The Meadowlands Blog

That Mystery Moth and More

Greg Miller ID'd this mystery moth photographed on Thursday by Regina Geoghan as a Nessus Sphinx Moth, and it sure looks like he is right.

Turns out that another species of diurnal moth (below) was in the DeKorte Butterfly Garden the same day, and photographed by Sandy Sorkin. This guy appears to be a Hummingbird Clear-winged Moth.

We'll look for both these guys on our Butterfly Beginners Walk, beginning with a short talk and slide show at 1 p.m. tomorrow  (Sunday).

Great blog post on diurnal moths by moth expert/author Seabrooke Leckie is here.

Butterfly Walk Preview

Did a 30-minute walk through prime butterfly areas at DeKorte at lunch on Friday as a preview of Sunday, and I found: Monarch, Cabbage White, Orange Sulphur, Pearl Crescent (above), Red Admiral, Painted Lady (below) Summer Azure and Wild Indigo Duskywing. (Eight species.)  Other species have been seen recently as well.

Let's hope we are as fortunate on Sunday.

 

 

Mystery Moth

Regina Geoghan got this shot of a moth at the Butterfly Garden in DeKorte Park on Thursday. She thought this one was different from the typical Clear-winged Moths we get. So do we. Any theories?  (Thanks, Regina!)

Our Latest South Bergenite Column: Butterflies!

Jim Wright, who keeps this blog for the Meadowlands Commission, also writes a twice monthly nature column for The South Bergenite. Here is his latest, on Butterfly Month at DeKorte Park.

This Sunday, the Meadowlands Commission is officially kicking off Butterfly Month at DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst with a free “Butterflies for Beginners” talk and walk, but we have been getting ready for months.

Butterflies are beautiful, ephemeral creatures, and you never really know whether it will be a good year for them until spring and summer unfold. But you can take several steps to improve your odds, and -- with the help of the Bergen County Audubon Society -- that’s exactly what we have been doing.

While Jill’s Butterfly Garden just outside the Meadowlands Environment Center in DeKorte Park remains the crown jewel and main attraction for butterfly aficionados, we have been adding all sorts of butterfly-friendly native plants, including milkweed and mountain mint, in the park and nearby Harrier Meadow.

Full story follows.

Tuesday Teaser Answered

Tuesday's Teaser was a toughie -- the answer is Serviceberry. Congrats to all who ID'd the plant correctly.

Don Torino's column on Serviceberry is here.

What We Might See in the Meadowlands in July

As a sneak preview of July 2012 of sorts, we thought we would post some highlights from the blog from July 2011:

July 1: Blue Grosbeak!

July 6: Black Skimmer at DeKorte

July 9: Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Mill Creek Marsh

July 15: Least Terns at DeKorte

July 25: Butterfly Day: The List

July 26: Mourning Cloak

July 29: Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow

 

Peregrine!

Ron Shields writes:

This (double-banded) guy has been hanging around for a couple of weeks now.

You can always find him on top of one of the Saw Mill Creek Trail's towers like I did Sunday morning.

(Thanks, Ron!)

 

Cedar Waxwings: Parent and Baby

Kris Niewiadomski writes: "On a recent visit to DeKorte Park, I found two cute Cedar Waxwings fledglings and their mom feeding them."

One of the shots is above; a shot of just the fledgling follows.

Our Latest Wild New Jersey Post: Snowy Egret plus...

Our latest "Focus on the Meadowlands" post for wildnewjersey.tv feature a Snowy Egret up-close, two baby Barn Swallows and a Red-tail nest under a bridge. (Have you ever heard of such a thing?)

The link is here.

Coming Sunday: Bird Walk, Butterflies for Beginners!

We have two great free events at DeKorte Park this Sunday -- a 10 a.m. nature walk and a 1 p.m. program called "Butterflies for Beginners."

We hope to see you Sunday!

Full details follow.

Least Terns @ Kearny Marsh

Roy Woodford writes:

"Ron Shields and I took a little tour by kayak on Saturday afternoon.  Aside from the usual cast of characters, we managed to find a rare treat sitting on one of the mudflats -- a pair of Least Terns.  The were quite cooperative as we drifted toward them.

"Oh ... we also had one grumpy GBH. He circled us twice squawking like mad ... I don't think he was too happy with our presence." (Thanks, Roy!)

DeKorte Park Sunset, Monday Night

Ron Shields writes:

"Nature.....the greatest show on earth!"