A stunning photo of an immature Yellow-Crowned Night Heron captured first prize in the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission’s 2009 Amateur Photo Contest, “The Meadowlands: 40 Years of Progress,” the NJMC announced today.

   The winning photo, and other contest entries, will be on display from Dec. 2 to Jan. 3 at the NJMC’s Flyway Gallery.

    Kearny resident Ronald Shields’ photo, “Out on a Limb" (above), placed first out of more than 100 entries received over the past three months. His image captures a young night heron surveying the Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus from its perch on a tree branch jutting over the water.  

  Laura Frazer of Montclair took second prize for “Reflections,” a beautiful photo of the gazebo and walkway reflected in a tidal impoundment at DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst.

   Ernie Fragetta of Lyndhurst won third prize for “Beautiful Lyndhurst Meadowlands,” which captures a majestic great egret flying across the marshes. The three winners will receive prizes of $300, $150 and $75.  

   Click "Continue reading…" to see the other two winning photos and for more information on the contest.

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    If you are looking to do the Christmas Bird Count this year, there is now one central listing of the dates and locations for each circle in New Jersey. Here's the link.

   For a link to the National Audubon site, which has more about the Christmas Count's history and procedures, results of past counts, etc., click here.

     This guy has been tooling around the tidal impoundments at DeKorte, but he never sits still for a portrait. We managed to sneak up on him on Friday to get this one shot. Needless to say, we heard him before we saw him.

   How do we know it's a male?

     More on Belted Kingfishers here.