mthew

Osprey harried by persistent songbird. Here’s one with a small fish being chased by a Red-winged Blackbird. June 26: awfully late for nest-building. Is this stick for maintenance, practice, hopefulness? Carrying a stick out of Green-Wood on July10th.

A robust chiseling in the woods… —turned out to be a juvenile Hairy Woodpecker. Presumably hatched right here in Prospect Park. A Great Crested Flycatcher… also breeding? Event Alert: This Friday, weather permitting, I will be setting up some insect light “traps” for the Brooklyn Bird Club just inside Prospect Park at the 5th St./Prospect…

Green-Wood rarely sees Eastern Chipmunks, but nearby Prospect Park has a population. You will usually hear them first. Same, with flash in the dark understory.

Wasps are carnivorous, at least at their larval stage. Adults take nectar, and tiny-flowered Mountain Mints/Pycnanthemum are gushing founts of nectar. (There were also bees, flies, beetles, true bugs, and butterflies on these patches of M-mint at Bush Terminal and Green-Wood.)

All seen around Lookout Hill in Prospect, a woodsy spot with a few patches of sun, over about two hours. I can only ID one of these to species level; the first pictured above is a Blotching Spider Wasp/Caliadurgus fasciatellus.

Pearl Crescents. Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Common Buckeye American Lady American Snouts. Last Saturday, I saw at least 8 in Prospect Park, always around their favored Hackberry trees. Question Mark

One month or so after fledging, the young American Kestrels are out and about, usually found by their plaintive cries. This one was hovering over Lizard Hill. (That’s what I’d call it if I was a Kestrel!) These two were by the Civil War soldiers monument. By the Sophie Calle exhibit, a.k.a. Woodchuck Hill. On…