When it happens – the burst of spring life at the pond – it starts with an energy I imagine to be like a mini big bang. All things – big, little, sleek, slimy, sweet-scented, stinky – come to life at once. Bees buzz, frogs croak, peepers peep, birds call their distinctive calls, and fish splash with a plop after a leap into the air for a fly meal. And as the days get warmer, the soft, light green of the buds becomes a vibrant green as the leaves of the trees and the ferns of the undergrowth unfurl. Everything that moves simultaneously flies, swims, and darts about with enthusiasm and an urgency of survival – eager to mate, eager to spawn, eager to protect their newborn. Pictorally presented, here’s May at the pond.

Briefly, through the course of a week or so, the scent of Honeysuckle permeates the air, especially on a humid day.

The familiar American Robin shows off its markings which blend with the colors of its perch.

The Redwinged Blackbird frantically fans its tail as it calls to its mate who calls back from the grove of trees to its right.