Prospect Park
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Late Fall, Late Afternoon
The Upper Pool in Prospect Park ~ Sunday, December 4th, 3:15 p.m. The water is covered in tiny duckweed plants, which, like leaves, have turned the colors of fall.
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Ranger Robin Sez
The uninhibited Ranger Robin Action Figure, no longer serving the Parks Department, tells it like it is:“Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux are turning over in their graves, thanks to Richard Meier, and the developers he whored out to, for spoiling the Long Meadow viewshed. Meanwhile, James S.T. Stranahan doesn’t just roll, he wants to…
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American Chestnut, Prospect Park
Stumbled on another American Chestnut in Prospect Park. A city of leaves on a hill.
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Springtime in November
It was like spring in Prospect Park today. Late spring, even, except for the rich fall colors of the leaves and the lack of birdsong. How warm was it? There was a woman wearing a bikini in Nelly’s Lawn. Among other sun-worshippers were the turtles, brought up out of the murk by the warmth.A few…
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Brown Rat
A young Brown Rat, Rattus norvegicus, expired in Prospect Park. A cosmopolitan species, found on every continent except Antarctica, these rats thrive in dense conglomerations of humans because we provide so much for them to eat, and such nice places for them to burrow. Robert Sullivan’s Rats: Observations on the History and Habitat of the…
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Ranger Robin Sez
Rogue Ranger Robin, hardly haven broken a sweat after running the Occupy The F’ING NYC Marathon, verges between chagrin and rage over the state of our parks: “Uh-oh. Pragmites have colonized the Vale of Cashmere. The end — complete take-over by this invasive — is near. By next spring, in fact, I wouldn’t be surprised…
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Autumn: American Chestnut
Prospect Park’s American chestnuts are still with us, no thanks to the onslaught of wild weather this year. One of the young trees is bent over, weighed down by last week’s snowstorm, and not rebounded. The heavy, wet snow combined with still-leaved trees — a fine illustration of why our broad-leaved trees lose their leaves…
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Autumn in Prospect Park
The natural world, our world, changes both subtly and radically. This is why there is an inexhaustible source of material for this blog. Yesterday, in Prospect Park:The Upper Pool’s duckweed, emerald green in summer, has darkened.The glory of the northeast, the Sugar Maple, Acer saccharum, is in fine form, and deserves multiple views. Two different…
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Ranger Robin Sez
Making her first appearance here after being “disappeared” by the Parks Department, Ranger Robin doesn’t hold back when it comes to her opinions: “Clean up after yourself, you little CENSORED! And your mama! And your papa, too!” “Oh, and happy Halloween.”
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Nuts! Walnuts
This is the fruit of the Black walnut, Juglans nigra. Edible, but hard to extract, since first you have to get through this husk, which stains you yellowish green. It was in fact once used as a dye. Then, once the flesh is gone (squirrels will sometimes help you) you are presented with the hard…
Backyard and Beyond 