Measuring the seasons

[Coddfish]

I love watching the changes in the seasons. Spring, with all the new growth. May, the arrival of my favourite seasonal bird, the swift. For the last 3 months the swifts have been out every time I have left for my morning run, screeching overhead. Last weekend, they were in an absolute frenzy as they fed up ready for their journey. But they have now left for Africa. Tomorrow's walk to Parkrun will be the first time this summer that they won't be there to greet me. It marks the slow movement towards autumn, shorter days, cooler running temperatures.

[Hidden]

Yes I do, only this year I've only seen it twice. Once from winter to Autumn and once from Autumn to winter. Its seems to have missed spring & summer!

[gary_bart]

I go past the local Anglican church on one of my routes, and I always look at the top of the bell tower to see if the Egyptian geese are there. Often they are, and they look like they're the owners of all the surrounding area the way they guard their tower. Noisy birds. I seem to remember seeing them listed in one of the European or British bird guides, so I assume they're familiar to you.

They like to nest in high places, and when the goslings hatch they get together and do a leap off whatever tower they've been incubated on. They can flap and glide enough not to get splattered on the ground. I've never seen this, so a look at the tower might make me lucky one day.

Meanwhile I must watch out for the arrival of your swifts. It's still Winter here (and more importantly, it's the dry season, even here on the coast - often desert dry), so there's not much food for them yet. After an endless succession of Septembers (in which the "rains start", but never do) things will turn green for a while, and the swifts will be able to share the insects with the Amur falcons.

(The Amur falcons come here all the way from Mongolia every year, but we don't get them on the coast; they're all inland in the grasslands).

It's nice being out and about to see it all, isn't it?

[RunningForBroke Graduate]

I love the seasons too, but I have to admit I could do without winter in Wisconsin. It gets VERY cold here.

[AncientMum Graduate]

This is what I love about this forum- not only do you get great support, advice, humour, friendship and did I mention support, but you also get the most fantastic descriptions of the scenery, wildlife, plant life and birds. Thank you for sharing coddfish and Gary_bart too