We have been doing our best in the cold and rainy weather to keep track of our loon pair. The goal is to determine when eggs are laid so we know when to expect the chicks to hatch. The loons had been courting now and then, but the first sign of an egg was May 23rd when the male (below) climbed up on the nest, poked around, and sat down, probably on an egg. 

Since then, the pair has been taking turns on the nest. Jon happened to be there when they switched on the morning of the 26th and got the photo below of two eggs in the nest. Most likely, the first was laid on the 22nd or 23rd, and the second possibly the night of the 25th. We should expect the first chick in about 28 days from then.

Thanks to early non-native flowers like dandelions and Common Bugle (Ajuga reptans)  - below left), bumblebees have had some food during this cold and rainy spring. Now they are turning to native plants and are already helping assure a good crop of blueberries (below right) throughout the watershed. 

Many of the non-native "weeds" around here were brought from Europe by early settlers. Many remain a valuable support system for native pollinators. Some, like the Ajuga, can be used as an attractive ground cover which will attract a wide variety of pollinators. Others, like native Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea) and soon-to-bloom non-native Hawkweeds (a kind of Aster), will soon add a splash of yellow and more food for a wide variety of pollinators. 

This on-and-off wet and cold early spring has made it hard on other species. Those of us who feed birds always try to get feeders out early. We have two pairs of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds nesting annually in our yard. Using feeders on three sides of our house makes sure they have lots of plain sugar water and reduces competition. Below is one of the males reminding us that much of the color in bird feathers is due to feather structure and not pigments. A simple turn of the head changes his throat color.

Although feeding birds seeds and sugar water helps them get started, remember that what many birds feed their young are worms, caterpillars, and other invertebrates. Planting trees and shrubs that are hosts to caterpillars is a good way to help them. Here is a great link for how to make more of your yard a "spring oasis".

Among the early wildflowers is an especially fascinating Lily relative, Trillium. Four of the 38 North American species occur in New England. Below is Painted Trillium (Trillium undulatum) in its usual mixed hardwood and evergreen forest habitat.  Interestingly, you are not looking at a plant with a single flower, but just a flower produced from an underground rhizome.  The three green bracts you see look and function like leaves, but they are part of the flower. Count the bracts, sepals and petals and its sceintific name makles sense - Tri...lilium (Latin for lily).

Trilliums are pollinated by a variety of insects (perhaps even the beetle next to the flower in the photo above) seeking pollen. By mid-summer, a single red fruit will appear. Its seeds have a fleshy part that attracts ants and some wasps. The ants take the seeds back to their nest, where they eat the fleshy part and discard the seed. Ants don't take the seeds very far, so new plants germinate a meter or so from the parent, resulting in clusters of Trilliums. 

Finding trilliums can be a rewarding treasure hunt. Once you know where they are, they will be there to greet you every spring, not as new arrivals, but as old friends. Just because you find a group of them, please don't be tempted to take one for your garden.  You should  be able to purchase plants or seeds, but expect to wait a few years for them to establish!

Below is a Common Merganser (Mergus merganser) and her nine chicks. Unlike the loons, only the female cares for the young. Her job is more supervisor than food provider. The chicks are precocial, like chickens, and quickly begin hunting for aquatic invertebrates and soon fish on their own.  Loon chicks are altricial, meaning they are dependent on parents bringing food to them as they slowly learn to forage on their own. The merganser chicks will be independent in weeks, while our loon chicks will be fed for months. 

Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) chicks are also precocial, and both parents are involved in guarding them until they learn to fly. It is fascinating to witness so many different ways that animals (and plants) go about producing and raising young. The more you learn about other birds, the more impressive is the amount and duration of parental care loon chicks get.