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birdfeedingThis haiku collection is spillover from the January 7, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. (I oopsed a book again.) It was inspired by a prompt from scrubjayspeaks. It also fills the "WILD CARD: The Peacock Fan" square in my 1-1-25 card for the Public Domain Bingo fest. This collection has been sponsored by Anthony Barrette.
Around the Year in 50 Birds
-- a haiku collection
a bush warbler
returns from its winter home --
its song breaks the ice
* * *
white herons fishing
in the river give the sign:
water is flowing
* * *
the swans on their way
north to Siberia stop
to rest in Japan
* * *
flocks of bullfinches
in weeping forsythia
bring warmer weather
* * *
the peacock fan spreads
beauty and fertility,
opening in spring
* * *
warbling white-eyes
flock to sip from the flowers
of plums and cherries
* * *
a singing goldcrest
amidst the cherry blossoms --
such fleeting beauty
* * *
the barn swallows swoop
through the air as they snatch up
newly-hatched insects
* * *
wings in the willows
flit -- flitter -- almost hidden --
ah! it's a greenfinch!
* * *
in the open fields,
the green pheasants come to bring
us prosperity
* * *
a skylark gathers
milk-vetch and dandelion
for lining its nest
* * *
red-flowering quince
conceals the meadow bunting
except for his song
* * *
sacred lotus buds
rise from the muddy marsh where
little egrets wade
* * *
the cuckoo bird sings,
longing for his lover in
the heat of summer
* * *
cormorants diving
for sweetfish in the river:
the taste of summer
* * *
pairs of blue robins
nest in the crape myrtle trees,
feeding their hatchlings
* * *
a water rail wades
where thickets of roses ring
the drying marshes
* * *
the northern lapwings
forage the blooming fields of
morning-star lilies
* * *
a flock of great tits
make black-and-white dashes in
the red peonies
* * *
a streak of color --
a blue-and-white flycatcher
in the China rose 20
* * *
moorhens are looking
for water in a field of
opium poppies
* * *
high in the bindweed,
a pair of loyal doves have
built their nest of peace
* * *
in the plum orchard,
the crows have fledged their offspring,
proud of their spread wings
* * *
in the dying vines,
a white-cheeked starling hunts for
the seeds of snake gourds
* * *
flocks of common snipe
wander the rice paddies as
the stems turn to gold
* * *
best hurry to pick
the pomegranates before
siskins eat them all
* * *
the wild geese fly,
honking, across the round face
of the autumn moon
* * *
even the swift shrike
cuts short the lives of its prey
at butchering time
* * *
the little quail strolls
in her autumn kimono
under red maples
* * *
Japanese waxwings
rustle among the blooms of
the cotton-roses
* * *
brown-eared bulbuls fly
through the heavenly bamboo:
better times will come
* * *
pink resting on pink:
the long-tailed rosefinches are
perching on cockscomb
* * *
Daurian redstarts
in bittersweet bushes and
a bittersweet time
* * *
rustic buntings hunt
the last of the insects from
the final asters
* * *
drumming on oak trees,
the white-backed woodpeckers claim
victory at last
* * *
in the crimson leaves
of the Japanese creeper,
dusky thrushes call
* * *
hardy begonias
hold up the golden pheasants:
beauty and power
* * *
in their barnyard pen,
the roosters crow up the sun
later each morning
* * *
chrysanthemums lean
over the garden pond where
a green-winged teal lands
* * *
amidst fringed pinks and
balloon flowers, gray wagtails
warn of the winter
* * *
crying, the plovers
run along the beaches, but
the sea is frozen
* * *
over the harbor,
black-headed gulls call after
the boats that have gone
* * *
in frozen marshes,
ducks lose their mates in the reeds,
quacking frantically
* * *
a grove of pine trees
protects ungrateful Scops owls
from the falling snow
* * *
a northern goshawk
discovers how to balance
courage with kindness
* * *
the tree peonies
have sheltered the winter wrens
from the chilling winds
* * *
a crane spreads its wings,
flapping, and the white feathers
fly like flakes of snow
* * *
a single falcon
soars over the frosty fields
searching for its prey
* * *
in a frozen land,
nothing moves but the sparrows
scratching after seeds
* * *
the Mandarin ducks,
defiantly happy, wait
for the daffodils
*************************
Notes:
This collection is long, so its notes appear elsewhere.
