“Look, Ma! One foot!”

Kick off 2015 the right way with a free guided nature walk along the trails of scenic Mill Creek Marsh.

We are offering a 25-cent reward to the first person to see a Eurasian Green-winged Teal, a dollar (U.S.) to anyone who sees a Gyrfalcon, and a pat on the back to anyone who sees a No-Sho (Northern Shoveler, above).

Details follow. Continue reading →

Ron Shields writes:

What better way to end the year than with a Bald Eagle from the Meadowlands?

For those keeping score at home, this is the Bald Eagle we often see perched on the 1-E Landfill.

Earlier today, it was nice enough to fly toward us, almost directly overhead.

Coming Monday: Ron’s pix of Alice and Al on the nest in Ridgefield Park. And don’t miss Ron’s talk at the Meadowlands Environment Center on Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m.

Joseph Zevoteck wrote: “Got a few pics of a raptor yesterday in Secaucus. It was sitting on a fence next to a bush. I think it had chased something into the bush and was waiting for it to come out. It was a pretty big adult. Pics aren’t so great but …”

We think the bird is a Cooper’s Hawk. (Rick Wright said as much in his comment, we think.) (Thanks, Joseph and Rick!)

Richard Brown writes:

Earlier this week, I saw a pair of falcons at Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus.  When I first got there at noon, one falcon was circling above and one was in the old raven nest.  Soon they flew off towards the river.

About an hour later, I saw them both chase off a Red-tailed Hawk that got close to the nest site.  One of the falcons then perched on a ball field light and I got some photos.

The photo below isn’t very clear, but it looks like the band reads Black 23 / Green AN.  (I was only able to see a Black 2 through my scope while it was perched.)

(Thanks, Richard!) Does this band number sound familiar to anyone?

In conjunction with our latest South Bergenite column, which follows, we are asking members of the Meadowblog community to vote for their favorite Meadowlands bird of 2014. So read the column by the NJMC’s Jim Wright — and then vote!

For local nature lovers, this past year will be remembered as a year of rare and unexpected birds — so many, in fact that we at the N.J. Meadowlands Commission would like you to vote for the 2014 Meadowlands Bird of the Year.

You can credit NJMC Naturalist Mike Newhouse for the idea. “We have seen so many amazing birds this year,” he said recently. “Why don’t we have local nature lovers vote for their favorite?”

 When Mike speaks, I listen.

  We started going over a list of cool birds that had been seen in the past 12 months — in addition to our usual array of terrific birds – and soon realized we had our work cut out for us. Continue reading →