It was windy and cloudy this morning in Estabrook Park, but the temps were mild, and it barely sprinkled, so it turned out to be a far nicer morning than I expected when I went out the door.
I was a little surprised to find a great blue heron perched low over the river far downstream from the new favorite location, but when I finally got that far north, I found an angler parked on the far shore, and that could well be what caused the change in plans.
It appears that there is some evidence that birds can sense coming bad weather, and if that is really the case, that would explain why I saw so few birds today. I didn’t take another picture until I found this red squirrel at the north end who was more intent on gnawing that nut than on fleeing my gaze.
The gadwalls appear now to have moved on for good, but I was disappointed also not to see the wigeons around the islands. Happily, I found them a few hundred yards farther upstream when I went to check on the pigeons at the bridge. Here’s the drake, but I just couldn’t get a good picture of the hen this time.
Finally, there was no sign of the hooded merganser or the black-crowned night heron today, but I did see the osprey glide over the river for a moment. The big thrill of the day, however, was spotting a great horned owl again after missing them for a couple of weeks. I was starting to worry.
The forecast for 8am tomorrow morning is currently “rain”, so our inaugural Estabrook Park wildlife walk might be a bit wet, but the forecast could certainly change between now and then. I expect I will be at the beer garden in any case, and if the past is any guide, there will be plenty of fair-weather days in our future, so please check the weather and don’t feel any obligation to join me if getting soaked just isn’t your thing.
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 