Dave I trust you mean House Finch singing - you'd have every birder in the country?at your place if you had a Rosefinch, since it's an Asian bird! Wendy Ealding Powhatan County -----Original Message----- From: Dave Briddon <briddo13@xxxxxxxxxxx> To: jimvb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx; Richmond listserv <va-richmond-general@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Tue, 3 Feb 2009 8:49 pm Subject: [va-richmond-general] Re: Yellowthroat hi Jim and all , It,s true spring is on the way , in the world of?birds it,s way ahead off our timescales . Starting to see signs of spring here in Richmond . first brown thrasher this morning under my feeder, cardinals singing at first light, rose finch singing ,?mourning doves calling , the Owls are mating or already egg laying. Yesterday?was groundhog day they said another 6 weeks of winter, so it must be true. however here's a thought ! Britain's swallows leave the Cape in South Africa mid February and are home in six weeks to meet the spring. it takes them three months to get there when they go southwards, but?when its time to come home they're on it?!! the wintering flock of Taiga Bean geese leave Norfolk England without fail on the third week of February after spending all winter in Norfolk, go there to see them after then and it's already too late. The Bewicks (tundra)Swans start to go back this month to. In Japan the first parties of cranes? start to leave to go north ,? in early February?. ! so it's spring really , you just have to believe it !!! cheers Dave Briddon From: Jim Blowers <jimvb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> To: Richmond listserv <va-richmond-general@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Tuesday, 3 February, 2009 20:04:52 Subject: [va-richmond-general] Re: Yellowthroat With us it's a yellow-rumped warbler and a goldfinch. Both birds are smaller than chipmunk birds (yellow-throated sparrows) and snowbirds (dark-eyed juncos). Also we are getting a brown thrasher, which is not in the top 25 list of feeder birds in the newspaper a while ago. It is still cold and it is still winter but when I go out in the morning the skies are full of the twittering of birds. Jim Blowers