Edna Duffy reports:
Yesterday and today [Michael and I] saw a Peregrine Falcon sitting in the tree below the ravens’ nest.
We saw one raven on the lawn on Monday, no ravens on Tuesday and today we saw both ravens on the hill away from the nest.
We watched the peregrine actually dive-bomb both ravens about 100 feet from the nest and then return to the tree below the nest. Recent post on the ravens’ nest is here.
Thanks, Edna — this has happened before….
The Snowy is perched on a railing on the Marsh Discovery Trail, visible from the Transco Trail.
Can probably be seen from the western spur of the Turnpike if you are a passenger… Photo above taken from Transco Trail with a 400mm lens, highly cropped.
(Thanks to the NJMC’s Drew McQuade for pointing out the bird.)
Allan Sanford reports:
“The Killdeer are stacking up on Disposal Road already. Started seeing them a few days ago.”
(Thanks, Al!) (A sure sign of spring!)
Don’t birding class visited DeKorte Park last week; highlights included a Bald Eagle.
Don Torino, who will be leading two Birding for Beginners Classes for Bergen County Audubon at DeKorte Park next month, addresses the age-old question “What Exactly Is Birding?” in the his latest column for the South Bergenite.
Here’s a sample:
Maybe when it comes right down to it there is no way to put birding into just a few sentences.
Maybe the singing of a Wood Thrush or the call of a Killdeer invalidates human language when it comes down to explaining the joy of watching birds in the wild. Perhaps when a new birder witnesses the beauty of a Red-winged Blackbird and the brilliance of a Scarlet Tanager words will not be necessary to explain why we love what we do.
The link is here.
Ray Duffy reports that yesterday:
I had an Eastern Phoebe at Schmidt’s Woods [in Secaucus]. Fox Sparrows and juncos are singing.
I had 1 American Woodcock calling last night at 8:30 at Laurel Hill [in Secaucus] in the woods behind the bathrooms.
(Thanks, Ray! The Meadowlands Commission and Bergen County Audubon Society are holding a Woodcock Walk next Monday at 6:45 p.m. in Laurel Hill, so it’s great to hear that the woodcocks are returning .)
Directions to Schmidt’s Woods and Laurel Hill are in the right-hand column of this blog.
The Meadowlands Commission is pleased to announce that Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus is open to the public again. It had been closed because of all the heavy snows this winter had made footing difficult. (Spring can’t come soon enough.)
Louis Balboa shared these recent Disposal Road shots. including the American Kestrel above.
Not to dwell on the food chain, but can anyone ID what the Northern Harrier is eating? (Thanks, Louis!)
