Diamondback Terrapins (above) were among the many highlights of this morning's awesome birding cruise. Birds? Yeah, we saw a few — including Least and Caspian Terns, Semipalmated Plovers and Sandpipers, and Yellow-crowned and Black-Crowned Night Heron.
We will post a full list later this week. A big thank you to all who participated. We'll have to do this again next summer!
If you attended the afternoon sessions at Kevin Karlson Day, you probably already know the answer to this teaser.
Here goes: If this very fine-grained hardware-store item were a shorebird, what would it be? (Hint: This is in the “So-called Humor” category.)
Answer below.
We are happy to report that work has begun to repair the Marsh Discovery Trail.
Construction vehicles will be using the Transco Trail, so please be alert and get out of their way as needed.
(Thank you for your patience!)
Herb Houghton took this sandpiper photo on Saturday, during Kevin Karlson Day. What kind is it? (Thanks, Herb!)
Had a Bald Eagle flying high over the Shorebird Pool, and then Teal Pool and beyond this afternoon at 4:20 p.m. or so.
By the time we grabbed a camera, it was almost in North Arlington. Took this pic just for confirmation. It’s far from a great shot, but you can (sort of) see from the white head that it’s much older than the first-year Bald Eagle that we posted on Friday (photographed by Ron Shields). Scroll down for that post.
These two Stilt Sandpipers are working the shoreline of the Shorebird Pool, next to the elevated boardwalk by the Meadowlands Environment Center.
Their rapid sewing-machine feeding motion was the instant diagnostic — one of the tips offered on Kevin Karlson Shorebird Day this past weekend.
Water levels are still down in the Shorebird Pool, with some exposed mud.
We didn't realize just how many species we saw on our two walks on Saturday morning until we collated all our sighting reports and ran them through eBird.org.
The total species (42) and range of species were impressive. Herb Houghton contributed the pics that accompany this report — including Caspian Tern (above), and Black-bellied Plover (With the list). (Thanks, Herb!)
Also wanted to thank Ken Emerson for filing the following report of a Merlin chasing a Belted Kingfisher around 10:15 a.m.: "At the north end of the park, a juvenile (probably) or female (possibly) Merlin pursued a kingfisher. Chattering in alarm, the kingfisher was driven or fled from some 25 feet up in the air to the water. Ignoring the hundreds of Semipalmated Sandpipers in the immediate vicinity, the Merlin stooped at the kingfisher 4-5 times, and each time the kingfisher narrowly escaped by skittering, half-swimming and half-flying, over the water's surface. The chase continued until both birds were out of sight, so I don't know how it ended."
Full list and Herb's pic of Black-bellied Plover follow.
Elisa Ung of The Sunday Record did a nice story on bird-watching and DeKorte Park with Don Torino of Bergen County Audubon, who leads so many of our N.J. Meadowlands Commission/BCAS walks.
Link is here. Don is at left.
Who says we don't post enough Double-crested Cormorant shots?
Dennis Cheesman photographed this guy in the Shorebird Pool at DeKorte. (Thansk, Dennis!)
Although we tried especially hard to get water levels down in the Shorebird Pool in time for Kevin Karlson Day, the larger goal is to provide mudflats to give migrating shorebirds a place to feed or chill out on their long journey south.
Rain not withstanding, we hope to have water levels in the Shorebird Pool lower for the coming week and beyond — great for bird-watching.