Sarvis in Bloom

Every year the first tree to bloom in the hollow is a sarvis growing on the eastern rim hillside. Here it is on March 26th. The redbuds can’t be far behind.

Heavy Rains

There are four springs in this end of the hollow. The largest marks the beginning of the creek that drains the surrounding hillsides. After a heavy rainfall, this normally placid spring becomes white and roaring. This photograph shows the spring coming down the hillside after such a rain. This March has been a very wet month causing flooding, mayhem, and death in the Ozarks.

Return of the bat

This evening at dusk I noticed a single bat flitting around the hollow’s sky. Hopefully, as in years past, more and more bats will appear as Spring progresses.

Ladybugs

Here in the hollow our annual outbreak of ladybugs started at the end of February. Here is a picture of just a few of them on a window. Sometimes they swarm in the hundreds, covering the ceiling or light fixtures in a mass of moving red. I have been told that these are not our native ladybugs, but imported insects brought in to eat something or another.