My Thoughts

The Juncos (snow birds) left for the summer and they didn't even say goodbye. Insider figures they left on or about April 2 and wonders if they leave every year on that date. They'll be back sometime in late fall and the old guy would love to know if the return date has already been set. The summer population will continue with Insider's year-round friends, mainly Sparrows, Blue Jays and Cardinals, and their unwanted relatives the Blackbirds. Right now there's so much activity outside the kitchen window as the business of nest building, mate selecting and general bickering picks up. It won't be long before a bunch of bumbling, stumbling, junior birds arrive on their mother's wings demanding yet more seed from Insider. A few years ago, the Cardinal population consisted of two, and they would arrive daily from a distant forest. Today there are eight, four pairs, so there will be much red in Insider's future. The Blue Jay population has also increased and they number about 10. The year-round boss of the whole backyard is a single Jaybird who rules with an iron wing. He'll have nothing to do with the seed and corn the old guy puts out daily but constantly polices those birds who partake of Insider's offering and they pay attention.