The Rain Crows

It was hot on the Bayou today.  Our temperature soared to a whopping 98.7 degrees by mid-afternoon and refused to cool much after reaching this high.  With this heat came dryness. It has rained only once in the past month and the garden is showing the effects.  It still supposed to be spring..what happened?  With the first day of summer not until June 20th, I am afraid we are in for a long hot, HOT summertime.  This makes me sad as I had hoped for a good year on the garden but with searing heat and no moisture, that will not happen.  As I sat pondering the fate of my garden, I started thinking about droughts from times past.  I can remember some summers back on the farm when the the large fishpond would dry up to nothing. So..this drought..and heat are not some "global warming" trend..merely a season of extremes.  The thoughts of the farm aroused other memories and soon I was thinking about how Mom used to always like to hear the Rain Crows call.  She would always comment that it would be a good time to plant when she would hear their familiar cawing.  Right now, I wish I could hear that Rain Crow!  We sure could use a good rain!

The Rain Crow that Mom was talking about is actually a Yellow-billed Cuckoo.  Although they are not a colorful bird nor are they proficient "singers", I like the Rain Crows.  They make me smile just because of the memories!  They are a rather secretive bird that a lot of us often hear but rarely see.  This said, it was a pleasant surprise to find one nesting in the canebrake.  I am sure that it did not make its nest there just so I could hear it occasionally but rather that there is an abundance of bugs milling about the area.  Rain Crows are notorious critter-eaters!  (Another reason that I like these birds!)  They will sit for long periods of time, just watching..watching until a caterpillar makes the mistake of moving. Then the bird will either swoop in for the kill from a tree limb above or make a mad dash across the lawn to catch the prey.

I am thinking that the pair of Rain Crows in the canebrake should stay right there.  There will always be plenty of bugs for them to feed on as the gardens nearby have an endless supply!  The canebrake can provide coverage in support of their secretive lifestyle and if they wanted to call for rain at any time, I will be more than happy to listen and welcome any rain that they can muster up for us!