Into the Woods with Curio: Singing in the Snow
Beacon Office
It must be April -- the other day a robin was out in the yard singing while it was snowing. The calendar says its spring and the robins are back. So why does it still feel like it’s winter?
Like almost all of Canada, (except Vancouver Island and Vancouver) spring rarely arrives early, or even on time in Muskoka, and at Beacon. There’s just too much winter to get rid of first. The layers of snow and ice, the frost in the ground and the many other effects from months of short winter days and sub-zero temperatures take time to go away.
This makes it feel like winter hasn’t left yet. Nights still dip below zero, and the daytime temperatures often don’t rise above single digits until the end of the month. There can even be more snow, which stays longer than is wanted.
None of this, however, stops the wildlife at camp from getting about their spring business. The bears are awake from their hibernation, and hungrier than we can imagine. Other hibernators, such as chipmunks and raccoons, are also scurrying and prowling about in search of something to eat. The robins on the Lighthouse lawn are joined by squeaking grackles and noisy red-winged blackbirds making territorial displays. A song sparrow’s sweet serenade is heard down at the waterfront, phoebes call from the porch at the upper washrooms, and the low rumbling noise, which sounds like someone is trying to start the tractor, is a ruffed grouse drumming from somewhere in the undergrowth.
By mid-month the ice should be gone from Beacon’s lake. Once that happens the beaver become more active, downing trees and making their presence known. Spring peepers start calling from any low, wet area of camp, filling the evenings with an almost deafening chorus of sound. Adding to the mix is the weird quacking of the wood frogs, and the long trills of toads.
The ‘ice-out’ event is followed by what is referred to locally as ‘green-up’, when the herbaceous plant growth re-emerges on the forest floor. This brings much anticipated nourishment for the ever-growing population of wildlife at camp, and finally ushers in the spring we are expecting.
Regardless of the weather I know that Spring will finally arrive at Beacon. But winter weather in April tests my faith to believe that things will be different than what they appear. Just like a robin singing when it is snowing, I have to believe that warmer days are ahead.