The storm passed at about 3 am today and the sun came up and the wind died down and it turned into a beautiful day. The wind is now from the south and that makes all the difference. We're going out on Wednesday morning to see what has arrived on the scene, every day could bring something new especially with the wind in the right direction.

The call of a gull still surprises me so I guess that means I don't really believe that spring is here. It's funny, I grew up in Northern Ontario thinking that the American Robin was the first sure sign of spring but here in the north it is the sound of a gull. The sound stirs my heart and reminds me that soon (in reletive terms) there will be open water everywhere and I will have to keep my eyes and mind open because what I think I see may actually be something else. Like "prehistoric bird" that was a description a nonbirder gave me, it turned out to be a Double Crested Cormorant. And that makes me remember that even a person who doesn't actively bird can see something that is crazy obviously out of place.

We never know what is going to blow in on which wind. Last year a Sage Thrasher, we knew we saw a bird that didn't fit any of our expectations and without the experience needed we couldn't ID it, thankfully experienced birders usually like to show how good they are, so they told us what we needed to know. I never would have got to that ID because I would have had a hard time making myself believe that first that I was right and second that it could be so far from where it was supposed to be. Then when the American Avocet showed up it was proven to me again that I have to make the search a little wider when trying to ID. On the Avocet I didn't need confirmation but someone would have had to confirm the thrasher before I would have ticked it.