Springing Back and Forth

I forgot my last post was like 'it's not spring yet!' and I'm now writing one basically saying 'yay, spring!' - well... depending on the day.

Spring’s arrival has been a whiplash in Toronto. Sub-freezing, then twenty-degree days, then, wait, no, freezing snow, no wait, back to balmy again. I always feel bad for the wildlife who have to wake up every morning with no idea if they’ll have to spend it bracing against winter austerity or acting like we’re headed into abundance.

But as things have slowly crept toward sustained springtime, I’ve gotten to experience that transition through Leslie St Spit which is a highlight of the year. The natural world there wakes up one species at a time and it’s a lovely tradition to watch the first migratory arrivals and who’s crawling out of hibernation early.

Action shot!

I think the first fellas I noticed were the double-crested cormorants, Spit celebrities who dominate the water in the summer. They’re usually so raucous, plentiful and omnipresent that it’s a little strange to see individuals hanging out in ponds or flying overhead not accompanied by five hundred of their closest friends.

Decked out in breeding plumage finery.

I've also now clocked at least two great blue herons who've already made it back, or, maybe never left? They very occasionally stick it out through winter.

Next, painted turtles have already started basking on warmer days, soaking up the still too-infrequent sun where they can get it.

Channeling 😀

Finally, maybe my favourite early arrivals, tree swallows. They’re the species I associate most with the promise of spring, maybe because of how boisterous, vocal and active they are from the moment they show back up.

Leslie St Spit has a network of nest boxes that they all argue and fight over when they arrive, and for the past few years they’ve always called back memories of this time of year, their presence a very clear sign that yes, the weather will get better and warm days are ahead.

Tree swallows are also just strikingly beautiful birds. Barn swallows are a classic, cliff swallows have a rustic charm, but these guys have got elegance and class. Stark white against their iridescent blue-green feathers, they stand out in any setting but when you catch them in direct sunlight they’re like little jewels. 

I have an episode upcoming about swallows later in the year which goes into three species. I’ve actually been catching footage of all three for a while now, so I’m not as manic about gathering more material on them. But while I was down there I tried, mostly in vain, to capture the acrobatics of the little swarms of tree swallows, tiny against an imposing sky with… mixed success.

Pictured: mixed success.

On the home front, I’m diving into animation for three episodes simultaneously. I’m going on a hiking trip in May and my plan is to get these three episodes ready to go before I leave with the dream of a release day for the first one on June 1st. Feels a little terrifying typing that. 

I’m also facing down a perennial post problem: storage space… I’m running low again, and having to negotiate whether to stop-gap it with consumer hard drives or finally bite the bullet and invest in a serious grown-up DAS RAID, which is… both inevitable and always so easy to put off. But right now I’m sitting on footage I only have backed up in the most superficial way with many shoots on the calendar ahead, so: tick tock.

I’m back editing something for work work for the next two weeks, so Canadianimals stuff shifts to evenings and weekends, but I’ve made enough progress on this first group of three episodes that I think my deadline is still believable. We’ll see.

And in a first for this blog, a tease for next time! The dramatic and hilarious conclusion to my winter-long search for hooded mergansers. A final failure or an unexpected miracle? You’ll have to wait a week to find out. The suspense!