Season has brought forth a baby boom of wildlife Ernie Cowan Outdoors It’s been quite a spring season for free-range children. Just the other day I was sitting in a shady patch on my driveway working on a project when two toddlers suddenly ran right up to me. I could have picked them up. A moment later there were two more, followed, I was happy to see, by a concerned adult. Seeing me, papa sounded an assembly call and the four little quail youngsters resembling walnuts with legs, dashed back to the protection of the adult bird. The brief encounter brought joy to my heart and a big grin to my face. The innocence of the little chicks and their curiosity had brought them to within inches of me. While the world has been gnashing teeth over social and health issues, nature has endured, and this spring at least, seems to be thriving. We never get enough rain in Southern California, but this year we were blessed with abundant and well-spaced storms that pro...