Spring has sprung,
The sun is ris,
I wonder where the birdies is…

They will no doubt be flocking through soon, mostly on their way further north. Thankfully some regulars have stayed around through the winter months – chickadees and nuthatches – and visit our feeders daily.

We took a walk through Kings Park a couple of weeks ago and saw a fleet of pelicans on the river (more than 100). Some were perched on bits of remaining ice. Further along the track, Judy was buzzed by a cheeky chickadee. Luckily, she had come prepared with some black sunflower seeds in her pocket and was soon treated to that unique pleasure of having them feed from her hand. Birds I view this issue is about wood ducks (p.8).

Elsewhere you will find quite a variety of (hopefully) interesting reading. Thanks to those who suggested a story, including Jude McCudden, whose poem is on p.7. It’s also good – thanks to Judy’s facilitating – that this newsletter can report on some fun and well-attended post-covid (?) club gatherings.

Don’t forget to consider our advertisers when you have a legal, reno or travel need. Thanks also again to Jenny, Brian, Peter, Judy, Ed, Dean and Jude.

Here’s the direct link.

What’s with those funny pattern boxes?

We’ve added visual QR codes to the print and PDF version of the Southern Yarn. It is aimed mainly at the printed version, as previously we provided links in articles that allowed PDF readers to go to the link. Now you’ll probably have to use your smart phone.

Leading readers to website addresses from a printed or even online document can be problematic, partly because the addresses, known as URLs, are notoriously long. They take up a lot of room, and transcribing them is both tedious and prone to errors. To the rescue comes the venerable Quick Reponse, more simply QR, code. They’ve been around for more than 20 years, but after slow initial uptake, they’re again gaining public acceptance. The unique patterns are able to input the required data via the camera of your smart phone and lead you to the website, no typing required. Give it a try!

Point your phone’s camera at the patterns and click on the links we want to share with you. Let us know what you think!