Glad to see it cranked to 11 again!

Once again, it was cool and dark in Estabrook Park this morning, but it didn’t feel as bad as the forecast led me to expect, and perhaps the weather even helped me see some of the wildlife I saw. The warblers continue to be thick as thieves, especially along the river, but there were plenty of other pretty sights, as well.

For example, here’s another rose-breasted grosbeak for the year, letting me sneak a slightly better picture than back in April. “Atta boy!”

I haven’t seen a great blue heron since I’ve been back in the park, so I was very glad to finally encounter one today.

As if one heron weren’t enough, this grumpy looking green heron came along just in time to help me out after I flubbed getting a picture of the first one I saw. “Thanks, Sweetie, and you’ve got a little spiderweb schmutz on your face.”

Somehow word must have gotten out that I was worried about a poor crop of goslings this year, because I came across three separate families on the stretch of river between the islands and the Port Washington Road bridge. One had five goslings, a second at eight, and this one went all the way to eleven! Outstanding!

After my goose encounter, I got a hot tip that a red-headed woodpecker, whom we don’t get to see very often, was recently spotted in the vicinity of the beer garden, so I hustled back down there, and sure enough, here it is. Man, oh man, do I hope a pair will take up residence in the park someday, but in the meantime, I’ll take what I can get and like it!

Finally, as I neared the south end, I heard the amazing song of a wood thrush again, which I had heard when I first arrived, and I thought I’d take another stab at getting eyes on it. Well, the little stinker was keeping itself well hidden, but as I scanned the trees overhead for thrush-sized birds, look who I found instead. Yup, you guessed it, our first scarlet tanager of the year. Hot diggity dog!

Lastly, since I have a little room left, here’s the latest look, from yesterday, of that buck we’ve seen starting to grow his antlers. I’d say they’ve more than doubled in size, wouldn’t you?

Despite the sun peeking through now, the forecast calls for cloudy skies again tomorrow morning, but the air should be a little warmer, and the breeze should be a little lighter, so at least I’ll be a little more comfortable as I try taking pictures in the dark. Ha!