This email is too good not to share with international friends. It comes from our friend Erik Hoffner at Orion magazine, which has offices on Main Street in Great Barrington, only an eight-minute walk from the offices of Berkshire Publishing. A peeper, for those of you who have not lived in New England, is a tiny frog that makes a great deal of noise. They are the sound of springtime here – until the birds arrive, of course. So far, only geese, not flocks of chattering birds. The fact that they are not here yet suggests that there may be cold weather coming – or that they are fixed in their migratory patterns, climate change or not.

From: berkshires-bounces@lists.orionsociety.org [mailto:berkshires-bounces@lists.orionsociety.org] On Behalf Of Erik Hoffner
Sent: Monday, March 12, 2012 5:58 PM
To: berkshires
Subject: [Berkshire Grassroots] We have singing spring peepers! And poetry

We have spring peepers singing in Great Barrington! The first verified report was filed by Luke Pryjma last night, March 11th, on the very same day that Cynthia Grippaldi predicted.

So that means that Cynthia has won the 2012 Spring Peeper Stampede! She was nearly flawless in her prediction, saying that the first peeps would be heard on March 11 at 6:30 pm (this is 20 days earlier than last year, for those keeping track of global weirding). Salamanders must therefore be sallying forth as well. Watch out on any upcoming warm, wet nights we get.

Both she and Luke will get free subscriptions to Orion for their observation/prediction. Plus bragging rights, of course.

If we can