The early birds and finding the corner
By Joanne Niswander
For additional columns by Joanne Niswander click here.
Waking to another snowy morning (I'm writing this Tuesday, Feb. 16), I am reminded of last week's snow - and the signs of spring that came with it. Signs of spring, you say? In the middle of a mini-blizzard?
Well, if you happened to be at the right place at the right time, you would have seen what I saw. Just outside my window, in the locust tree growing by Maple Crest's ice-covered pond, was a flock of robins.
Yes, robins. In Ohio. In the second week of February.
At least 20 male robin red-breasts had suddenly settled onto the tree's bare branches, fluffed up as fat as quail and facing the winter wind as if to defy the cold blasts. I quickly snatched up my binoculars, thinking I might have been mistaken. But no doubt about it, they were robins.
They didn't stay long. Perhaps no more than three or four minutes elapsed before they all took off for - where? As they sped away, I hoped they would find some sort of shelter to protect them from the elements and an orchard to provide fruit until the insects and worms start moving again.
But robins are hardier than we give them credit for. It really isn't that unusual to find robins outside what we think to be their traditional wintering spots.
We may not hear their songs until spring, but some robins may not be that far away even on the coldest days.
Considering that every state in the US, except Hawaii, had snow just a couple of days ago, and southern Ohio got a ton more snow than we did in Bluffton, maybe the robins know a little more than we give them credit for. Maybe spring is right around the corner.
All we have to do is find the corner.
Stories Posted This Week
Sunday, May 4, 2025
Saturday, May 3, 2025
- Pirate baseball win vs. Tigers
- Bluffton softball edged in battle of Pirates
- Committee meetings scheduled for Bluffton Council
- #1 recommended attraction in NW Ohio is in Ada
- Mental Health Awareness event with Seth Gehle
- Ohio highway patrol promoting motorcycle safety
- Recap of Bluffton Board of Education meeting for April 2025
- Weekend Doctor: Antidepressants in the long term
Friday, May 2, 2025
- BHS seniors exhibit art at Gallery 323 through May 7
- What's in your weekend?
- Pirate softball blanked by Lancers
- Pirate baseball blanked by Lincolnview
- Laman Promoted to VP Retail Credit Manager by CNB
- Local land conservancy hires first Executive Director
- Steiner to present Swiss Family Migration program on May 21
- 850 Days of Caring volunteers will pitch in for Hancock County
Thursday, May 1, 2025
- Angel M. Langhals owned LFE/API Meters
- Allen Co. task force targets target sex and human traffickers
- Blessing of the Bikes, May 4
- Metzger honored at 2025 Black Swamp Council meeting
- Volunteer invitation for Bluffton Pathway Count in May
- Pirate tennis edges Ottawa-Glandorf
- Bluffton EMS station staffing goes 24/7 on May 1
- You are what you eat: Link to immune system
Wednesday, April 30, 2025
- Observation deck added to Motter Park cascading pools project
- Bluffton Women in Business meet May 15
- Four sportsmen stock 200 trout at Buckeye Lake
- Pirate girls, boys 2nd at Minster track quad
- Pirate baseball win vs. Riverdale
- Pirate softball loss vs. Riverdale
- Field reports from NW Ohio wildlife officers