Moon and Gull

Before I walked around West Pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, I was sitting in the parking lot having a snack. I looked up and saw the gull on the pole and then I noticed the moon next to it.

Birding Floyd Bennett Airfield and Jamaica Bay

What a gorgeous day it was yesterday! Yes, maybe a little chilly but blue skies and sunshine. So I headed over to the first (now defunct) airfield in NYC - Floyd Bennett Airfield (FBA). I had been reading one of my favorite blogs http://birdingdude.blogspot.com/ last week and Andrew talked about the horned lark that hang out on the cricket field in the winter. I got there about 9:45 and was joined by two other birders who got there just ahead of me. As we talked and I listened to them talk I soon realized that this might be birding dude himself. Sure enough it was and his friend Pat who he often birds with and is herself very knowledgeable about birds. He remembered me from an email I sent him a few months ago and we laughed and introduced ourselves formally. They went off in search of the King Eider I saw at the other end of the airfield and I hung out with the larks for a few more minutes.

The larks were small and too far away to get an adequate picture but this is them after they were flushed by a dog and his friends.
Some bare trees against the blue sky on FBA
An American Wigeon (I believe) at FBA
Next I headed for Jamaica Bay. A couple of Brant as they fly above.

I also saw snow geese. They sure are beautiful when they fly.

Then there was this little guy. I believe he was a sparrow but I just can't ID it. If anyone has a better sense then I do please leave a comment. I searched my bird books but just wasn't sure. It may be an immature and that is why it is so hard to identify.

Lastly there was this little guy. He was moving among the brush so it was hard to try to get a picture. This was a lucky shot. This is a white-throated sparrow. He kept kicking and scratching through the leaves and if you look closely it looks as if he did find something to eat.

If you're ever in NYC both Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge (Queens) and FBA (Brooklyn) offer excellent places to bird or just take a walk on a gorgeous day.

Backyard birds from the outside

Saturday was gorgeous so I sat outside for a while. I hoped that if I sat quietly long enough the birds would come to feed. I was not disappointed. It became a feeding frenzy at times. To my surprise I discovered that I had house finches coming to the feeder. I guess the word is getting around the neighborhood about the new feeder.

"Hey wait your turn"

Squirrel, Cat and the Feeder

One of my cats loves to sit in the window and watch the birds, or a squirrel or even eat a plant. This is Baby Kitty. No one could agree on what to name her so we called her Baby kitty and it stuck.

Backyard Birds

I got a bird feeder for Christmas and set it up outside the kitchen window. My bedroom is just above it, so I often sit in the window and watch the birds and take pictures from this vantage point.
The birds sit on one of the fences or in the trees next door. Since living in Brooklyn, NYC, the backyards are not that wide, so a tree next door is very close.


Serenading those at the feeder.

A very handsome boy

I think this female Cardinal is just gorgeous. She is more elusive than the male, so it is harder to take pictures of her.

The end of the first decade of 2000

I can't believe it's been 10 years. My daughter and I were remembering all the crazy fears gripping the world at the turn of the century, but nothing happened. Here we are 10 years later, unbelievable.




I took the dog out at 7:30 and there was no snow but when I awoke again we had about 2 inches. It was so beautiful.





Along the Gowanus canal




Here's wishing everyone a Very Happy New Year and a great 2010

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Sometimes the wild life I find in Brooklyn surprises me, especially when it turns up in my backyard. About a month ago I had an immature male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in my backyard.

So Saturday, after an extremely trying week teaching my 7th graders, I was standing in the backyard enjoying the sounds of morning. I said in my head, "I'd love to see another yellow-bellied sapsucker." On cue one came around the trunk of the tree. Wow I thought. Then I saw another one flitting above in the tree tops. The one that is pictured here appears to be a female and possibly an immature one. She has stayed around all weekend. My daughter saw her in the backyard this afternoon.
When I first saw her she pretty much stayed on the same tree trunk. She actually was quite still and low when I started taking pictures.

So I took a few dozen pictures and then left her alone to enjoy the sap.

What is interesting is that the females mostly migrate further south and the males migrate south but will be found further north. So whether she will stay around or head south at some point will be interesting to note. The trees in the back must have some yummy sap.