i have not posted in a while.. i had nothing compelling to share! now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about this glorious spring season in northeastern Raleigh.
fireflies
is it possible these little light-up cuties were here even in August/Sept when we moved here but i just didn’t realize? we have been seeing fireflies from our patio and on dusky post-work walks. fireflies seem so nostalgic to me. i’m reminded of family trips to Pennsylvania where fireflies always abounded. i have said multiple times that living in raleigh feels like a constant summer vacation* and the fireflies are only adding to that magic.
*to unpack this a little: it’s a combination of the warm weather, the sandy/piney hiking trails, the hum of bugs, and the ability to sit out on my patio. and something about the fresh/sunny/floral smell of the air. all of these things remind me of family vacations on Cape Cod at cute cottage rentals, eating on the patio at the beachhouse in Maine, and now remembering the times as a kid that I saw fireflies.
turtles
i’m not sure if this is specific to spring either, but i have been seeing so many turtles along the Neuse River Greenway, as well as places where I expect to see them: basking in the sun or swimming through the water at Lake Lynn and Shelley Lake. i was at Lake Lynn today and saw this absolute unit of a turtle. he looked to me like a snapping turtle but i can’t be sure. he looked prehistoric… covered in mud, beady eyes, with a long pointy tail and webbed claws. the other, smaller turtles seemed to coexist with him peacefully. they would swim near him as though he wasn’t a behemoth of a thing…
persian silk tree
on my walks, sometimes i remember to look up, and when i do, i am treated to the beauty that is the pink silk tree. this lovely tree has leaves that look to me like a combination of palm leaves and ferns (looks tropical ish?)… amongst the leaves are these bright pink, feathery, wispy threads in the shape of a small fan. it is so distinctive and beautiful! i picked one fallen flower up off of the forest floor today and i definitely see how it got its name. the flower feels so delicate and soft. they may be invasive but damn are they cute!
trumpet creeper
another delight i see on my walks is the trumpet creeper, which is aptly named for its trumpet-shaped flowers. my first thought was that they look tailor-made for hummingbirds (more on that in a sec!), and sure enough, Wiki is telling me that it’s very attractive to ruby-throated hummingbirds. what’s special about these flowers, aside from their cute shape, is how high they can climb. they creep up along trees, meaning they are sometimes way higher than my eye level!
hummingbirds
thank you, trumpet creeper, for this perfect segue. i have spotted two hummingbirds in the woods behind my house! i couldn’t believe my eyes. i don’t think i have ever seen hummingbirds in real life before… i was sitting on the patio after dinner, and i thought i saw a moth—a large brown bug flying around. but i soon realized that the flight was smooth, unlike a bug’s, and that it had a teensy beak! i didn’t react fast enough to take a picture, but i hope that i will see plenty more of them! i am pretty certain that the two hummingbirds i saw did not have the ruby-colored throat, so it’s possible i saw a juvenile male and/or a female. i look forward to getting a feeder or planting things they love to attract them!
coyotes/wolves
i have both seen and heard coyotes or wolves… I’m not sure about the details, but dale and i have both heard strange noises in the middle of the night. howling and yipping, panting (dale thinks i dreamt that one but i swear i heard it near our window—creepy huh!?). there was also this one time last week where i was driving home, sitting at a red light, and i saw what looked like a dog/fox/coyote/wolf walk out of the woods and into the road. all the cars stopped, and the animal turned right back around the way it came..
barred owls
keeping on with the nighttime noises theme! this website helped me identify a strange call i was hearing at night. apparently, this particular call is known as a little song called “who cooks for you?”. oddly enough, when i heard this call, i didn’t realize it was an owl. it didn’t have that “hoo”, “hoo” sound that it’s so obviously owl-like. i wondered at first if it was a coyote or wolf, but i guess i just need to become familiar with the local owls 😊
other birds
we have also been seeing lots of wild hawks, turkey vultures, and herons. the hawks like to visit us, sitting on our back railing or hanging out in the grass. they are so cute! the herons own the Neuse River, whenever i explore the Dam, which is minutes from my house, i’ll see a handful of herons proudly surveying their respective areas of the lake. they are so magnificent! can’t say the same about turkey vultures, who are far from cute. i’m sure someone out there finds them cute…
furry friends
although i have seen them all throughout the year, i had to come up with a reason to include cute photos of rabbits and deer. they are just the best!
thanks for reading!
Hi, Mae - Do you know about an App called Merlin? It helps you identify a bird by sound, sight or photo. Very useful!