Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Winter Update #10: Everybody goes "huh?"

6:35-7:45am, Peters Hill, Arnold Arboretum
cold and clear, vivid sunrise


This morning it seemed like everyone on the hill was saying "hhhuh?"

The robin-filled tree was saying it, a whole chorus of "hhhuh?"s and "what the...?s" emerging out of the usual cheep-y texture:


The tiny "wee-er", white-breasted birds whose name I still don't know were saying it, as usual (along with that great intergalactic trill):


My rough version:


I myself felt a bit confused and "huh??" myself, as I tried to ID the tiny birds. Today I was determined to get a good sighting, but my noisy new snowshoes gave me away.

I was lucky to be lent these shoes, the modern metal kind, but had no idea how loud they would be! Not a good solution for ambulatory winter birding. I wonder if traditional leather/natural-fiber snowshoes are more quiet?

Today's sketch was a composition based on the "huhh?" sonic gesture.

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