scrubjayspeaks. It also fills the "WILD CARD: The Peacock Fan" square in my 1-1-25 card for the Public Domain Bingo fest. This collection has been sponsored by Anthony Barrette.Around the Year in 50 Birds
-- a haiku collection
a bush warbler
returns from its winter home --
its song breaks the ice
* * *
white herons fishing
in the river give the sign:
water is flowing
* * *
the swans on their way
north to Siberia stop
to rest in Japan
* * *
flocks of bullfinches
in weeping forsythia
bring warmer weather
* * *
the peacock fan spreads
beauty and fertility,
opening in spring
* * *
warbling white-eyes
flock to sip from the flowers
of plums and cherries
* * *
a singing goldcrest
amidst the cherry blossoms --
such fleeting beauty
* * *
the barn swallows swoop
through the air as they snatch up
newly-hatched insects
* * *
wings in the willows
flit -- flitter -- almost hidden --
ah! it's a greenfinch!
* * *
in the open fields,
the green pheasants come to bring
us prosperity
* * *
a skylark gathers
milk-vetch and dandelion
for lining its nest
* * *
red-flowering quince
conceals the meadow bunting
except for his song
* * *
sacred lotus buds
rise from the muddy marsh where
little egrets wade
* * *
the cuckoo bird sings,
longing for his lover in
the heat of summer
* * *
cormorants diving
for sweetfish in the river:
the taste of summer
* * *
pairs of blue robins
nest in the crape myrtle trees,
feeding their hatchlings
* * *
a water rail wades
where thickets of roses ring
the drying marshes
* * *
the northern lapwings
forage the blooming fields of
morning-star lilies
* * *
a flock of great tits
make black-and-white dashes in
the red peonies
* * *
a streak of color --
a blue-and-white flycatcher
in the China rose 20
* * *
moorhens are looking
for water in a field of
opium poppies
* * *
high in the bindweed,
a pair of loyal doves have
built their nest of peace
* * *
in the plum orchard,
the crows have fledged their offspring,
proud of their spread wings
* * *
in the dying vines,
a white-cheeked starling hunts for
the seeds of snake gourds
* * *
flocks of common snipe
wander the rice paddies as
the stems turn to gold
* * *
best hurry to pick
the pomegranates before
siskins eat them all
* * *
the wild geese fly,
honking, across the round face
of the autumn moon
* * *
even the swift shrike
cuts short the lives of its prey
at butchering time
* * *
the little quail strolls
in her autumn kimono
under red maples
* * *
Japanese waxwings
rustle among the blooms of
the cotton-roses
* * *
brown-eared bulbuls fly
through the heavenly bamboo:
better times will come
* * *
pink resting on pink:
the long-tailed rosefinches are
perching on cockscomb
* * *
Daurian redstarts
in bittersweet bushes and
a bittersweet time
* * *
rustic buntings hunt
the last of the insects from
the final asters
* * *
drumming on oak trees,
the white-backed woodpeckers claim
victory at last
* * *
in the crimson leaves
of the Japanese creeper,
dusky thrushes call
* * *
hardy begonias
hold up the golden pheasants:
beauty and power
* * *
in their barnyard pen,
the roosters crow up the sun
later each morning
* * *
chrysanthemums lean
over the garden pond where
a green-winged teal lands
* * *
amidst fringed pinks and
balloon flowers, gray wagtails
warn of the winter
* * *
crying, the plovers
run along the beaches, but
the sea is frozen
* * *
over the harbor,
black-headed gulls call after
the boats that have gone
* * *
in frozen marshes,
ducks lose their mates in the reeds,
quacking frantically
* * *
a grove of pine trees
protects ungrateful Scops owls
from the falling snow
* * *
a northern goshawk
discovers how to balance
courage with kindness
* * *
the tree peonies
have sheltered the winter wrens
from the chilling winds
* * *
a crane spreads its wings,
flapping, and the white feathers
fly like flakes of snow
* * *
a single falcon
soars over the frosty fields
searching for its prey
* * *
in a frozen land,
nothing moves but the sparrows
scratching after seeds
* * *
the Mandarin ducks,
defiantly happy, wait
for the daffodils
*************************
Notes:
This collection is long, so its notes appear elsewhere.
