Closer to Spring in Columbus Park

On my lunchtime walk through Columbus Park, I found a few more signs that spring is inching closer.

In the Austin meadow, I heard a Song Sparrow sing. It’s been two months since we last saw this bird in Columbus Park, and much longer since we heard one sing.

A recording of its song is here: Song Sparrow from the All About Birds website.
(To hear the song, you need Quicktime installed on your computer.)

To read more about the birds we see in Columbus Park, check out this page.

Behind the Refectory, I found tiny green leaves poking up through bare soil, surrounded by snow:

Soon these plants will sprout buds, then flowers.

In one place soil had washed away, and I could see how the leaves sprout from underground bulbs:

Tiny bulbs sprout tiny leaves. The biggest bulb is less than a centimeter across.

To see what these plants look like as they develop buds, go here.

To see what the flowers look like when the buds open, go here.

The trees are also making progress, especially the Weeping Willow by Columbus Park lagoon:

The buds on these Weeping Willow twigs have been slowly swelling and deepening their color.

A treeful of leaves and flowers will emerge from these tiny buds.