Without a car for a few days recently, I was unable to get to the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, at least not without some difficulty. So I improvised and headed on foot through the Rider University campus near home to the Loveless Nature Preserve. The preserve is a mostly wooded area that straddles the oldContinue reading “For birding, it helps to take a 360-degree view”
Author Archives: Dan
Getting the right shot of the tricky Eastern towhee
The Eastern towhee was one of the first non-backyard birds that caught my attention as I started birding regularly at the Mercer Meadows Pole farm three years ago. I first heard the bright “twee!” call one April morning three years ago, and it would be a few visits more before I spotted one about 10Continue reading “Getting the right shot of the tricky Eastern towhee”
Digging the Dickcissels in our midst
For the past several weeks, Dickcissels have been frequenting the grassland fields of the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, and it has been a thing of wonder. Initially, I wondered if I’d ever see the bird. My Merlin sound app kept hearing the bird, but I could never spot it. I’d see reports of Dickcissel sightingsContinue reading “Digging the Dickcissels in our midst”
Recommended bird feeder: The Squirrel-Buster Plus
Throughout time, Man and Squirrel have uneasily co-existed in a Hegelian dialectic battle for supremacy in controlling access to bird feeders. It is a noble struggle for both creatures, thesis and antithesis, with the fortunes of the birds hanging in the balance. We first got serious about feeding the birds about 10 years ago whenContinue reading “Recommended bird feeder: The Squirrel-Buster Plus”
My little friend, the song sparrow without a tail
A week ago last Sunday, I was walking on a paved portion of the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail through the main fields up from the Pole Farm parking lot when I stopped to snap a photo of a song sparrow. But something was odd about it. When I brought the photo up on screen at home, IContinue reading “My little friend, the song sparrow without a tail”
Princeton students win World Series of Birding
It’s a rare occasion when my work life and birding hobby converge, but that’s what happened last month when I covered a group of Princeton University students competing in New Jersey Audubon’s World Series of Birding. I had met two of the members of the team on a bird walk they had arranged through theContinue reading “Princeton students win World Series of Birding”
At last, the yellow warbler emerges
For the last three weeks or so, every time I set foot on a particular trail at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, I’ve heard a yellow warbler. And I do mean heard, not seen. This bird, and I suspect it is just the one, has continually frustrated me because I have not been able toContinue reading “At last, the yellow warbler emerges”
The thrill of a new bird sighting
Because of work commitments, my time in the woods and fields has been limited of late, so I’m extra appreciative when new birds come into view. I spotted my first blue grosbeak on May 17 at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, and the bird seems to be hanging around as fellow birders spotted it thisContinue reading “The thrill of a new bird sighting”
Doing my part on Global Big Day 2022
This was my first year of formal birding on Global Big Day, and I’m pleased to report that I logged 45 species at five locations and added four birds to my life list. I started the day at my favorite spot, the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm near home. I counted 28 species on a grayContinue reading “Doing my part on Global Big Day 2022”
The one where the killdeer twerks at me
One of the joys of my first year of the COVID epidemic was discovering a pair of killdeers that nested in a creek a short walk from my back door. It was a joy again a few days ago to see that another killdeer couple has set up housekeeping in the same area, along theContinue reading “The one where the killdeer twerks at me”
The Jersey Birder 