NJMC Parks Ace Katy Weidel reports:

Long awaited park benches paid by FEMA are here! Crew will install the 13 benches @ Kingsland Overlook, 440 & Shorewalk by this weekend!

Several Croci came out to the greet them.

To see what we might expect in April, we thought we’d look back to some highlights from April 2013.  Just click on the text to link to the post.

April 10: Meadowlands Snipe!

April 11: Amazing Baby Terrapin Pix

April 12: Ron Shields’ Latest: Pheasant, Raptors

April 17: Golden Plover Continues @ Harrier Meadow

April 23: Earth Day Cub Scout Volunteers

April 24: Mill Creek Marsh Glossy Ibis

April 26: Two Eaglets in Ridgefield Park Nest

April 28: Snapping Turtles in Love

Don Torino. who leads many of the Bergen County Audubon Society/Meadowlands Commission walks, also writes a column for wildnewjersey.tv.

His latest is about how now is the perfect time to take up birding.

Here’s a sample.

There is no better time and place to begin the birding life than Spring in New Jersey.

Soon the woods, fields and water will be filled with the wonders of winged migration. Bird life that has stirred the spirit of human kind since the beginning of time will be arriving for the experienced as well as the first time birder to enjoy, appreciate and relish.

Nothing more than a pair of binoculars and a field guide will gain you entry into an incredible and magical world of bird life that you may have never have believed existed right outside the door of your New Jersey home.

The link is here.

Members of the public are invited to bid on six slips in four categories based on depth of water at high tide and access to hose bibs. Maximum boat length is twenty-eight feet in all categories. There is no electrical service at the slips.

 NOTE: During extreme low tides, Category C slips may have boats resting on the riverbed, depending on draft.

Two slips are Category A(W):           9’-13’ deep at high tide + hose bib.
Minimum bid is $1700.

Two slips are Category A:                  9’-13’ deep at high tide, no hose bib.
Minimum bid is $1530.

One slip is      Category B:                  7’-9’ deep at high tide, no hose bib.
Minimum bid is $1080.

One slip is      Category C:                  5’ -7’ deep at high tide, no hose bib.
Minimum bid is $500.

An information session will be held on Thursday, April 10, at 3 p.m. We recommend you attend this meeting though it is not required in order to bid. Bids will be opened Thursday, April 17 at 6:00 pm.

Please visit www.njmeadowlands.gov

(select Public Bids and Notices in the upper left to download bid package.)

If you need further help, contact Lisa Cameron at lisa.cameron@njmeadowlands.gov  or (201) 460-4658.

The William D. McDowell Observatory in DeKorte Park has an exciting month of programming in March — beginning tonight.

Free public access is from 8 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 a South Bergenite column by the NJMC’s Jim Wright about the observatory, click here.

For more information about Observatory programming, click here.

Quincy Magoo has been photographing in the Meadowlands for several years, and is best known for his soft-focus techniques, as evidenced by the Red-breasted Merganser shot above.

“A sharp focus is over-rated in my book,” Quincy says. “I was just lucky to see these guys in Teal Pool last month.”

Quincy studied at Rutgers. A link is here.

Quincy’s photos of a Fox Sparrow and well-camouflaged Long-Eared Owl follow.

Happy April Fools Day!

Chris Takacs reports:

While driving Rt. 7 today, I spotted a Redhead diving in the eastern part of the freshwater Kearny Marsh. Stopped and took photograph from the shore near the sub-station.

Also last evening we had 20+ people in DeKorte for the YHBL, which showed up at approx. 6:30 pm and gave all good looks before heading out to the phragmites for the night.

(Thanks, Chris!)

Natalie Gregorio shared this photo from yesterday evening, with the comment:

“What a beauty.”

Ace birder Chris Takacs reports that last night the bird arrived around 6:30 p.m.

Please park in the first lot, just past the guardhouse.

Bruno Rondi of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission has been photographing some of the beautiful cranes of the district.

We are posting a few of Bruno’ s shots here. No wonder Bruno finds cranes so uplifting. (Thanks, Bruno!)

Happy April Fools Day!

Five years ago, as part of the N.J. Meadowlands Commission’s Oral History Project, we interviewed lots of folks about the region in the old days. We are going to reprint the best of them here, every Tuesday, for 11 weeks. This week: Don Torino, president of the Bergen county Audubon Society.

Long-time Meadowlands resident Don Torino recalls:

I moved to Moonachie from Hackensack when I was twelve years old, Although Moonachie was just a few miles from Hackensack it was a different world.
One of my first Memories was having to stop our car on Redneck Avenue, waiting for the goats and sheep to cross the road.

I also remember  watching horses trotting along Moonachie Ave. as they went into Teterboro Woods to ride along the beautiful trails they had used for many years.

Click “Continue reading …”  to read more of Don’s reminiscences. Continue reading →