Mike Gempp spotted this Red-necked Phalarope this afternoon between 4 and 4:30 in the Shorebird Pool near the transect of the Transco Trail.
Ron Shields was nearby and got these shots. (Thanks, Mike and Ron!)
Let's hope it hangs around.
More on Red-necked Phalaropes here.
Our sister blog, meadowblog.net, has a neat post about these mysterious objects. They were found in a display case in the Little Ferry Public Library.
Do you know what they are?
Link is here.
This weekend could be a great time to visit DeKorte Park. The water levels in the Shorebird Pool have been lowered, and we are getting all sorts of great birds on the edges of the marsh and mudflats.
Among the sightings, a Sora yesterday and 2 Common Moorhens and several Pectoral Sandpipers today.
The trees are budding and many of the flowers are blooming. Ospreys and swallows abound.
Just don't let the Midges bug you, and watch out for ticks.
Map of Shorebird Pool with Common Moorhen location follows.
The folks at Spectrum for Living were nice enough to donate plenty of their custom-made and custom-painted Tree Swallow nesting boxes again this spring (it's their sixth year in a row), and many of the boxes already have tenants in Teal Pool in DeKorte Park.
More about Spectrum for Living in this earlier post, here. (Thanks, Spectrum For Living!)
To mark Earth Day, the Mistretta family quietly went down to Kearny Marsh and did their own annual clean-up.
Pam Mistretta writes: "[Daughter] Olivia made a convert this year–a young woman named Stephanie, who was with a fisherman, saw us picking up trash and joined in the effort; cool! "
She adds:"It's my hope a little parental encouragement will produce future environmentalists."
Great job by all! "Unofficial" clean-ups can work wonders, and to spend a little time on Earth Day giving back to the planet can't be beat.
What's with all those annoying little bugs at DeKorte and elsewhere these days?
They are midges, and the good news is they don't bite.
An earlier post about them here. That's a close-up of Midge "whiskers" on left.