Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

  • Spring Beauties

    Virginia Springbeauty/Claytonia virginica. Spring Beauty Rust/Puccinia mariae-wilsoniae

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    Spring Beauties

  • Buffle-O

    Male Bufflehead preening, head-scratching.

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    Buffle-O

  • Daffy, Phoebe

    I wrote about my vitreous detachment at Medium.

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    Daffy, Phoebe

  • More Brooklyn Raptors

    On overcast days.

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  • The Raven’s Nest

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    The Raven’s Nest

  • Raptor Wednesday

    Same banded female American Kestrel on the same tree a few days apart. She’s still in the territory of this nesting pair: Who are still pretty busy… Speaking of copulating falcons, the 55 Water Street pair of Peregrines went at it the other day when I happened to tune into the falconcam. (Note: there are…

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    Raptor Wednesday

  • More Corvid Nesting

    A couple of weeks ago I saw a crow in this crotch of a tree. The next thing I noticed was that the crotch was filled with sticks. Days passed. Once, when I was going by without a camera (it happens), I saw a crow perched near the nest. Then on March 30th, I managed…

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    More Corvid Nesting

  • Mammal Monday

    Groundhog. Woodchuck. Whistlepig. Marmota monax.

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    Mammal Monday

  • 10 Years of Ravens

    When I first moved to Sunset Park, this great industrial smokestack was frequently the perching place of Peregrine Falcons. Then Red-tailed Hawks took it over. On March 29th, I saw from a distance a Common Raven up there. Haven’t seen a Red-tail up there since. On March 30th, I saw Raven with food flying towards…

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  • Chickadee Bath

    One, two, three, four… was it five? Black-capped Chickadees bathed one after another at this leafy backwater of Valley Water recently.

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    Chickadee Bath