Robins are trying to claim our yard with their liquid warbles. The long gray months have got everyone obsessed with spring signs. Of course the titmice have been singing for weeks, but I suppose that sounds less dignified than reporting a red-breasted robin.

The snow was so thick and firm right after the recent storm that plows sculpted the roads out of it. The other day what little remained sagged under the onslaught of warmth and rain. Depressions emerged as little moonscapes of slush mixed with cold water.

The world surged with movement. An impromptu creek flowed under the snow at the edge of our property. I encountered several raccoon tracks which struck more or less straight across the forest floor, altering slightly to disappear at the base of exposed logs and reappear at the ends. Raccoons don’t hibernate, but they are less active in the bitter cold. The snow was littered with debris, including empty acorn caps and eviscerated husks. I imagined these were from the chipmunks bounding everywhere lately, which breed so early they need to rely on stored food for sustenance.

An assortment of birds continued their motions toward their breeding seasons. In the distance a woodpecker rattled in a display of drumming. Overhead flew loose clouds of blackbirds and dark silhouettes of assorted waterfowl. Suddenly snow geese filled the sky with vast geometric designs. They passed in waves, until all that remained was their distant honking.

Here are some snow pictures while it’s still officially winter: