Warm weather, a so-called fair weather friend, is great. May is usually warm but not oppressive.
The days are longer. The bad news is that in just a few weeks after the summer solstice, days start getting shorter.
Flowers and trees are in bloom. With warmer than normal temperatures, some wildflowers seem to be more prolific than usual. Examples include blue eyed grass with their striking blue indigo color and star of david. Marble sized apples and peaches dot the dwarf fruit trees. Should be a good crop this year - first ever for the new peach trees.
Our woods is now in full vegetation mode. The trail is now a green corridor, masking much of the open vistas of the leafless winter months.
Birds are singing. Their early morning serenades give the new day a hopeful start. I especially enjoy the fluted melodies of the wood thrush. Rufus sided towhees with their black capes flit in the underbrush as we amble along the trail. I marvel at the improvised choruses of the mockingbird. Hearing the plaintive bleat of nighthawks just before daybreak is a sure sign of summer for me. A flycatcher nest, hiding in plain sight on the downspout of our house, is full of young about to fledge. Didn't see them until a few days ago.
Cicadas are starting to buzz. We see several abandoned larval shells from which the cicadas emerge each year. Hearing them reminded me that the 17 year cicada for our area will return in 2016. I tell Suz, who has a phobia about buzzing insects, about this. "I'll be leaving town then," she said resolutely.
Our snake buddies are around; they've never really left. Blackie, our resident black rat snake, hangs out in a plastic storage unit with flower pots. All 5 feet of it was draped across the trail the other day when Suz and the dogs walked by the wood pile. She also observed our garter snake by the patio; it even posed for a photo. A black racer appeared in the mulch near the driveway.
And, a baby black racer appeared in the garage. It was about the size of a large earthworm, squirming mightily as I rescued it from certain demise when our car pulled out. I noted the bright colored pattern of the snake but at the time had no idea what it was. The colors reminded me vaguely of a copperhead. I looked on the internet for "baby copperhead." This snake's picture appeared, labeled as a baby copperhead. That was ominous. If there was one baby, there would likely be more. Could one get into the house or be venomous enough to hurt or kill our dogs. But I noted the shape of the head. It did not look like a viper-shape. But what did I know? Not to worry; the picture was mislabled. On a suggestion from Suz, I looked up a photo of a black racer. It was an exact replica of the one we saw. Whew!
In three weeks, we'll be in Orlando for a family vacation. But that's getting ahead of ourselves. Today, we'll enjoy May and it's charms in Bittersweet Woods.
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