… about this morning's First Sunday of the Month nature walk at Laurel Hill County Park in Secaucus.
   Twenty birders got great views of the entire family of nesting Common Ravens, plus dozens of other birds, a Green Darner or two, and at least three butterfly species. 
   Full report later this week.

    An American White Pelican was reported Saturday 7 p.m. in the impoundments west of Laurel Hill Park.
   The JerseyBirds report by Tim Lenz of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology said that he and two colleagues "all saw it well through scopes and Marshall [Iliff] got distant images. The small but prominent bill process eliminates Old World white pelicans from contention."
  Tim and his colleagues looked again for the bird today unsuccessfully, and it was not seen during today's Laurel Hill nature walk.

   Looks like May is off to a great start, but take note: If you're driving on any of the backroads in the Meadowlands, look out for baby Killdeer. These tiny guys are zipping across the road in semi-clueless fashion.
   Just think, a couple of weeks ago they looked like this  (four Killdeer eggs are pictured below… 

     The Laurel Hill Walk on Sunday at 10 a.m. promises to be nifty — we checked out the Common Ravens' nest on Friday, and it appears to be a full house.
    We are unsure how many nestlings there are, but there have been reports of at least three.
   The nest is so crowded that one of the parents sits on the ledge outside the nest. We'll have spotting scopes on Sunday so everyone will get great views.
   Details on the walk follow — be sure to rsvp.

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    The William D. McDowell Observatory in  DeKorte Park begins a new month of programming next Monday night with free public programs at 8:30 and 9:30 p.m. — weather permitting, of course. Note the later starting times.
   Dress for the weather; with the dome open, you are basically outside.
   Each evening two major objects in the night sky will be viewed, plus one or two other celestial objects or events depending on the observing conditions. 
   Pictured at left is the observatory's state-of-the-art telescope with a 20-inch mirror, housed beneath a retractable dome.
   The telescope, one of the largest in the area, is equipped with cameras to record the stars and planets. Special filters block light pollution.
    For detailed information and the complete May schedule, click here.

  There's a great air show going on above the Shorebird Pool (outside the Meadowlands Environment Center) in DeKorte Park these days.  It's open to the public, free of charge.
   On Wednesday afternoon we had close-up views of Forster's Terns (above and left), Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows and Ospreys.
   If you want to see some lightning-fast birds, try following some of these guys as they whisk around the tidal impoundment.
  At least the Forster's Terns make enough noise for your eyes to catch up with them.
   When you photograph these terns (and the photo isn't a total blur), you begin to appreciate how aerodynamic (and awesome) they are.
    The Ospreys, on the other hand, love to hover above the water. almost in slow motion sometimes. We had two Ospreys fishing at once on Wednesday afternoon.

     NJMC Naturalists Mike Newhouse and Brett Bragin took delivery last week of two new big Barn Owl boxes, donated by Scott Gunther and Wild Birds Unlimited of Paramus.
     "We certainly have Barn Owls in the Meadowlands, and we'll put these to good use," says Newhouse.
    We had several Barn Owl sightings earlier this year, including the low-profile pair at left. (Thanks, Scott and Wild Birds Unlimited of Paramus!)