Plenty of changes in Estabrook Park after a couple of weeks away…

It was a gorgeous early autumn morning in Estabrook Park, with temps in the low 60s, a very light breeze, and clear skies, so a very fine time to return.

My first pleasant surprise today was finding that the wood duck drakes have gotten their new feathers in, and they look fabulous.

My second surprise was finding our first pied-billed grebe of the fall on the pond, and they tend to be a bit shy, but this little cutie let me sneak what might be my very best portrait of one so far. This one also lacks the black stripe on it’s bill, so its a youngster or non-breeding adult.

The river water is as low as I believe I’ve ever seen it, so there is a lot of bottom exposed, just as the killdeer like it, and here’s one of a pair foraging for their breakfast near the upstream island.

I didn’t see any warblers today, which doesn’t mean they are all gone, by any means, but most have likely continued south already. In their place, the sparrows that breed up north have arrived, and here’s a young white-crowned sparrow whose crown is still brown.

I would have been a little surprised to find a white-crowned but not a white-throated, which are usually more plentiful, but the sun had to get pretty warm before this one would let us have a nice look.

I had heard that yellow-bellied sapsuckers were around, as well, and they also kept me in suspense until I was almost out of the park. I only found this youngster on the cottonwood trees behind the Benjamin Church House.

Speaking of the Church House, look who decided to see what was inside those columns on the front porch. I read that “downy woodpeckers have been discovered nesting inside the walls of buildings,” but this guy might find the hollow cavity inside that column bigger than he bargained for.

I was thrilled to find butterflies still around, and this is the first mourning cloak we’ve seen in a while.

I saw several monarchs who have not yet begun their flight to Mexico, and this one might have been checking to see if it will like the food when it gets there before heading out.

Finally, in the couple of weeks that I was away, the crew reshaping the falls appears to have finished with our side, moved their coffer dam to the other side, and has already removed a lot of limestone. I bet the low water helps a bit, far better than the flood, at least, and here’s hoping they’ll be able to wrap things up before the snow flies.

I just received word that 17 folks have signed up for my “class” on the wildlife in Estabrook at the North Shore School for Seniors, so there are still some seats available. It’s next Tuesday, October 7, from 1 – 1:50 pm, and you can click here to register if you’d like to join us.