The Meadowlands Blog

DeKorte Park on Memorial Day

The park is open on Monday, May 27, but the Meadowlands Environment Center and the Observatory are closed.  Have a great holiday.

Look Out for Snapping Turtles!

This is egg-laying season for turtles, so please be on the lookout.

If you see a Snapping Turtle in the road, please do not try to move it. They bite, and they move much faster at close range than you might think. Never pick one up by the tail -- could damage their spine.

Ron Shields took the photo above -- always a nice result when Ron and wildlife see eye to eye. (Thanks, Ron!)

 

Swallow (and Turtle) Alert

Tis the season for low-flying Tree Swallows and Barn Swallows, so be careful in and around DeKorte Park this weekend.  Please drive slowly!

South Bergenite Story on Skeetkill & Eagle Scout

The South Bergenite has a nice story on the front of its Neighbors section this week about Alek Corradini, who has done so much work at Skeetkill Creek Marsh this year.

The link is here.

Next Thursday: Hummingbird Documentary Screening!

Photo by Bill Stripling

The Meadowlands Commission is pleased to host a free screening of a Bergen County Audubon Society event, the PBS documentary "Hummingbirds: Magic in the Air," on Thursday, May 30 at 7 p.m. in the Meadowlands Environment Center auditorium.

The event will also include information on how to get involved in Audubon’s new citizen science program, Hummingbirds At Home. 

 

In the meantime, would love to post a photo of a hummingbird taken in the Meadowlands if anyone has a good one....

More information on Thursday night's documentary follows.

Snowy Egret @ Mill Creek Marsh

Mill Creek Marsh just might be the best place to photograph Snowy Egrets, with those wonderful yellow feet atop those old Atlantic White Cedar stumps. Took this on Tuesday's walk.

Little Blue Heron Walk Is Cancelled

Due to the fact that we have not seen the Little Blue Heron today, and the possibility of heavy rains, we are canceling today's 4 p.m. walk at Harrier Meadow.

Alice the Eagle over Losen Slote Again...

Always great to see Alice, one of our wonderful local Bald Eagles. Dennis Cheeseman took this shot at Losen Slote Park in Little Ferry on Tuesday.

How do we know it's Alice?  It's double-banded, it has that missing feather (or it doesn't have that missing feather), and it appears to be looking out for Al (her mate).

If you turn the blog over, you can see the transmitter on her back. (Thanks, Dennis!)

Little Blue Heron Walk Is On -- Weather Permitting

We plan to look for the Little Blue Heron this afternoon from 4 to 5 p.m., weather permitting.  Did not see the bird this morning yet but lots of heavy machinery out there, including Hurricane Sandy repair work.

Please call Jim Wright at 201-469-7349 after 3 p.m. if you plan to attend...

Our Latest Column: DeKorte Park Is on the Mend

Jim Wright, who keeps this blog, also writes a twice-monthly column for the South Bergenite.  His latest is on DeKorte Park's recovery from storm damage:

The past half-year has been trying for all of us who love DeKorte Park.

Late last October, Superstorm Sandy walloped our region and knocked the park for a loop, wrecking boardwalks, destroying trails and causing extensive electrical damage.

I am happy to report that after an unprecedented repair effort – including cleanups by volunteers -- the park is now open again to the public, free of charge, seven days a week.

The recovery efforts have been difficult and expensive, but they have been fruitful. Our gardens are in bloom, and our wonderful butterflies are returning.

Iridescent blue tree swallows are nesting throughout the park, and majestic ospreys, which catch fish in the park’s tidal impoundments, are nesting again nearby. Many trails have reopened. Our educational programming is moving full steam ahead, and our observatory is open for free viewing by the public every Monday and Wednesday night.

The rest of the column, and a status report on our trails, follow.

Little Blue Heron Walk @ Harrier: Thursday Possibility

Chris Takacs reports seeing a Little Blue Heron this a.m. at Harrier Meadow, where he fills feeders. That's his photo, above. (Thanks, Chris!)

The Meadowlands Commission and Bergen County Audubon Society are leading a walk at Harrier Meadow at 4 p.m., weather permitting,  if the bird is still around on Thursday morning...

Will post either way by 10 a.m.   If the bird's still there and you want to participate in the walk, call Jim Wright at 201-469-7349.

