Early Spring Phenology: Birds, Bugs and Buds.

Sugarbush ended early this year in mid March. The part I hold dearest of the sugarbush season is observing the changing forest, in the same place, on a regular basis. Watching an ecosystem come alive, observing the natural queues of the changing season, the phenology. I challenge you to get out into the same green space weekly or biweekly to watch Mother Nature wake up.

Spring birding!
The birds are back! In Detroit, some species never leave, leading more residential lives like Black-capped Chickadees, Northern Cardinals, Blue Jays, White-breasted Nuthatches, Grackles, Titmouse, Pigeons, Morning Doves, Red Tailed Hawks, Crows and several woodpecker species like Downy, Hairy, Pileated, Red-bellied. Check out the range maps below! 

Turkeys 
Speaking of resident species… Turkeys are out, the Tom’s (male turkey) aggressively strut their bright red, white, and blue head colors, producing gobbling sounds to establish dominance and to attract hens. They will be breeding this month and into April when they start to nest! Please give them ample space if you encounter a brave turkey! (see the video by local birder Donna Croaker Hall)

Spring migration 
The Detroit & St Clair Straits are an international migratory corridor for millions of birds. Situated at the intersection of the Atlantic and Mississippi Flyways, the Great Lakes provide wonderful birding opportunities. The bird migration is triggered by changing weather, motivated by increasing insect populations, sprouting plants, and the desire to nest and mate. It starts at the end of winter and the beginning of spring, peaking in the month of May!

 Rouge Park is competing with the other major parks this spring for documenting bird species!  Help make Rouge Park a big winner by downloading the E-bird app, identifying birds in Rouge park and signing up for this Bird Off.

Red Winged Black Birds
Spring migration often kicks off with Red winged black birds, the males arrive first, with their black plumage and showy orange/yellow shoulder pads. They fight to defend their largely wetland territories. Expressing major “sexual dimorphism” female Red Winged Black birds look very different! Many mistake female red winged blackbirds for song sparrows.
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Woodcocks 
American Woodcocks also return in late winter… I particularly love their “peent” calls that can be heard at night. Like so many other bird species, they’re entering their mating season. You can catch their distinct calls at dawn and dusk.. I bet you will recognize it. Check out their distinct bobbing movement here 

Sandhills Cranes & Greta Blue Herons 
As many of y’all know the Great Blue Herons have a rookery or group nesting site near Brennan Pools. Please observe from afar to avoid interrupting their spring mating and reproduction! A sandhill crane was spotted in the south section of Rouge Park at the new DSWD Far West Side Stormwater Improvement Pit! Once paired up, Sandhills cranes mate for life. Their mating season is also this March/April time of year.  (see the photo by local birder Donna Croaker Hall)

Other signs of spring…
The first trees to flower, that I have seen, are the red and silver maples. But the buds of so many others are swelling and will pop this month, like spice bush, willows, elms, serviceberry, dogwoods, crab apples and redbuds.

Ants
The bugs are active… and popped up around the  sugarbush buckets as early as late February… but they’re out in force by mid March. Ants are important because they play a crucial role in spreading the seeds of Spring Ephemeral Flowers through a process called myrmecochory, many spring forest flowers have seeds with fatty flesh that ants harvest, farm to feed fungi that they eat, simultaneously spreading those precious seeds. 

Ephemeral flowers 
The ephemerals are sprouting, the first leafs that come out were called Cotyledons. By the end of April the older growth sections of Touge Park will be sprinkled with tiny white, yellow and pink flowers… trout lillies, spring beauties, cut leaf toothwort, wild ginger, flying Dutchman’s britches, wild geranium, bellwort… more on these later!