Ranking one’s favorite photos is a difficult task, akin to ranking one’s favorite desserts, cars or children. While over the span of a year I take scores of clunkers, I also look back fondly on the keepers. My list of favorites is a mish-mash: some make the list for their technical quality, others rate becauseContinue reading “My 10 favorite bird photos of 2024”
Tag Archives: nature
Boring story: Why our maple tree has holes
A few weeks ago, we noticed that there were holes bored into the trunk of the maple tree in our back yard. That has to be the work of woodpeckers, I figured. Some of the holes seemed large enough to swallow any of the downy woodpeckers that visit our suet feeder daily. The holes alsoContinue reading “Boring story: Why our maple tree has holes”
A no-owl Noel. But there were songs.
Merry Christmas to all! I hope your holiday is a happy one. After wrapping a few gifts yesterday afternoon, I went to the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm and joined a few other photographers on an owl stakeout. I spent 90 minutes awaiting the arrival of short-eared owls. They didn’t show. But amusingly, as I wasContinue reading “A no-owl Noel. But there were songs.”
Short-eared owls are flying again at the Pole Farm
While we have yet to experience the packed-parking-lot frenzy of last winter, short-eared owls are back at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm and starting to show themselves before the sun goes down. The “shorties” have been in the park for several weeks. Birders have reported seeing them before dawn and after sunset. We’ve been waitingContinue reading “Short-eared owls are flying again at the Pole Farm”
A winter solstice treat: birds in the snow
With each passing year, it seems we’re getting less and less snow than we did previously. We got a surprising two inches of the white stuff overnight, and I gleefully headed out to the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, anticipating some bird-in-snow shots. While it seemed most of the birds decided to sleep in at theContinue reading “A winter solstice treat: birds in the snow”
Adding to my life list in Europe
One of our sons had a meeting in Prague, so my wife and I booked flights to join him afterward on our first trip to Europe as a couple. I knew the trip would mostly be about seeing the sights (and they were spectacular) so I didn’t bring my big Sigma zoom lens that IContinue reading “Adding to my life list in Europe”
The outdoor avian portrait studio
Like life, birds move pretty fast. But every so often they park in place, giving us photographers an opportunity to compose and take their portraits. I had two cracks at it today, this first day of December. As I was making my way back to my car this morning at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm,Continue reading “The outdoor avian portrait studio”
Savannah sparrows speak to me (and I am corrected)
The grasslands in the fields at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm are prime habitat for Savannah sparrows, and I never tire of taking photos of them. This morning, I found the one topping this post in a tree at the history exhibit for the AT&T radio telephone years that spanned much of the 20th century.Continue reading “Savannah sparrows speak to me (and I am corrected)”
A close encounter with a red-tailed hawk (and more)
My birding buddy Jim and I have walked the trails of the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm many times, but today was the first time we pulled into the parking lot almost simultaneously. Within a few minutes, a rare treat was in store. We and other regular Pole farmers have been grousing of late about theContinue reading “A close encounter with a red-tailed hawk (and more)”
Getting a good look at a long-eared owl
Owls have long fascinated humans, as attested by the ancient Greeks, who linked the birds to the goddess of wisdom, Athena. For those of us living in the modern world, owls remain a symbol of wisdom themselves. I’ve had few opportunities to gaze into their soulful eyes, and I recently got the opportunity to seeContinue reading “Getting a good look at a long-eared owl”
The Jersey Birder 