Well, I guess the weather gods got the hint that we were all tired of winter. It was warm enough today to go for a walk, and when I did, I was reminded of what feels like a bygone era.
All because I heard geese.
I’m aware that sounds slightly insane. But hear me out here: in the fall term, I took a course called Elements of Ethology. It was a psychology course that gave me credit for my degree, and basically meant I spent an entire term learning about animal behavior. Specifically, we talked about houseflies, horses, and Canada geese.
It’s warmer now, and the geese are back.
As part of my giant final paper for that course, I had to spend time at a retention pond, counting and observing behaviors in flocks of geese. Though I was initially skeptical about spending so much time engaging in observation, I weirdly had a good time. It’s interesting how fascinating animal behavior can be when you have clues about what to look for.
So, I spent the term at a retention pond not far from my house, three to four times a week until the snow came, and the geese flew south. Then I spent once a week at a horse farm, observing horses and eating cookies until I had enough data to write a 50+ page paper, that ultimately got me an A (yay!).
I really liked that class. It was a small group- about 12 students, plus the professor, who had been teaching the same course for 49 years. The dynamic was good, the instruction was excellent, and it was an overall good experience.
This meant that when I was walking today, and I heard the distinct “honks” bursting forth from Branta canadensis (that’s science talk for “Canada goose”- see, I did learn something), it reminded me of the last time they were here: in fall, preparing for their journey south. It really wasn’t that long ago in the grand scheme of things, but it feels like a lifetime ago in terms of what we could do- spend time in classrooms, or on farms, or just generally go about our day to day lives with no attention given to the geese. Now we’re at home, and with less traffic on the roads, it seems all bird sounds (geese included) are just that much more prominent.
It’s funny how a noise could make you nostalgic for an era not that long gone, isn’t it?
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