Nancy Baron

On a sparkling May morning, I was putting out food for the birds on my morning rounds. For the fourth year now, we have had western bluebirds nesting in our orchard in a bluebird box. My husband Ken Weiss has built a feeding platform nearby where I leave live mealworms. The parents have five hungry mouths to feed as well as their own. They hunt bugs, picking the orchard clean. A little supplemental food increases the chances that more of the chicks will survive.

My favorite place to drink morning coffee is under two big oak trees in our yard. The birds sing gustily announcing their presence at the start of every day like a roll call. The purpose of their singing is to advertise their availability for a mate, or if they have found a partner, they are declaring their territories, as they get down to the business of building nests.

On a recent ocean evening swim off Ash Avenue, my husband Ken and I were dazzled by an aerial river of glistening white elegant terns (their official name) flying overhead. Twisting and plunging around us, the best hunters emerged with a tiny fish in their sharp beaks, shaking off a backlit spray of water. Dinner! Any visit to the beach these days is certain to treat you to the sight of winter arrivals and birds passing through on their fall migration. This is a time of flux.