Brooklyn
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Picnic, Lightning
Junk food lives beyond the jaws.God-damned balloons kill and maim animals. Even good environmentalists I know continue to buy these things for their kids. Stop it, already. Your kids don’t want to choke turtles and strangle birds to death, do they?
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Woodchuck
Marmota monax keeps an eye on you.Yet another den! Do they keep moving around? This general area has been the home of at least one for a while, but I think this particular den is newish.Facing the sinking sun of another day.
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Variegated
A Variegated Fritillary (Euptoieta claudia) yesterday in the Buddleia pollinator-magnet at Green-Wood. First time I’ve seen this species here in NYC, although I’d seen one before in Arizona. They’re a southern species, uncommon here, but have been known to get up to Canada.
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Sunset Park Elm
Fall is coming! And about time, too! The state of the elm. From this southwesterly perspective, it is hanging onto the slope of the moraine with everything it has. Previous states of the elm.
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Monarch, Comma
Spotted two Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) in Green-Wood today.Like perfect little kites of joy.Also saw some Cabbage Whites, Orange Sulphurs, and several skippers. Pretty good for a day with temps in the high 40s at sunrise. There was also this Comma (Polygonia comma).Soaking up the sun.
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Herons
This Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) had a bum left foot. It was holding the toes curled and not putting any pressure on it. In flight, which seemed fine, it looked as if a toe was sticking weirdly upright. Green Heron (Butorides virescens), also at Crescent Water. I think it’s standing on something under there,…
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Raptor Wednesday
On a recent afternoon, I had the pleasure of experiencing the Brooklyn falcon trifecta. It all started in Green-Wood: the distinctive shape of one of the small falcons tearing through the air in the distance, met by the rough chorus of outraged Monk Parakeets stirred up by its cousin. (Yes, falcons are more closely related…
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After Barely A Summer Dies the Bee
This goldenrod was chock-a-stem with bumblebees, carpenter bees, and honeybees, moving slowly if at all on a cool day. You could pet them if you liked. This is the last hurrah for the bumbles and carpenter bees, except for already mated queens, who will soon find a place tucked away in leaf litter for the…
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Autumn Meadows
Fat grasshoppers and noisy crickets. Bumblebees built for cooler weather. Darting moths stirred up by our presence. Palm Warblers absent the rufus polls of springtime, but their tails as derrick-like as ever. A falcon shoots by, too quick for us. We curse the god-damned helicopters, a constant curse over the island.And a few days later…
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Shelter From The Rain
On the edge of the storm, a beetle clings to the outside of the kitchen window.Slick wet glass, mind you. Last seen heading further up to the frame. Early October, Brooklyn. Should I submit this to bugguide.net to see who can identify it from this angle? Or would that be cruel? Actually, we have a…
Backyard and Beyond 