weather – The Jersey Birder

Backyard birds warm up a cold day

The wind is howling, the thermometer is at 10 degrees, and I’m sticking close to home. Fortunately, I filled the feeders yesterday and today, and the neighborhood birds are flocking to them. My wife and I looked up from our cheesesteak lunches to find a beautiful Northern flicker perched on one of the shepherd’s hooks.Continue reading “Backyard birds warm up a cold day”

The juncos and sparrows performed in the storm

Song sparrow perched on a shepherd's hook beside a tube feeder full of bird seed.

The big storm that cut a wide swath across the country left about 8 inches of new snow on the ground at our home. The storm didn’t seem to bother the dark-eyed juncos and three varieties of sparrows that fed virtually all-day long at the feeders. I expected the house sparrows and wasn’t surprised toContinue reading “The juncos and sparrows performed in the storm”

Snow and sunshine pretty up the Pole Farm

A snow covered bridge leads on a gentle incline past trees on the right and an open field straight ahead.

The Mercer Meadows Pole Farm is a beautiful place in all kinds of weather, but I find it extra special after a decent snowfall. We had back-to-back days of snow over the holiday weekend, and I was able to get to the park Monday. Annoyingly, the gates at the Cold Soil Road parking lot wereContinue reading “Snow and sunshine pretty up the Pole Farm”

Cold-weather birding is back

A red-bellied woodpecker pauses on a tree branch before attacking the bark for bugs.

It was a chilly 13 degrees Fahrenheit when I reached the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm yesterday morning. Even without a breeze, few birds were out half an hour after sunrise. But avian activity picked up as I reached the woods up the central trail. First to appear were several robins flitting about the trees. IContinue reading “Cold-weather birding is back”

An instant bluebird sighting

An Eastern bluebird perches on the left edge of a sign that reads "Park Map." Green tree leaves are in the background.

Rarely does a photo opportunity present itself so quickly as it did this afternoon when I stepped out of my car at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm. After a morning of rain, the sun shone weakly through an overcast sky late in the afternoon. I spotted a bird atop the park map sign at theContinue reading “An instant bluebird sighting”

The shot that got away

With another wet, wind-driven storm bearing down on the East Coast, I thought I’d better get out for a bit of birding yesterday morning, as I likely wouldn’t have a chance today. I made only a short visit to the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, where once again I spotted a female Northern harrier perched atopContinue reading “The shot that got away”