color—and song—to spring.
With migration underway, I look out the window a moment longer for any surprises at the backyard feeders. The Indigo Bunting who showed up on Mother’s Day, ate his fill of suet, and departed. The Rose-breasted Grosbeaks who for three straight days now have been filling up on safflower.
Noteworthy birds for me, but I’m only skimming the surface until I step outside, listen, and look. Once I’m out there, I hear warblers and vireos call from treetops and see them dart from leafy branch to leafy branch. Hummingbirds territorially buzz by. A hawk silently cruises overhead.
If I’m patient, and lucky, I might hear ten kinds of warblers this spring. Despite hours of neck and camera craned high, I might end up with pictures of two. (The Yellow-rumped Warblers were obliging this year by bringing friends and hanging out on our suet feeder.)
A picture might be worth a thousand words. And yet, these ones tell a fraction of the story.
Still, they’re a colorful start.
Kennebec County, Maine, May 2025