POETS SPEAK OUR SPRING THOUGHTS (5/10/02)

Without a doubt spring's birds are the ones most eagerly awaited. Yes, we enjoy the birds that make up our winter scene and are glad when the white-throated sparrows and the juncos return. We hope for a succession of colorful finches. Nevertheless, nothing brightens our lives more than seeing and hearing our first oriole. We rush to put out grape jelly and orange halves so that we can enjoy their beauty up close.

By the time you read this, most of the Baltimore orioles that have spent the winter in the warm climes of Latin America will either have returned to last year?s yard or paused on their way further north. Although we on the Cape miss the abundance of migrating birds that the Mainlanders receive, we get our fair share of orioles.

If the orioles aren't your favorite spring bird, then hummingbirds are sure to be! As early as mid-April, reports of a few of these dazzlers began to appear on the Internet's MassBird. Although just about everyone wants hummingbirds in his yard, few are rewarded with the experience. It seems that we are visited more often in late summer and early fall with hummers at our feeders.

One of the most interesting web sites I've ever visited shows the daily northward movement of ruby-throated hummingbirds. Even if you don't have a computer of your own, please go to your local library and use a computer there to access this site: http://www.hummingbirds.net/map.html. On February 21, there were a couple of reports from Louisiana of ruby-throats, and by March increasing numbers of red and purple dots marked the northern progression of these tiny migrants. Right now, Canada is welcoming its returning jewels. May 1, the earliest Canadian report, came from the Sydney area of Nova Scotia! It's always hard to believe that such tiny birds can be such strong fliers, but these maps show the facts.

You can access another sort of map and fascinating facts from Clemson University on the migration of birds and the relationship of weather to this annual phenomenon at http://virtual.clemson.edu/groups/birdrad/COMMENT.HTM. You could spend hours poring over the information available at this site. Another location for migrating bird updates is http://www.learner.org/cgi-bin/jnorth/jn-sightings. You choose the species about which you want info, and voilá! there it is!

If you want to go along with others who seek our area?s returning birds, you should join one of the many field trips sponsored by the Cape Cod Bird Club. During May the ?hottest? spot is the beech forest in Provincetown, the most reliable place to view and hear warblers and other migrant birds. These walks with a leader start at 8 a.m. at the parking lot every Saturday and Sunday, except on Saturday, May 25, when the walk will start at 7 a.m.

Here's a closing note from one of America?s most beloved poets.

GRAPHIC: Male Baltimore oriole, courtesy of Joyce Leary, Yarmouth