Arrrgh!!!

I know....most herons are lone. Fishing is better when you don't have a flock of young ones playing around in the pond.

What I meant to say, was that the heron we spoke of in November is STILL HERE! I know that this could be winter range for some of them, but this is the first time we have ever seen a heron this late in this area.

We're having an unusually mild winter so far. We did have those six inches of snow at the start of the month, but it's been gone for a couple of weeks. Our grass is green, and some of my herbs are still growing!

Saturday, as we came home we saw skein after skein of Canada geese flying NORTH. I just don't know enough about goose behavior to know what's going on. We realize that they practice flying in the Vs even this late in the year, and we know that many of them winter over in this area. These were quite large groups of geese, flying fairly high, and all aimed in the same direction. Does anyone have any insight to share on this?

Ed, our cranky, older, black cat asked to go outside today. It was a beautiful day, with lots of sunshine, and I saw no reason to keep him in. He's always been an indoor-outdoor cat, or I might have reconsidered.

I was putting a load of laundry into the washing machine, and looking out the window on the north lawn, when I saw Ed come around the corner. A gray squirrel had discovered the sunflower seed feeder at the back door, and was wrapped around the feeder, filching the seed. When Ed appeared, it startled the squirrel, who went flying, five or six feet across the lawn. Ed skittered and then turned and they both crouched and glared at each other, as if to say, "This is MY territory!" I'm surprised Ed didn't play chicken with the squirrel. Perhaps he's feeling his age, or maybe he wasn't hungry! *G*