Nice story on the web by Environmental Writer Jim O'Neill on the Jersey City Peregrine Falcon family.

Link is here.

Our latest "Focus on the Meadowlands" on the wildnewjersey.tv blog features a bug-eyed Common Muskrat (we have been getting complaints that we don't post enough muskrat photos), the Ridgefield Park Mama Bald Eagle, complete with transmitter, and a DeKorte Redstart that sat still for half of a second.

The link is here.

The soil is ready, the plants are here (or almost here), and the new native plant garden for birds and butterflies is about to take root.

Planting should occur over the next few days.

Funding for the new garden comes from the Meadowlands Marsh Hawks World Series of Birding fund-raising effort, and from the Bergen County Audubon Society. The Meadowlands Commission paid for any additional plantings that were needed.

In addition, BCAS folks dropped off a truckload of native plants for the garden earlier this week. The BCAS'ative plant project is a joint venture with the Teaneck Garden club. BCAS planted 500 native shrubs at the Garden Club,  and they have been caring for them until the BCAS can move them to conservation projects like the one at DeKorte.

The Meadowlands Commission's Parks Department provided the design for the new garden (sketch of the garden's design is here).

Maybe the garden will be part of next year's annual native plant walk.

A big thank you to everyone who made this garden possible!

Ron Shields reports:

[Last week], an adult Spotted Sandpiper seemed extremely vigilant and alert from a perch atop a pipe along Disposal Road 

The rest of the images are the reasons why. 

I counted two chicks but there could be more.