On my first holler-walk since the subfreezing temperatures of last week, I didn't need a coat and didn't take my camera. Of course, I found all kinds of things to report:
Amur honeysuckle and multiflora rose have a few leaves as well as plenty of leaf buds.
I also found more sharp-lobed Hepatica leaves than I can remember, probably two dozen or more individual plants in two different areas. I checked these spots closely, looking for signs of rue anemone and trout lily, and found only the Hepatica leaves. Hepatica comes up every year in the holler but I usually find just two or three plants in each of the places I saw them today. It looked like somebody had been nibbling on a few of them.
Here's an image of Hepatica acutiloba I took last March:
Sharp-lobed Hepatica on March 12, 2019. [Photo: Cathie Bird]
Several bird species called out while I walked: I heard at least five blue jays all vocalizing at once from five different directions, but only saw one of them. I saw two tufted titmice -- one of them was singing -- also a singing Carolina wren. I heard a cardinal but did not see it. I caught sight of several very small quiet birds but never got close enough to verify their species.
I did find some interesting bird evidence to bring home and photograph. My 2020 phenology observations calendar made an appropriate backdrop for it:
Eastern blue jay feather, February 17, 2020 [Photo: Cathie Bird]
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