We’re nearing the peak of fall migration, yet I found few warblers this weekend. Instead, I was treated to a variety of sparrows and — best of all — had as close an encounter with a Northern harrier as one could hope to have. As I made my way up the central trail at theContinue reading “Sparrows, a harrier and an unexpected owl highlight the weekend”
Tag Archives: Mercer Meadows
Blue jays are magnificent
I guess it’s human nature that we value our common birds less than we do the uncommon or rare birds that come by. I was thinking while walking the Pole Farm trails yesterday that one such bird is the blue jay, common if not ubiquitous in the neighborhoods and the wilds of the United StatesContinue reading “Blue jays are magnificent”
Harriers and newly arriving sparrows usher in October
We flipped the calendar to October today, and the birding population in some ways is itself flipping. Take sparrows for example. The old standby house sparrows and song sparrows are still here while their migrant cousins begin to arrive. I spotted my first swamp sparrow of the season at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm onContinue reading “Harriers and newly arriving sparrows usher in October”
A one-bird day at Abbott Marshlands
The Nor’easter finally churned away from New Jersey, and the rain fizzled out early this afternoon as I was on my way to John A. Roebling Park at Abbott Marshlands. I’d seen recent reports on e-Bird of Northern shovelers and hoped I’d find one. No such luck. After better than 48 hours of rain, theContinue reading “A one-bird day at Abbott Marshlands”
Starlings have surprising charms
Considered pests by many, European starlings won’t likely to top anyone’s favorite birds list beyond the Shakespeare fan who brought them to the United States in 1890. I like Shakespeare but I’m less enthused by starlings. I dismissively refer to them as “Euro trash,” but I usually hold a beat and then scold myself beingContinue reading “Starlings have surprising charms”
Adding birdsong audio to e-Bird just got easier
Our friends at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology have done it again: given us birders a faster and easier way to participate in the citizen science of the e-Bird mobile app. The lab announced at the beginning of the month that sound clips of bird songs and calls can be uploaded directly to e-Bird fromContinue reading “Adding birdsong audio to e-Bird just got easier”
A little extra effort finds a palm warbler
I arrived at the Pole Farm a few minutes before the 6:44 a.m. sunrise today, and other than blue jays and catbirds I saw few birds on the trail loop I walked. As I returned to the parking lot, I passed my car and walked past the lot to see if any birds might beContinue reading “A little extra effort finds a palm warbler”
Surprise! It’s a dickcissel
One of the things I love about birding is its unpredictability. You get skunked one day, strike gold(finches) the next. Today was one of the latter, when my pal Jim and I made three stops in and around Princeton. The first and primary stop was the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, and we had near instantContinue reading “Surprise! It’s a dickcissel”
Seeing old friends before the migrants arrive
Fall migrants are slowly beginning to arrive in my part of the world. Meantime, I’ve been savoring seeing the birds who’ve been gracing our fields and forests over the spring and summer before they, too, head south. This morning at the Pole Farm, I was pleased to observe a few common yellowthroats. All but oneContinue reading “Seeing old friends before the migrants arrive”
Migration joy: a Northern harrier appears at the Pole Farm
I’d been waiting for the moment. As my friend Jim and I worked our way up the central path from the Pole Farm parking lot, I looked to my left and spotted a big blob far across the field. Sitting atop a small tree was a Northern harrier, as I quickly concluded by looking throughContinue reading “Migration joy: a Northern harrier appears at the Pole Farm”