Today in My Big Backyard

Birds
wrens
tufted titmice
female cardinal
female and male house sparrows
chickadee
blue jay
a bird calling "here, here"
hummingbird
nuthatch
mourning doves
male and female house finches

Butterflies & other Insects
Red Admiral
Cabbage
Monarch
Blue Wasps

Scents
Cilantro
Petunias
Lilies
Compost
Sassafras ?

Sounds
Cardinals
Blue Jays
Wrens

Where Are the Birds?

We had an early start to spring which means an early season of hatching and growth of insects as well as plants. The robins were here in numbers early, as were the phoebes, and many of the winter visitors to feeders must be concentrating on the insects for food. I haven't seen a titmouse, nuthatch, woodpecker or flicker in weeks and a single chickadee appears once in a while. The house sparrows and house finches are still regulars though. I haven't seen the juncos in a few days, so I guess they finally headed north. But I am still waiting for the arrival of the wrens, cat birds, mockingbirds and Baltimore oriole.