Trego's Mountain Ear

I’m watching a new generation of goose leadership develop – or fail to develop, as the case may be.  With Gander gone, it’s the first season when two geese nested on the island – for 8 years, he made sure that the only goose nesting on the island was his consort.

His last consort returned, nesting in her regular place, accompanied by a replacement old gander.  I had hoped for one more season with Gander – but while the replacement shows his age, he doesn’t show any of Gander’s mannerisms.

As I watch this year, I don’t have the gander who would decoy eagles from his nesting mate and land next to me – confident that the predators would not land six feet from where I stood.  With the wingspan of a Canada goose, six feet of leeway let me feel the wind from his wings.  I don’t know which goose is going to take the leadership role, and I think back to the little coots that joined Gander’s hatch.  We have a coot nesting again – their parenting is terrible, yet they try.  And the lesser Canadians seem to be willing to bring anything vaguely goose shaped into the flock.

The Redwing blackbird male is on his second year here.  He’s not so friendly as Gander was, but perches on the fence as I work the garden.  The raven harasses a large hawk – not from any desire to protect the waterfowl, just to keep it away from the raven nest.  A couple of years back, I recall the blackbird teaming up with a raven to make the pond unappealing to a bald eagle.

It’s been several years since I’ve seen a least weasel – while the vole population is up, the field remains free of ground squirrels, so I suspect that the weasels are still here, but my reduced mobility keeps me from encountering them.  Perhaps the rebuilt knee will bring them back to my view.

The pond is full, and the recent rains suggest we’ll have a good hay harvest.  Old age with a view of nature is a plus.