Um, it is still August, no? The geese are already flocking up and even the leaves are getting the hell out of here. Fall is my favorite season, please don’t rush it! #WNY #seasons #buffalo #toosoon
I live in the southeastern US, which is almost literally half a world away from Crete, where the ancient Minoans lived. In this modern day, what with the Internet and all, that’s not such a big deal, except for one thing: the seasons aren’t the same in the two places. That makes the equinoxes… interesting.
Analemma. The sun’s position in the sky, photographed from the same location at the same time of day throughout a year, forms an analemma. This shows the sun’s apparent swinging from its northernmost position, at the analemma’s uppermost point, at summer solstice, to its southernmost position/lowest point, at winter solstice.
Sanderling @ Titchwell RSPB Norfolk Coast.. by Adam Swaine Via Flickr: Migration is not random. There is a pattern to the arrival of different species. First to arrive in Norfolk, in March, come the chiffchaffs, sand martins and wheatears. In April the floodgates open! Blackcaps and willow warblers arriving in huge numbers at the start of the month; followed in mid-April by swallows, house martins, whitethroats, garden warblers and cuckoos. The end of April sees reed and sedge warblers adding their voices to the dawn chorus. This is a good time Common tern carrying fish, by Trevor Round to spot them when, at areas such as NWT Cley Marshes amongst the still winter-brown reedbeds, newly arrived male warblers sing persistently and prominently throughout the day in their urgency to find mates. Our Norfolk coast is one of the best places to observe migration. By late April a full set of terns – common, Sandwich and little – will add their raucous calls to those of resident black-headed and herring gulls. On coastal wetlands, such as at NWT Holme Dunes, April is a brilliant time to observe passage wading birds. Birds such as godwits, knot, curlew, sandpiper and little stint have moulted from their much duller winter greys to take on brighter chestnut browns
Sanderling on Titchwell Beach Norfolk by Adam Swaine Via Flickr: Titchwell is generally known for the RSPB nature reserve which comprises the large swathe of saltwater marshland and freshwater lagoon. This important habitat is a twitchers paradise with its reedbeds and marshes home to avocets, bearded tits and marsh harriers. But Titchwell is also home to an oft overlooked sandy beach. Backed by low sand dunes and the reserve beyond Titchwell is home a wonderful expanse of pristine beach. At low tide, what is already a quiet spot can feel pretty much deserted as the sand extends for what seems like miles in every direction..
