Spring is officially here, whether or not the weather shows it.

Iowa Department of Natural Resources Interpretive Naturalist and Educator Anne Riordan says that seeing what animals are out and about can be a good indicator of when spring has returned. She mentions that she’s heard reports of large murmurations of snow geese returning to the state as they migrate, and has recently seen several songbirds that leave Iowa during the winter. Riordan tells Raccoon Valley Radio that one good indicator that spring is back when watching wildlife, is nature’s clean up crew.

“On the first day of spring, I looked up as I was getting ready to do a hike with my homeschool group and saw two turkey vultures flying overhead. And that is far and away a better sign of spring than robins, because, honestly, we saw robins on our Christmas Bird Count.”

Riordan states that turkey vultures move south in the colder months, because it’s easier to find the food that they like to eat, especially since they’re scavengers that usually eat animals that have already died. She adds that another good sign is the return of ducks, which are another species that moves to warmer regions when winter comes.

When looking for signs of spring that travel by foot rather than by air, frogs are a good indicator that things are warming up. Riordan says that she has observed a few frogs in recent weeks, and is looking forward to seeing what other wildlife becomes more active and returns to the area in the coming weeks.