Once again I had big plans of building a martin house, and once again it didn't happen. One is probably enough to start anyways, so the Bob Buska house went back up in mid April, and this year I attached 3 guy wires to ensure it didn't go over in the wind if we get enough rain to turn this clay soil into soup.
The sparrow traps went out in April also as there were a few still hanging around after winter. The final tally last year was 372, and so far this year another 34 have kept the cats happy. As another nice side effect of this effort we have roughly a bazillion Juncos, chipping and white crowned sparrows hopping around, which we never had before with all of the HOSP in the yard.
And then the waiting started. And the watching. And more waiting. Compulsively checking the scout arrival map a few times a day, while seeing the line of sightings move closer and closer, and then past our location, and then further and further away was agonizing. A few dots popped up around us, and yet we hadn't seen a single martin. Then the weather turned to crap, and I was actually hoping they wouldn't show up for another week until it warmed up a little.
So of course that's exactly what didn't happen.


A few hours later I heard them again just as it was starting to snow, and they were all huddled up on the lee side of the house looking as grumpy as my father when he came home from Palm Springs too early one year.

A couple of them seemed to really struggle with the SREH slots, so I took a couple off so everyone could get inside for the night. They were all bedded down by dusk, and hopefully it warms up enough they can find some food over the next few days until this cold snap ends.
So aside from the weather it looks like a promising start to the year. More to come in the Adventures of Percy.