“Turkey vultures aren’t really dangerous,” Dr. Tibbits said. “They’re just scavengers.”
from Gone to the Buzzards
written by C. B. Jones
Illustrated by Chris Green
Stone Arch Books/Capstone, 2017
read on Libby 3/16/24
Usually, in Ohio at least, robins are the harbinger of Spring. My husband and I are always sure to tell each other of the first one we see. “Ours” have been back for about a week or so.
I had a robin stuffie that lived in my Storytime Bag. When I presented a story time about spring, I’d reach in pretending to pull out a springtime story. I’d squeeze my little bird to make it chirp and looked surprised when it did. I’d ask the children what they thought was making that sound. “A robin!” they’d (predictably) answer. And we’d go on from there.
But robins are not spring’s only herald.
Swallows return to Mission San Juan Capistrano in Southern California each spring. The song, “When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano,” written by Leon René, made it to the top of Your Hit Parade when it was released in 1939. It’s been recorded by Guy Lombardo, Glenn Miller, and Pat Boone among others. There’s a whole room at the Mission dedicated to René where you can see the piano he composed it on.
The return of the swallows was unintentionally promoted in the early 1900s by St. John O’Sullivan. The Mission had fallen into rack and ruin due to its abandonment in 1886. O’Sullivan, a Catholic priest, was looking for a dry climate to help him cope with his recent diagnosis of tuberculosis. He began working, on his own, to restore the Mission. As he continued his work, support for the Mission grew. Today, the site functions as a museum and serves as headquarters of the San Juan Capistrano Historical Society and the repository of all its archives.
But wait! There’s more! Swallows and robins are not all we watch for at the beginning of spring, either.
Like clockwork, according to the Hinkley Chamber of Commerce, buzzards return to Hinkley, Ohio, on March 15 every year.
On February 15, 1957, The Cleveland Press ran a story describing the 29-year-old legend, originally told by a member of the Hinckley Reservation police force. He predicted their return in exactly one month. Tension, suspense, and controversy ran at a fever pitch. Believers were sure the buzzards would come back. And at 2 p.m. on March 15th, the first buzzard was spotted by a Metropolitan Parks Police and Park Naturalists’ skywatch camera.
Harold E. Wallin and John Kason, citizen bird-watchers, were the sharp-eyed spotters. Wallin worked together with park officials as quickly as they could to organize the expected bevy of onlookers, sightseers, and revelers. But the crowd exceeded all expectations. In all, over 9,000 Ohioans overran the park. By mid-morning, cafes, restaurants, and all local food establishments had run dry.
Photographers, reporters, even movie, radio, and TV folks caught the whole event for posterity. It was called the most spectacular “bird walk” in history.
Not to be caught unawares again, the Chamber of Commerce organized the Annual Buzzard Sunday Festival for the first Sunday after March 15 every year. This year, 2024, the 67th Annual Buzzard Day in Hinkley, Ohio, is planned for Sunday, March 24, from 7:00 a.m. till 2:00 p.m. I know, that’s the 2nd Sunday after the 15th, but that’s the plan for this year. Click here for the link to the Chamber’s FaceBook page where you can see the schedule of events, peruse pictures, and watch a video (from 2018).
Go to the Hinckley Chamber of Commerce to buy tickets for the pancake breakfast and avoid the sure-to-be long line.
A few buzzard facts I found along the way:
Buzzards are not attractive. They do not sing. They’re scavengers. But they help keep our streets clean. They’re predictable. And like robins and daffodils, they really are a sure sign of spring.
While it remains to be seen whether the birds will make an appearance in Hinckley on March 24, Buzzard Sunday, Accuweather Forecast predicts temperatures in the mid forties and a partly sunny sky. Sounds like good flying weather to me!
I had to re-reserve Mockingbird Summer, so no update yet. Meanwhile, I started reading Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory’s Power to Hold on to What Matters by Charan Ranganath (Doubleday, 2024). Our choices, the author tells us on the very first page, are influenced and sometimes completely determined by memory. An intriguing premise I hope is followed by an equally interesting narrative.
--Be curious! (and look up)
from Gone to the Buzzards
written by C. B. Jones
Illustrated by Chris Green
Stone Arch Books/Capstone, 2017
read on Libby 3/16/24
Usually, in Ohio at least, robins are the harbinger of Spring. My husband and I are always sure to tell each other of the first one we see. “Ours” have been back for about a week or so.
