This time of year my hubby puts an electric aerator in the pond to keep an area of water open. When the snow covers the ice it cuts off the sunlight, causing plant material in the pond to die and begin to decompose. This process robs oxygen from the water, taking it away from the fish, and will eventually cause "winter kill". We have good success with the aerator, so generally not long after the New Year it starts to hum.
As soon as an opening of water appears, we begin to notice mourning doves as they fly in to quench their thirst each evening at dusk. They arrive in groups of a dozen or more and land in the trees at the pond's edge. A red pine tree is their favorite gathering place. The doves seem to take turns, flying back and forth from their roosts in the trees to the open water, making beautiful twittering sounds all the while in flight.
My uncle called mourning doves "rain crows". Their cooing sounds in warmer seasons is said to be a sign of rain in the near future. The gentle sounds the doves make are always comforting to me. They are very shy birds when they land on the pond and scatter quickly when we walk near them. I'm amazed at how they can get close enough to drink without falling in!
The first time I heard mourning doves and paid attention to them was when visiting our Grandma Kewatt, in the evening, they always remind me of her home. I remember Grandpa Adam saying that when you hear them it will rain,
ReplyDeleteyour big sis