Author Archives: Andrew Dressel

The big news in Estabrook Park this morning is that there are indeed goslings on the pond: four, little, yellow puffballs. Here’s a closer look. Meanwhile, down by the river, this black-capped chickadee was making preparations for the same kind of action. Here it is coming out of the cavity with a beak full ofContinue reading “A whole lot o’ cuteness going on…”

Despite the line of thunderstorms that rolled through before dawn, it turned out to be a pretty nice morning in Estabrook Park, with mild temps, light winds, and even some sunshine. I was happy to see a female belted kingfisher at the pond. You can see just a hint of her chestnut flanks and bellyContinue reading “Maybe a bit ahead of schedule…”

Here’s that April weather we all know, and expect, if not love. Not 83°F and sunny and not 32° and snowing but just seasonably cold with grey skies and a chance of rain. I’m lucky it was only a chance of rain. My morning in Estabrook got off to a nice start when this deerContinue reading “The gray skies of April”

Aaah. Now that’s more like it! Not too hot, and not too cold, plus bright sun instead of wet snow. I’ll take it! In any case, I was thrilled to reach the section of slow water on the river just in time again to catch the dawn patrol. Meanwhile, up on the bluff, this isContinue reading “Spring resumes…”

How’s that for a change in the weather? We broke records with temps in the 80s last week, but it was 32°F, with a wind chill of 22°F, and snowing enough to accumulate on the marsh marigolds this morning. Sheesh! Nevertheless, the wood ducks, mallards, and one Canada goose gander went about their business onContinue reading “An April Surprise!”

The April showers are back again this morning after taking one heck of a break, but what a glorious stretch of weather we’ve had, eh? While the sun was out yesterday, I managed to get a couple of pictures of the bevy of yellow-rumped warblers feasting on flying insects throughout the park. A couple otherContinue reading “A real mixed bag…”

We’re just approaching the middle of April, and it feels like summer is here already. The trout lilies are up and open! The cat bird was busy feasting on the staghorn sumac seeds, … but took a break to strike a handsome pose when it saw I was taking pictures. The chipmunks are out andContinue reading “Feels like summer…”

The weather is becoming more summer-like with each passing day, and all this warmth has made the bloodroots nearly rocket out of the ground. In previous seasons, I can remember watching the leaves slowly emerge, seemingly for weeks, before they finally bloomed, but not this year. Boom! Here they are! There’s also a brand-new turtleContinue reading “More newbies…”

Man-oh-man, a guy sure could get used to this weather. The pair of deer were on the soccer fields again this morning, and I was able to sit on one of the soccer net frames to take some pictures as they passed by. The youngster seemed a little curious, but Mom was not interested andContinue reading “Several more firsts of the season…”

The beautiful weather continues, and this morning I was thrilled to see a pair of deer out on the soccer fields to enjoy it with me. One was a bit smaller than the other, so perhaps it was a yearling with its mom, and it was a bit restless, as youngster sometimes get. You canContinue reading “Oh Deer!”