Spring in Mid-February

     Spring is bursting forth early for mid-February in southeastern Pennsylvania because of the unusually warm weather we have had all winter and currently.  Periods of daylight each succeeding day in spring increases by about two minutes a day, which stirs life into "waking" from winter's dormancy.  The warmth adds to the promise of spring's coming; arrival really.
     Patches of snow drops and winter aconites in flower gardens and on lawns are in full bloom now.  The white blossoms of snow drops do resemble drops of snow, until they open and look like tiny bells, which seem to tinkle in the wind, with imagination.  Aconite blooms are yellow and cheery on lawns in February.
     Our two pussy willow bushes' furry catkins are already opening in the warmth, perhaps a week before they normally do.  Pussy willow catkins are one of the first sure signs of the vernal season on many peoples' lawns, along with snow drops and aconites.
     Already the dull-red and yellowish flowers of silver maple trees are blooming on floodplains and some peoples' yards where they were planted.  They are also about a week ahead of schedule.
     Sap is rising in all trees because of the warm temperatures of February afternoons and below-freezing temperatures at night.  That fluctuation of temperatures causes the cells in the cambium layers of trees to expand in the warmth and soak up sap from below and contract in the cold and squeeze the sap up the tree.  Day after day of up and down temperatures in spring pumps the sap up the trunks and out the limbs and twigs to the buds where that sugary sap will be the food for the growth of leaves, flowers and other tree parts each spring.  Some people collect the sweet sap of maple and birch trees and boil it down to syrup.
     There is a lot of activity in mid-February that leads to reproduction.  Pairs of mallard ducks and Canada geese look for secluded places on the ground near water to incubate clutches of eggs.  Goose pairs get quite loud and fierce in their battles with each other over nesting spots.  I saw two mink running about along the edge of a human-made impoundment in daylight, no doubt looking for mates.  Male woodcocks court at dusk in open areas near bottomland woods where they spend nights feeling with their long, flexible beaks for earthworms and other kinds of invertebrates in damp soil.  Each male woodcock stands and vocally "beeps" for about a minute that spirals up into the darkening sky, his wings whistling all the while.  At the zenith of his aerial climb, he sings, then drops to his beeping spot on the ground and starts all over.  And pairs of bald eagles already have clutches of eggs in their large, bulky cradles.
     A variety of male small birds, including mourning doves, northern cardinals, tufted titmice, house finches, song sparrows and others are continuing to sing on warmer days in February.  They lift many peoples' spirits with the promise of spring "right around the corner".
     Certain other kinds of birds are beginning their migrations to their nesting territories.  Purple grackles and red-winged blackbirds in noisy flocks of thousands, some of them containing both species, are already pouring into southeastern Pennsylvania from farther south.  Many apparently migrant ring-billed gulls are currently assembling on the Susquehanna River, prior to their moving to the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River to raise young.  Several kinds of ducks, particularly American wigeons, northern pintails, green-winged teal and ring-necked ducks, are on the move to their breeding grounds on the American and Canadian prairies.  But for now, those kinds of ducks can be spotted on most any impoundment at any time in the next few weeks, making early spring all the more interesting.  And thousands of tundra swans, and tens of thousands of snow geese are still gathering at Middle Creek wildlife Management Area prior to their trips north through Canada to the shores of the Arctic Ocean by the middle of May.  Those swans and snows arrived a few weeks early at Middle Creek this year because of the mild winter.  And, as always, they are causing quite a stir among birders and other people who enjoy experiencing them.                
     Early spring is always an interesting time to enjoy nature, partly because of the fickle weather at that time.  But mostly because of the hardy plants, birds and mammals that are already "coming to life" at that time of year, including mid to late February.  Snow and cold may still come our way in the next few weeks, but the promise of spring now can not be denied for long.