Note:  

* Do not show up unannounced; the walk will be scrapped if no one rsvps.

* Harrier Meadow is closed to the public, and Hurricane Sandy repair work involving heavy equipment is underway. Do not trespass.

Don Freiday's Blog: Short-billed Dowitchers

For shorebird junkies, and interesting post from Don Freiday on Short-billed (and Long-billed) Dowitchers. 

From what Don writes, I'm guessing the dowitcher at the left (photographed last week in Harrier Meadow) is a Short-billed.

"In New Jersey, in May, they're ALL Short-billed Dowitchers.

Now I know that's an exageration, but only by a whisker, and yet there have been a high number of reports of Long-billed Dowitcher this spring.

"Having NEVER seen a Long-billed Dowitcher (LBDO) in May in NJ, I have to ask myself, is there something wrong with me?"

The link is here.

Kingsland Overlook Monday Afternoon: Butterflies

We're starting to get more and more butterflies, though nothing like last year by this time, when we were already a week into our Red Admiral invasion.

Had this skipper (Zabulon?), an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail and some Cabbage Whites on Monday afternoon on the Kingsland Overlook. Yikes -- time to get out the butterfly field guides again.

(Also saw a Rose-breasted Grosbeak and a hard-to-diagnose flycatcher.)

For the NABA checklist for DeKorte Park (with frequency and season), click here. Whichever butterfly is pictured above does not appear to be on the list, unless we overlooked something (always a possibility).

Tuesday Teaser Answered

No flies on you guys!  Congrats to everyone who correctly ID'd this guy as a Yellow-crowned Night Heron.

Kudos to all who said it was a Yellow-crowned Night Heron photographed in Secaucus.

Huzzahs to all who ID'd it as Yellow-crowned Night Heron photographed in Secaucus by the Hackensack River.

And a zowee to Mike Gempp, who identified the name of the marsh -- Anderson Creek Marsh.

Congrats to all for a fine job!

See a Cicada? Say Something (To The Record)

Ace environmental reporter Jim O'Neill of The Record writes:

When the 17-year cicadas actually emerge in our North Jersey area, I want to do a follow-up on the story that The Record published last Friday.

If any of you see cicadas, please send me a quick email about how many, location, etc? That would be incredibly helpful.

Given how warm it was today, I'm thinking the soil temp could have gotten pretty close to the magic 64 degrees and we could have them emerge tonight or tomorrow night. Thanks for any help!! My email is oneillj@northjersey.com

Here's a link to Friday's story:
http://bit.ly/YOqCV5

 

Today's Mill Creek Marsh Walk

We had a very entertaining walk at Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus this morning, with 34 species of birds and 22 varieties of human. 

Bird of the day: Eastern Kingbird?

Some shorebirds moving in, and warblers moving out.

Full list later in the week.

Tuesday Teaser 052103

Who dis? In which Meadowlands town was it likely taken?

Baltimore Oriole Building a Nest

 

 

 

 

 

                                       
Ron Shields has been watching a Baltimore Oriole building her nest in DoKorte Park.  Here are some of the highlight pix.  (Thanks, Ron!)

Two more pix follow.

Tuesday: Our Next Free Walk

Mill Creek Marsh is one of our very favorite spots, and this time of year is especially delightful -- we just never know what to expect.

We could see anything from unusual shorebirds to ducks to egrets to Bald Eagles, as well as those centuries-old Atlantic White Cedar stumps.

Join the Meadowlands Commission and Bergen County Audubon Society for a free guided walk tomorrow (Tuesday) morning at 10.

Full details follow.

What's Going On Here?

First, on a Losen Slote Park walk in Little Ferry earlier this month, we found a very mysterious, hard-to-explain birdie  in the meadow (pictured at right).

The very next weekend -- exactly one week later -- while viewing the Bald Eagle Nest from nearby Ridgefield on our annual Mother's Day Walk, we found a related species.

By the observation area was the racquet pictured at left, which we believe is from either a miniature motmot
or part of a miniature tennis set.

Put the two photos together and... the game is afoot.

The point is simple: Just never know what you'll find in the Meadowlands, or what the next tide will bring in.

Dennis Cheeseman's Latest from DeKorte Park

Dennis Cheeseman took this photo of a Baltimore Oriople this week at DeKorte. Images of male and female Redstart follow. (Thanks, Dennis!)