The day dawned hot, muggy and foggy. After a strong overnight thunderstorm, the windows in our house were so steamed up that I could not see the closest feeder that’s barely 10 feet away outside. As the sun started to burn through the haze, I drove to Veteran’s Park in Hamilton, in hopes of findingContinue reading “Birds bathing in high heat and humidity”
Tag Archives: birding
Blue grosbeaks and brown thrashers rule the day
We’re in a hot spell in much of the Eastern half of the country, with temperatures pushing into the high 90s here in central New Jersey. As a result, more birders than usual were out at the Pole Farm in the 7 o’clock hour this morning to beat the heat, as the temperature was onlyContinue reading “Blue grosbeaks and brown thrashers rule the day”
It’s not all birds at the Pole Farm
While birds are my primary photographic target on my outings, I also get to encounter other forms of wildlife, most often white-tailed deer. The fact is, I see deer almost every day, and sadly most of them lay mangled and dead on the side of many of the roads and freeways in my part ofContinue reading “It’s not all birds at the Pole Farm”
American kestrels are settling in nicely at the Pole Farm
The American kestrel is a threatened species, particularly in the Northeastern United States. But we have encouraging news from the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm. Breeding pairs are making the park their home, and we have more kestrels today than we did in previous years. When they’re not hovering over the meadows, looking for prey, theContinue reading “American kestrels are settling in nicely at the Pole Farm”
Baby bluebirds!
My friend Andy and I took our usual route at the Mercer Meadows Pole farm this morning. Piercing the gloom of the heavy overcast conditions was this pair of fledgling Eastern bluebirds huddled on the ground. It’s great to see these and other newly hatched birds, reminding us that avian life is perpetuating itself. We’veContinue reading “Baby bluebirds!”
No mistake: a great birding preserve in Cleveland
Returning to the city of my birth for a weekend visit, I decided to check out the Cleveland Lakefront Nature Preserve and do a bit of birding. It was a great choice. As luck would have it on this beautiful, sunny Saturday morning, the park was full of birds. I had barely walked out ofContinue reading “No mistake: a great birding preserve in Cleveland”
Coming face to face with a Swainson’s thrush
My pledge to finish my goal of visiting the remaining New Jersey counties where I have not gone birding had stagnated, as I had made no progress whatsoever this year. When I discovered early Sunday that I had reason to go to Passaic County to watch a baseball game, I couldn’t pass up the chanceContinue reading “Coming face to face with a Swainson’s thrush”
The catbird’s seat
Catbirds are ubiquitous in my part of the world. With their Mohawk hairdos, they show up at the feeders at home and chatter away in the trees whenever I venture out to the parks nearby and beyond. This morning, the gray catbird pictured above was perched on a bare tree — in the catbird seat,Continue reading “The catbird’s seat”
On a gray day, a black and white warbler shines
One of the pleasures of birding is meeting birders from other territories, and I had that pleasure again Sunday. My birding buddy Laura and I met at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm with a couple from Quebec to whom we’d been introduced by another work colleague. Under an overcast sky and drizzling rain, the fourContinue reading “On a gray day, a black and white warbler shines”
The magnificent blue jay
As ubiquitous as the blue jay is in much of this part of the world, I’ve taken relatively few photos of them in wild, especially when compared with many less common species. Early in my walk this morning at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, I spotted one sitting regally atop a tree and snapped away.Continue reading “The magnificent blue jay”
The Jersey Birder 