Tuesday’s Tidbits, With Coffee and Solitude! #20

Good morning to all of you on this fine day! It seems that spring kind of missed us again this year. We went from winter, to a brief “kind of spring” and now we are into summer. It has been beautiful the last few days and this morning was one of the nicest yet. I went out at 5:30 this morning to feed the birds and decided to stay out there for a while.

Just to sit and enjoy the sights and sounds of an early summer morning. The leaves burst on the scene so suddenly this year and already it looks like a thick jungle out back. Sitting there in the quiet solitude of the early morning was just so beautiful. The plaintive calls of the Common Loon could be heard in the distance.

The Common Loon, above, swimming on the river.

I love listening to the loons. Their calls are often described as lonely, but I never get that feeling from listening to them. It is a wilderness voice. It carries for great distances and evokes that feeling of solitude in an amazing way. It is a wonderful way to begin a day. Closer at hand were many birds singing among the trees.

With such a forest of leaves it is hard to even see the birds sitting on the branches as they sing. But their songs carry loud and clear. The American Robin was singing. Actually, several of them in different directions. They are a common summer bird here and their song is a welcome delight. They are often the last bird singing at night and the first bird singing in the morning.

The White-throated Sparrow, above.

At least one has been singing since 4:30 this morning, and he likely began his chorus long before that, while I was still sleeping. There were several White-throated Sparrows singing this morning too. Although their “new” song is nice, I do miss the original song they used to sing. Yes, their song has changed over the years, and not that long ago either.

It was started by a group of this species of sparrow in a small area of our western province of B.C. Within just a few years all of the White-throated Sparrows across the continent were singing that new song. Now that same group of sparrows has begun another new song and I noticed some are singing that one now too.

The White-crowned Sparrow, above, also has a beautiful song.

These birds are a common part of our summer landscape and they too begin singing very early in the morning. So many other birds were joining in with their own songs, it was something that brought such pleasure to me this morning. It was peaceful, calm, a true example of solitude. A beautiful way to begin the day. The top photo is the Chipping Sparrow. I hope you all have a most wonderful day and God bless!

Steve and Muffin.

©2023 Steve McLeod.