Heralds of spring beginning to appear John Switzer
It is now March, a month in which winter and spring duke it out but, thankfully, the outcome is never in doubt. Spring is always the victor.
One day in March can feel and look like a January day while the next day can have a hint of April in it.
Calendar spring begins with the vernal equinox, which this year is at 7:02 a.m. on March 20. On that day, the length of daylight and darkness will be the same, and the sun will rise almost due east and set almost due west.
In these days filled with chaos and mayhem, I find it comforting that some events occur each year with very little change. It sort of stabilizes things. I don’t like change anyway, even when it is for the better.
The name of March’s moon has a much-warmer sound to it than December’s cold moon or February’s snow moon. It is called the worm moon, and it will be full on March 27.
For me, one of the major events in March is the arrival of red-winged blackbirds. I think that is because as a boy I would go fishing in March with my Uncle Max for big lake bullheads on their spawning runs in the bays and tributaries of Lake Erie. We would sit there on upside-down 5-gallon buckets waiting for a bite, and I would notice red-winged blackbirds in the marshes clinging to cattails and singing their spring song — ku-karee, karee.
Bullheads were the first fish we caught in the new year, and we reeled in lots of them. They were delicious after being pulled out of the ice-cold water. I don’t think many people eat bullheads any more, but it was common for folks who had experienced the Depression.
I’m looking forward to the first red-wing of the season at my feeder. They are being seen in central Ohio.
Also being seen are chipmunks. Some people might have mixed emotions about that. I spotted my first chipmunk of the spring a week ago on my patio.That means they are awakening from their season-long naps.
Sometimes they become a nuisance, especially when they dig and bury things in your potted plants. But I enjoyed seeing this one.
My wife has never met a chipmunk she didn’t like.
Skunk cabbages are in full bloom and putting up leaves, chipmunks are up and about, turkey vultures are back from their winter vacations, and I should have a red-winged blackbird at my feeder any day now.
It’s definitely March!
Retired weather columnist John Switzer writes a Sunday Metro column. jswitzer@dispatch.com  
