We had a wonderful First Sunday walk at DeKorte Park yesterday, with more than 50 participants and more than 40 species of birds. (A big thanks to Marie Longo for the pix, and to everyone who helped with the list.
Dare we say it? Spring might be here… Continue reading
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: Vince Petto.
Lifelong Meadowlands resident Vince Petto spent his childhood hunting, fishing and swimming in the Hackensack River and nearby marshes.
In this audio interview, Petto recounts several colorful tales of boyhood explorations and misadventures.
Petto, who grew up in North Bergen and now lives along the Hackensack River in Secaucus, also discusses the allure of the river and how it has changed for the better over the years.
Excerpts of the interview follow. Continue reading
Several folks have been monitoring the Ridgefield Bald Eagles’ nest.
Everything seemed to be going along fine until recent days, when folks noticed no activity at the nest for hours at a time, or both eagles returning together after being away from the nest, or juvenile Bald Eagles flying in the vicinity.
These are photos from March 27, the last time we know of when Al and Alice traded places in the nest.
Alice flew out just moments before Al flew in. If you look closely, you can see the antenna on Alice’s back (above). The photos below are of Al flying into the nest.
Please let this blog know if you see any activity at the nest.
We had a nifty Sunday morning at DeKorte Park yesterday — with more than 50 participants enjoying a beautiful April morning and sighting more than 40 bird species, including lots of Tree Swallows like this guy, photographed this weekend by Fred Nisenholz.
We’ll print the full list tomorrow.
Mickey Raine was nice enough to pass along some photos of the live rehabbed owls that Jill Bennetta of Flat Rock Brook Nature Center brought to her presentation on the owls of New Jersey at the Meadowlands Environment Center yesterday.
(Thanks, Mickey!)
Snowy Owl at DeKorte Park
Jill Bennetta of Flat Rock Brook Nature Center included photos of seven owls from the Meadowlands in her owl presentation at the MEC yesterday.
We thought we’d share them again here — thanks to Stephen Buckingham, Fred Nisenholz, Muhammad Faizan, Doug Morel and Ron Shields! (The other two were from this blog.)
The New York Times had an informative article about one of our favorite Meadowlands birds, the American Woodcock, recently.
Here’s a sample:
“Woodcocks have unusual adaptations that contribute to their success. The bird’s long bill is flexible at its tip, which allows it to probe deeply and pinch rapidly burrowing worms and insects with great accuracy and little resistance.
“Additionally, the woodcock’s eyes are positioned high on its head, allowing the bird to monitor potential threats even with its bill buried in the mud. This arrangement provides a great defense against predators, and it accounts for the bird’s unusual anatomy. A woodcock’s brain is positioned below its eyes, upside down in its skull.”
The link is here.
This Sunday, There’s a trifecta of nifty nature events in DeKorte Park this Sunday — a free first Sunday of the Month walk at 10 a.m. (including a look at the new Purple Martin condos), a Birding for Beginners class at 1 p.m. (including a free guided walk in which we are sure to see Tree Swallows like the little guy above), and an owl program featuring live owls and pix of Meadowlands owls, beginning at 2 p.m.
Details for the three events follow.
Thanks to the Bergen County Audubon Society and Purple Martin expert Tim Shaheen, DeKorte Park is now home to a condo complex for Purple Martins.
BCAS donated the structure and eight of the dozen gourds, and Shaheen donated his expertise and the other four gourds. NJMC Naturalist Mike Newhouse and colleague Drew McQuade helped with the installation.
Please stop by DeKorte Park and see the new installation. It is located next to the Shorebird Pool between the MEC and the Administration Building.
We will post more about the Purple Martin condo complex soon.
