At last, the first signs of sweet spring are unfolding in New England The long awaited and tell-tales signs of winter’s anticipated retreat are in place – the vast piles of snow are disappearing, cheery little robins are busy bustling about for worms on just-exposed, bare patches on lawn, and we no longer feel the urge to ‘hunker and settle’ but yearn instead to venture outdoors, raise our faces to the sun and breathe.
March is our most dramatic month, bellicose and defiant, bringing in un-settled skies and chilling winds. Named for Mars, the Roman god of war, March is an important and busy month in the agrarian cycle of the seasons.
Sheep are lambed and calves are born, and hibernating animals awaken. The advent of the maple sugar run tells us that the transition from winter to spring is indeed underway. Shad begin their up-river journey back to the Connecticut River. Migrating hawks soar overhead again, and the ‘eagle cam’ once again acts as voyeur into the nesting patterns of our famous pair . We watch with anticipation and delight on the progress of the eggs, and for the first sign of this year’s brood of fluffy hatchlings.
