Today reminded me why I so love the pond! As I walked the path, I could see tiny white blossoms, growing barely half an inch above the ground, quivering in a gentle breeze. They have emerged through a layer of scraggly remains of last year’s grass and debris. Their delicate composition belies what they have endured to present their beauty today. Amazingly too, bees hovered over them. (All photos in this article require seeing enlarged. Click on the photo – then, use the back arrow to return to the post.)
Also, as the temp was a bit above 50 degrees today, more than the bees hovered in the air. I remember last year, ghost-like white flying things, filling the air, in clusters. Today, I saw the first swarm of them at an area where the sun’s heat particularly warmed the path.
The bird pictured here allowed me to stand just three feet from it as it trilled its song, while I snap this picture.
This time last year, I enjoyed watching a beaver’s strong swim and listening to the crack of its tail in the frigid water of early spring, as it warned its friends of my presence. The beaver was the size of a not too small dog. Its waddle up onto the shore of the pond’s island reminded me of the motion a seal makes to maneuver onto land.
In the last two weeks, I’ve watched a little furry thing cut through the water, leaving the sweetest wake in its path. I’ve been assuming that it’s a beaver pup. But, today as I took its picture, I could hear a silent expression of ‘muskrat’ in my mind. And, now I’m not sure what it is that I’m seeing. It’s a fraction of the size of the beaver. And, while it drags a long tail, I can’t see if it’s the paddle shape of a beaver’s.
It is busy as a beaver! It makes the same circuit time after time. Exiting from a little cave in the island, at the water line, it cuts through the water to an exact point at which it dives. It remains underwater for two or three minutes, resurfaces, and hurries back to the cave. I think it has a strand of thick grass in its mouth as it surfaces from the water’s depth.
If what it carries in its mouth is food or supplies for nesting, I would think it’s a parent animal, tending to its family. And, something about its look today made me question whether or not it’s a beaver. Here’s the best photo I was able to shoot today. Be sure to enlarge it for clarity.
I’ve not mentioned turtles yet this season, but you can be sure that I’m eager to spy one and ever watchful.
SilverLining 