I had a robin stuffie that lived in my Storytime Bag. When I presented a story time about spring, I’d reach in pretending to pull out a springtime story. I’d squeeze my little bird to make it chirp and looked surprised when it did. I’d ask the children what they thought was making that sound. “A robin!” they’d (predictably) answer. And we’d go on from there.
But robins are not spring’s only herald.
Swallows return to Mission San Juan Capistrano in Southern California each spring. The song, “When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano,” written by Leon René, made it to the top of Your Hit Parade when it was released in 1939. It’s been recorded by Guy Lombardo, Glenn Miller, and Pat Boone among others. There’s a whole room at the Mission dedicated to René where you can see the piano he composed it on.
The return of the swallows was unintentionally promoted in the early 1900s by St. John O’Sullivan. The Mission had fallen into rack and ruin due to its abandonment in 1886. O’Sullivan, a Catholic priest, was looking for a dry climate to help him cope with his recent diagnosis of tuberculosis. He began working, on his own, to restore the Mission. As he continued his work, support for the Mission grew. Today, the site functions as a museum and serves as headquarters of the San Juan Capistrano Historical Society and the repository of all its archives.
But wait! There’s more! Swallows and robins are not all we watch for at the beginning of spring, either.
Like clockwork, according to the Hinkley Chamber of Commerce, buzzards return to Hinkley, Ohio, on March 15 every year.
On February 15, 1957, The Cleveland Press ran a story describing the 29-year-old legend, originally told by a member of the Hinckley Reservation police force. He predicted their return in exactly one month. Tension, suspense, and controversy ran at a fever pitch. Believers were sure the buzzards would come back. And at 2 p.m. on March 15th, the first buzzard was spotted by a Metropolitan Parks Police and Park Naturalists’ skywatch camera.
Harold E. Wallin and John Kason, citizen bird-watchers, were the sharp-eyed spotters. Wallin worked together with park officials as quickly as they could to organize the expected bevy of onlookers, sightseers, and revelers. But the crowd exceeded all expectations. In all, over 9,000 Ohioans overran the park. By mid-morning, cafes, restaurants, and all local food establishments had run dry.
Photographers, reporters, even movie, radio, and TV folks caught the whole event for posterity. It was called the most spectacular “bird walk” in history.
Not to be caught unawares again, the Chamber of Commerce organized the Annual Buzzard Sunday Festival for the first Sunday after March 15 every year. This year, 2024, the 67th Annual Buzzard Day in Hinkley, Ohio, is planned for Sunday, March 24, from 7:00 a.m. till 2:00 p.m. I know, that’s the 2nd Sunday after the 15th, but that’s the plan for this year. Click here for the link to the Chamber’s FaceBook page where you can see the schedule of events, peruse pictures, and watch a video (from 2018).
Go to the Hinckley Chamber of Commerce to buy tickets for the pancake breakfast and avoid the sure-to-be long line.
A few buzzard facts I found along the way:
- Buzzards are known as turkey vultures in most of the world.
- They have an average wingspan of 5-6 feet and can weigh up to 3 pounds.
- They have bright, red, feather-less heads.
- The claw-like tip of their beak is perfect for dining on carrion of every type.
- They don’t have vocal cords. They hiss and grunt.
- They’re related to storks, but not to any birds of prey.
- Their Latin name, Cathartes aura, means cleansing breeze.
- They have the largest olfactory system in the bird world and can smell carrion up to a mile away.
- Orville and Wilber Wright, Ohioans both, observed buzzards to help them understand the principles of flight.
Buzzards are not attractive. They do not sing. They’re scavengers. But they help keep our streets clean. They’re predictable. And like robins and daffodils, they really are a sure sign of spring.
While it remains to be seen whether the birds will make an appearance in Hinckley on March 24, Buzzard Sunday, Accuweather Forecast predicts temperatures in the mid forties and a partly sunny sky. Sounds like good flying weather to me!
I had to re-reserve Mockingbird Summer, so no update yet. Meanwhile, I started reading Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory’s Power to Hold on to What Matters by Charan Ranganath (Doubleday, 2024). Our choices, the author tells us on the very first page, are influenced and sometimes completely determined by memory. An intriguing premise I hope is followed by an equally interesting narrative.
--Be curious! (and look up)
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