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Long-distance Flier
Glowing in the understory, a Wandering Glider. And then, two days later: Spotted another one perched, rather worse for the wear. Talk about the beat generation…
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Blue, Red, Rot
A Black-throated Blue Warbler hovering to bite bits out of a kousa dogwood fruit. This particular tree was hosting half a dozen species in its branches and on the ground, where a lot of the fruit had already fallen and was perfuming the air with rot. A siren-song to fruit flies. The Spot-winged Fruitflies, evidently,…
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Campari Wasps
On July 26, I spotted this wasp at the pollinator-madness of the trumpet vine flowers. Put it up on iNaturalist and bumpkiss resulted. I added four more observations up to last week, when an Italian wasp enthusiast wondered if it was Eumenes mediterraneus. It wouldn’t be the first wasp that’s made its way over: the…
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Even More Migration
Ovenbird. Veery. Black-throated Blue female. Clay-colored Sparrow. First time I’ve seen one of these here in Brooklyn. Scarlet Tanager. House Wren. Hermit Thrush Damn! Brown Creeper interrupted by a building.
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Raptor Wednesday
Look who’s back! The Bald Eagle with the black R over 7 band, who first showed up in the spring, has lately been seen again in Green-Wood. After eating… something, the bird stropped its bill on this branch. The bird was banded as a nestling in 2018 in New Haven, CT. There’s definitely more white…
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More Migration Madness
Black-throated Blue. Scarlet Tanager. Yellow-rumped Warblers. Blue-headed Vireo. Red-eyed Vireo. Indigo Bunting. Tennessee Warbler. American Redstart.
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Migration Monday
Thursday night’s cold front rained migrating birds down on Brooklyn Friday morning. Saturday was even more hopping. A Nashville Warbler showing nicely. Note the reddish color in the head. There were so many Gray Catbirds. I figured everywhere north of us has been cleaned out. Ours will be gone soon, too. Mostly: a few sometimes…
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The Last Month
It’s one month before the election. The fascist Republican Party, uniting oligarchy, fundamentalism, and white supremacy, is attempting to lock its minority rule on the future. Here are some resources for defending our democracy. Voting early guide Get out the vote. Protect our vote. New Yorkers can register to vote until October 9th. Early voting…
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Notes on Galls
“Galls are highly specialized plant tissues whose development is induced by another organism.” The relationship is essentially parasitic, says Britain’s Plant Galls: A Photographic Guide, but “few gall-causers seem to cause more than localised, short-term damage to their host plants.” This book continues: “Plant galls can be caused or induced by a very wide variety…
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Backyard and Beyond 