Brandon Caswell reported Common Redpolls at Losen Slote late last week — "Just past that super mess of fallen trees, further back, the birch trees start, flying between stands of birch with Am. Goldfinches feeding."
(Thanks, Brandon — sorry for the tardy post, things have been a bit hectic!)
We had an amazingly good turnout for our Disposal Road walk on Sunday — especially since visibility was somewhere between consomme and pea soup.
We'll try to post a list later in the week — including birds we saw on Sunday's cleanup in DeKorte Park as well.
Bird pictured at left, from Sunday's Mr. Magoo Disposal Road walk, is thought to be an American Kestrel.
A big thank you to all who participated in either or both of Sunday's events sponsored by the Meadowlands Commission and the Bergen County Audubon Society.
Photo of Shoveler from the cleanup follows.
Another big thank you to the folks who helped out at Sunday's cleanup. We had 30 people sprucing up the park and getting it ready for a limited reopening of some sections.
Regina Geoghan took some great shots of the folks at the cleanup.
The link to her photos (just click "slideshow on right) is here.
Later in the week we will post some pix of some of the weird things found during the cleanup.
We will also post two more cleanups for this month once the times are confirmed.
We thought we might be able to look ahead to December 2012 by looking back at last December. Here are some highlights from a year ago:
Dec. 7: Don Torino on Losen Slote Creek Park
Dec. 13: Canvasbacks are Back at DeKorte
Dec. 13: Sunset Park
Dec. 19: Christmas Bird Count Highlights
Dec. 22: Ice Crystals Up-Close
Dec. 29: Glaucous Gull at DeKorte
Our Third-Tuesday-of-the-Month Walk will be at the recently reopened Mill Creek Marsh on Dec. 18 at 10 a.m. It will be great to birding the site instead of cleaning up storm damage and debris there. We should see plenty of Green-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers and other ducks — plus a raptor or two.
Mill Creek is a beautiful place any time of year, a wonder marsh with the Manhattan skyline in the distance.
The William D. McDowell Observatory 
in DeKorte Park begins a new month of programming tonight (Monday, Dec. 3).
Free public access is from 7 to 10 on Monday and Wednesday nights this month — weather permitting, of course.
Dress for the weather; with the dome open, you are basically outside.
Each evening at least two major objects in the night sky will be viewed, plus one or two other celestial objects or events depending on the observing conditions.
For more information about free public viewing nights and to check out the observatory's website, click here.
For a South Bergenite column by the NJMC's Jim Wright about the observatory, click here.