Harbinger of
Spring: Red-winged Blackbird
Hand-painted Silk; image size: 12"x20"
Currently on rental via the
Surrey Art Gallery
I love to walk my dog at a local
park that's a mixture of woodland, marshes, ponds and fields that were
once part
of a large farm.
The only visible remnants of the farm are the remains of old barbed-wire fences.
Early in the spring, the red-winged blackbirds arrive,
one of the first migrant
species, and the males declare
their territories, often from the vantage point of a handy fencepost.
Their
distinctive call never fails to lift my spirits because I know that spring is on
the way.