Monday, April 17, 2017

Gratitude Monday -- Duck Puddles Edition

The local world is looking quite wet these days and for it I am grateful.
I've seen water puddles in fields that have stood dry for years.
Some local ponds have more water in them now than I have seen in more than a decade. One we saw yesterday is a great spot to watch birds. Plenty of ducks nest there as do geese. The catttails hold many a red-winged blackbird.
But for the last several years it has held so little water not many birds could make a home there. Last fall we had a great deal of rain which really rejuvenated the local watering holes. We've had enough snow in the winter to continue topping them up.
For ease of math I'll use small numbers and for ease of my own understanding I'll use imperial measure.
Imagine a 10 gallon container. Now imagine it holding maybe 1.5 - 2 gallons of water.
That's how bad it's been at this pond.
Yesterday it looked more like it held at least eight gallons. Geese were there as were a few ducks. I know more are on the way.
The red-winged blackbirds are due back shortly. I expect plenty of frogs this year, too,
There's still more melting to do and spring rains to fall.
The ponds are filling again and for it I am grateful.

7 comments:

the Bag Lady said...

It is the same here, cousin. We have an awful lot of water lying around, and expect a lot of birds...and mosquitoes!
I do feel sorry for the farmers who were unable to finish getting their crops off last year - not sure how they will manage when it is still this wet. Definitely a challenging year.

Leah J. Utas said...

Aye, Bag Lady. The farmers are taking yet another hit with all this water.

Anonymous said...

That is awesome!!! Lots of life going on over there. I am grateful the flowers and trees are blooming again.

Leah J. Utas said...

Good to know it, Kimberley.

solarity said...

We have had no-burn orders already this spring. We've also had flash flood warnings. We're getting enough rain, but not equally distributed.

When you grow up in the country, you notice water.

Mary Anne in Kentucky

messymimi said...

What a special blessing! We only notice, sometimes, how special these things are when they are gone.

Leah J. Utas said...

So very true, Mary Anne.

Exactly, Messymimi. We don't know what we've got until it's (almost) gone.