The Month of April

The following photos were taken in April.  They are not in any order, but as you can see, April was very early spring here.  When Hawkweed looks beautiful, you know it's been a long winter.  Though we did have fun in the snow this past winter, we welcomed the snow melt with enthusiasm as our world has opened up a little and we can get around easier.  We began to go back to the golf course to play when all the snow pretty much cleared.  It had been so deep, we stopped going over there.

Hawk weed!  Spring's first flower in the Bangor City Forest.

A glimpse of Skunk Cabbage rising up from the frozen ground- Bangor City Forest

One of the ground hogs by the Bangor Waterfront

Still more ice to melt at the pond in the City Forest... Not quite water retrieve time.

Ducks down at the Bangor Waterfront

What is this sparrow doing in a packed parking lot at Walmart between two cars?

Rosie's first official 'Cool off" dip!- Bangor, Maine

Fresh out of the mud and dead grass.  What a pleasant contrast! (Crocuses)

Ground hog with a bottle brush tail.  Me: "Do you need to brush your tail or are you just unhappy to see me?"

Universal symbol of Spring-- A robin.

A couple of Cormorants down at the riverfront- Bangor, Maine

A darling Starling.  Did you know they are mocking birds???

Recent Beaver action in the city forest.

A couple weeks ago I caught this little guy poking away at a tree in the city forest.

April Fool's Day!  Twelve inches by days end... April 2nd we had about 2 inches left of it on the ground.

I wondered around the neighborhood for the last three days to photograph flowers for my mother's Mother's Day card.  I then cropped each flower down and arranged them as shown above.

One of those trees that never loses its leaves.

A tree had fallen in the city forest and this fungus was on a block of sod that broke off the roots (Pixies).

Still some melting to do in the Bangor City Forest

Four Canada geese with a pale goose friend.

And the waterfront is alive with dozens of Mockingbirds singing their little hearts out.

Rosie posing in a funky pine tree on the golf course.

Some wispy clouds on the Bangor Municipal Golf Course

Female Merganser

There's that odd gray goose again!

 These geese were heading west-east, but then they turned a little.  They really were heading south.

Two male Merganser, one pruning his wing feathers.

More of the wispy clouds at the golf course

Heading back south?  You just got here!

Mergansers

Pussy Willow??

Random leaf photo from the golf course

Is this a pussy willow?  It was a large tree.

Just a little bit of snow left from the 12 inches we got on April 1st.  April 2nd we had about 2- 3 inches left!  It had been so warm, I knew this snow wouldn't stay long at all.

This woodpecker was pecking away at the pretty much dead tree out back.

Sun through the wet clouds.

A male and female Mallard duck at the golf course.

The ground hogs down near the railroad tracks have become an attraction for us.  Rosie first startled when they would whistle an alarm, but  yesterday it was like  she didn't even hear the one that was right in front of her whistling.  She's not big on wildlife.  Neighborhood cats make her nervous.

Seagull in flight down town.

Not a great picture of a Cormorant

One of the noisy Grackles that hang out under the bridge at the park down near Rosie's swim hole.

Grackle

These were next door growing in the wooded part of the lawn.  Snow drops.

These were growing next door on the wooded part of their lawn.  I still don't know what they are..

Two Killdeer near the railroad track.  They must have thought I was stalking them because I was going in the same direction.  I tried to keep my distance as much as I could, but eventually I had to pass them.

The snow is all off the hill at the City Forest so we can go in and out from there again.

What are these little birds that appeared to have taken over a wood duck house? (They are Tree Swallows)

Rosie on the stone bench at an intersection on the West Trail which is finally free of snow!