Monthly Archives: April 2021

As April heads for the door, there’s a lot to report, and let’s start with the egg roundup. Both geese on the pond are still incubating, and both robins beside the river were on their nests this chilly morning, although I did capture this sight during a spot-check yesterday afternoon. It appears that we haveContinue reading “April bids us adieu…”

I stopped by the pond for a quick check on the egg situation on this grey morning before going to campus and look who I saw up in a tree in the middle of the island. Its our old pall from last summer, the green heron (Butorides virescens), back from wintering along the Gulf ofContinue reading “A quick trip to the pond…”

I went to check on the goslings first thing, of course, and I was thrilled to find them doing just fine and back at the mainland breakfast buffet. Best of all, there was even another batch! While I was trying to get the picture below showing both families at once a hawk shot right throughContinue reading “Triple the fun!”

Let’s cut straight to the chase. The goslings on the river appeared hale and hearty this morning. In fact, they had swum across the channel, and I found them foraging for breakfast on the mainland. It was fascinating for me to see how much they attracted other, adult geese. There were at least three otherContinue reading “Time for some close-ups!”

Another cool and breezy morning in April. Who could have guessed? At least it’s not raining and the sun was even trying to come out. My first greeter in the park was this chipper little goldfinch in nearly full breading plumage and doing his best to make sure everyone knows about it.. I stopped byContinue reading “Not your average Monday…”

It must have been Wood Duck Day at the pond this morning, because there were ten (yes, 10) of them, along with four mallard drakes, and I think they were all up on the lawn at once. This is my best attempt at capturing a sense of the duck density. A pair of geese flewContinue reading “It’s Wood Duck Day in Estabrook!”

It was a mild, if dark and overcast, morning in the park, and the goose incubating on the northern tip of the island in the pond opted to take a little break. First she carefully covered all her eggs with down… Then she and her steadfast mate took a moment to get reacquainted…. And finally,Continue reading “Moms take a break”

It was nice to start the morning with temps in the 40s instead of the 30s for a change, and the critters seemed to like it, too. Here’s robin taking a quick morning bath in the river. That’s gotta be bracing, to say the least, right? Well, I guess you get used to it. Here’sContinue reading “Spring resumes…”

It was a beautiful morning with bright blue skies for a change, so I brought my camera along on my walk to campus, and it paid off handsomely on my way back home. There’s a pair of Cooper’s hawks with a nest high up in an oak tree a bit off the Oak Leaf TrailContinue reading “A visit with the Cooper’s”

I know the rhyme’s not perfect, if you pronounce graupel correctly, but you’re probably here for the pictures anyway, and boy, do we have some pictures. On the island in the pond, the goose on the southern tip got up briefly to gave her eggs a turn this morning, and I can count at leastContinue reading “If it’s April, you know there’ll be graupel!”