The Birds and the Bees

7 “But ask the animals, and they will teach you;
    the birds of the air, and they will tell you;
8 ask the plants of the earth,[a] and they will teach you;
    and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
9 Who among all these does not know
    that the hand of the Lord has done this?
10 In his hand is the life of every living thing
    and the breath of every human being.

Job 12:7-10(NRSV)

Not long ago, on a cold, beak morning,we walked across the rubble-strewn site of a former factory on the Belleville waterfront. It's ugly by most standards and after a lot of money spent in remediation it is still polluted. Yet we were taken by the number of bird species (at least twenty) including ospreys. 

We walked out onto a human-made spit which was probably created for shipping by water and is now being reclaimed by shrubs and small trees. Suddenly a small flock of swallows erupted from a tree immediately beside us and flew low along the water. It was an enchanting sight, although we were aware that these beleaguered birds were likely conserving energy in the blustery weather without the necessary food source of insects. We've never seen swallow this close at hand before and the moment lifted our spirits. 

We've been getting so many mixed and confusing messages about being outdoors over the past two months although there is now a recognition that getting out there is essential for our physical and mentail health. Beginning today provincial parks will be opened for day use and bird-watching is listed as one of the okay activities. 



Mourning Cloak Butterfly

During our rambles we've seen a few butterflies, including the early Mourning Cloaks. We got excited about a bumblebee in our backyard, which demonstrated that we're a little desperate for entertainment. This is also a spiritual experience for us, an awareness of the profound mystery and predictable cycles of the natural world which we also see through the faith lens of Creator and Creation. Once again I return to those verses in the book of Job which encourage us to pay attention to the world around is for wisdom. 

We're hoping that before long the hummingbirds will return to the feeder we put out a couple of days ago. And that a monarch butterfly or two will find their way to the milkweed which will grow in our backyard

I'm trying to imagine the extraordinary spectacle of millions of butterflies congregating in Mexico for the winter, many of which are already making their way northward in the tag-team journey to Canada. Here is the link to astounding PBS film footage taken by a hummingbird drone:

https://kottke.org/20/04/watch-a-monarch-butterfly-swarm-filmed-by-a-drone-disguised-as-a-hummingbird