Diamondback Terrapin
This Tuesday’s BCAS nature walk at Mill Creek Point Park in Secaucus proved extremely fruitful. Mickey Raine photographed an abundance of species.
Don’t forget our next guided walk is Sunday, July 3, at DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst, from 10 a.m. to noon. The walk will focus on birds and butterflies. For more information contact greatauk4@gmail.com or call 201-230-4983.
Double Crested Cormorant
Double Crested Cormorant
Great Black-backed Gull
Marsh Wren
Egret
Red-tailed hawk
According to the 1969 hit song by Tony Joe White, “Poke Salad Annie,” Annie would go down to the truck patch and pick a mess of poke salad, but unfortunately later in the song a gator eats her Granny. Despite Granny’s bad luck, Pokeweed is an amazing native plant that is an important food source for our birds and should have a place in our wildlife habitats.
Pokeweed (Phytolacca Americana), also known as Pokeberry, Pokeroot and Pigeon Berry, is an herb native to New Jersey which grows just about anywhere, from waste areas to any backyard that has birds passing through it. It is a good bet that if you walked out to your backyard or took a stroll down the corner right now that you would find some Pokeweed growing around, in between or next to something in your neighborhood. I first thought it gots its name Pokeweed because it pokes its head everywhere in my backyard, between my milkweeds, in my honeysuckle you name it. But it is okay with me and especially okay with many bird species .