Male American Kestrel. My files are bursting with recent winter raptor sightings, all from a few blocks of home here in Brooklyn, New York. The four birds here were all seen within a 15-minute span the other day. For several winters, one or two Peregrines perching on this smokestack were a regular occurrence, but last…

See more

Driftwood. Surf Clam shell colonized by Serpulid Tubeworms. The Plumed Worm (Diopatra cuprea) fastens bits of shell to its case. Here’s one I took apart. At least nine species of mollusk shell represented here. The tubes were a surprise. Casings of some kind of Parchment Tubeworm (Family Chaetopteridae). Bryozoan remains, with Polychaete worm tubes on it. Another…

See more

Tiny bill. “Red” breast. Webbed foot. Mostly round. Ringed bill, ringe faced, ringed neck. Racing stripes. Somewhat vulture-like. Spring is just around the corner! Palm Warbler in mid-December. Original recipe? Medium: Donne.

See more

Found two of these on Oakwood Beach on Staten Island recently. Unusually bulky and flat, comparatively, they turn out to be the main claw of Flat-clawed Hermit Crabs (Pagurus pollicaris), a species I wasn’t aware of. Looking at potential homes for them (different sizes/ages of Northern Moon, Shark Eye, Channeled Welks), you can see how…

See more

Perch. Soar. Perch again. Chase after Red-tail in your patch. ~ News: Ten (10) days after screwing up the front page of the Sunday print edition, the New York Times publishes a correction. (They want your email to read their corrections if you don’t subscribe.) Originally, they incorrectly credited my photograph to another iNaturalist user…

See more

Winter solstice is around sunset tonight (EST).

See more

Various stages of Velvet Foot (Flammulina velutipes) on a toppled big tree. Ceramic Parchment (Xylobolus frustulatus): aptly named, these were very hard. Lion’s-mane (Hericium erinaceus) on a street tree Pin Oak.

See more

American Hoverfly, Complex Eupeodes americanus, all lit up with pollen. Impressive for December 9th. About the only thing I’m aware of with yellow pollen this month is Dandelion (Taraxacum). Same day. Schroederella iners, perhaps. Nearby, another type of dung fly. This was a sunny day, temps in the mid 40s, no wind. Dec 8. Unknown fly,…

See more

American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) is sometimes confused for its genetically crossed sibling, London Plane (Platanus × hispanica), which is all over the city, on streets and in parks. In fact, finding an American Sycamore is a good challenge. London Plane in typical habitat, a park, for comparison. The bark situation stands out. Am Syc are…

See more

Always a little disconcerting to photograph these mistimed blooms with my gloves on.

See more