You can feel it in the air. The days are getting longer. The ice is gone. The mink at the Bottoms are back in the thick brush and cover. I found this little fellow last week on the last bit of ice. I am always happy and surprised to see them out and about. I casually wonder if Karl and Charlie have ever done a mink count at the Bottoms. You would be amazed at the info and statistics they do keep on our marsh. They can tell you when the first of most species are seen each year. I saw my first Yellowlegs in the pool east of KWEC yesterday and that seems early to me-- but I will check and see what the statistics are. There aren’t many people out in the marsh yet-- but they better get cracking and see the transformations that are happening.  
Waterfowl are some of my favorite birds. Goose season is over-- we got enough to make the pastrami that seems to be a perennial favorite with the recipe that my friend Mike Schnipper from Ohio provided. He and Tom have been coming for over 20 years and are part of the fabric of our lives. There are still lots of snow geese and white fronts around but they are starting to pack their bags. Most amazing right now are the ducks. The Mallards are mingling, the Pintails are pining, the Mergansers are moving, the teal are twitting, the Buffleheads are busy, the Shovelers are shoving, and the breeding season is upon us. The ducks are in tuxedos and just beautiful. I have always wished that it would be legal to shoot a couple of ducks in their best spring plumage to get mounted. If you look at the Blue-winged teal, you will see a white face patch on the males during the spring breeding season that is absent during the fall hunting season. I know a fellow that has one like that mounted-- I would suspect it wasn’t shot in the fall duck season or it was taken somewhere else...Game wardens know things like that and always have a suspicious mind....
Turkeys are starting to bunch up and I saw some toms strutting last week. There have been some absolutely amazing turkey pictures on Facebook in the Great Plains Nature Photographers section. It you take wildlife pictures-- join that group. Jim Griggs manages the group and there are some very knowledgeable and talented photographers that share images and information. Several photographers from our Great Bend Photography Club are members and add excellence to the group. My Canadian friends are stringing their traditional archery bows and packing their stuff to come hunt turkeys in early April. That is one of the highlights of spring at my house. How those guys that take moose and elk and sheep can get this excited about hunting Kansas turkeys is beyond me. It is another of the wonderful traditions that happen in our little part of Kansas.
Brace  yourself for the changes that will be happening very soon. Whooping Cranes will sneak with quiet elegance and a raspy squawk through our marsh on their way to the breeding grounds. There will be thousands of Sandhill Cranes coming through. Kearney, Neb. is famous for a Sandhill viewing facility on the Platte River. It is managed by the Audubon Society I think, and you have to check in to the blind at 5:00 or so in the afternoon, can’t have any lights that might disturb the birds, and portable bathroom facilities are provided. You can’t leave the blind until the next morning. I guess the viewing is spectacular and worth the price. I’m not sure I could abide by all the rules....  Those birds have put that community on the map just like the Bottoms and Quivira have done for us. Birders are terrific folks!
Enjoy the spring. Clean your asparagus and lily beds-- they are starting to peek out from their protective winter coats. Put new line on your fishing reels and get ready for crappie and walleye. Say “good bye” to your beautiful winter feeder birds and “hello” to the Robins that are arriving-- I saw Cedar Waxwings and Robins both on the golf course yesterday when Don and I walked our first 9 holes of the year. The day ended with big geese flying quiet and low over us in the beautiful evening twilight on their way to bed at the Bottoms. The day was warm, the friendship renewed after our winter break was joyful, and life is good in our marsh.
Doc