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SPRING 2021 CHECKLIST
PLANTS AND INSECTS
Flowering Red Maples
Skunk Cabbage emerging in wetlands. Their
unpleasant odor will attract pollinators such as flies
and beetles
Shadbush (or Serviceberry) white blossoms in wet
woodlands
Trillium blooming on the forest floor
Large pink blooms of the lady slipper orchid
Bumblebee queens flying in a zigzag pattern
Mourning cloak butterflies
BIRDS
Tom turkeys gobbling and displaying. They will fan
their tails and drag their wings while they strut back
and forth. Hens will be close by and possibly hidden
from view
Tree swallows as they scout for nest boxes and tree
cavities
American Woodcock nuptial flights. Listen
for their distinctive peee-nt call and whistle of
wing tips around fields and forest edges at dusk.
Ruby-throated hummingbirds feeding from sap
wells made by Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers in late
April. Put up a hummingbird feeder if you like their
company.
Black-capped Chickadees will sing their sweet fee-
bee fee-bee call as they prepare for nesting season.
Mourning Doves cooing from a perch.
Listen for -like meowing
MAMMALS
Red fox kits emerged from their den
Grey squirrels
Chipmunks
Raccoons
Coyote (or their scat)
AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES
Wood frogs quacking
High pitched whistles of spring peepers
Spotted salamanders
Egg masses in vernal pools
Painted turtles basking on logs and rocks
MOON AND STARS
Earth Day is April 22ND! Send us photos on how you
celebrated locally in your yard.
Full SUPER MOON on April 27th
The Lyrid meteor shower peaks mid-late April
Venus is often brightest in late April. Look for it in
the western sky after sunset
FELLOW NATURE LOVERS
Someone using binoculars
Someone going for a walk
Someone taking a photo
Someone picking up litter from their yard
Someone walking their dog on a leash