Wow! No snow, yet, but is sure as chilly this morning. Luckily, the goose eggs have moms to keep them warm, and the robin eggs might have the same, but one seemed not so sure this morning. She eventually climbed in, but it took her a while. I wonder what’s up with that.
As I was checking on the southern robin and her nest, Casper the Friendly Coot came by for some more pictures. It seems I had missed those sharp looking tail features during previous sessions. Plus, I got a nice demonstration of feeding agility.
On the way to or from the north end, I can’t remember, I was treated to this little bit of slapstick. One mallard drake found a nice perch on which to preen, and as I was trying to take his picture, a second one wanted in.
When the second one got up there, however, it immediately nudged the first one right off.
Finally, after the first one flew back down to the river, the second one followed. BFFs, I guess.
Those are both tough acts to follow, but the star performers of today happen to be this pair of nuthatches giving their nest a good spring cleaning.
Finally, one more flower has been able to glean just enough energy out of the cloudy skies we’ve been enjoying lately to open up these three little blossoms.
I hardly saw another creature, mammalian or avian, but I did finally manage to capture an image sufficient for identifying a large bird I’ve seen soaring over the park from time to time since last summer. Say hello at long last to a turkey vulture (Cathartes aura). You can see the tail narrower than a red-tailed hawk, but not as narrow as a Cooper’s hawk, the long beak with a little curve at the end, and the lighter flight feathers on the underside of the wing. I would take that positive ID to court!
There’s also a new fungus among us, and I’m not going down the rabbit hole of trying to identify a mushroom again so soon.
Finally, not everything was shades of brown, grey, and black. Here’s a goldfinch looking pretty yellow. Not completely yet, but almost there. Even he looks none too thrilled with the cool breeze out of the northwest.
Our owl appears to have found a warmer branch to perch on this morning, and I searched in vain for where that might be, so I hope it comes back to its usual spot soon.
It was another beautiful April morning in the park, and I am thrilled to report that the incubating appears to continue undisturbed on the island in the pond. Here’s a quick shot of the two geese on their nests as the ganders keep watch nearby.
South endNorth end
Along the river, both our robins appear now to be incubating as well. There where on their nests as I went north and again when I came south over an hour later. Both are not on an island and are amazing accessible, so keep your fingers crossed that their camouflage, such as it is, does the job.
Southern nestNorthern nest
Meanwhile, at the north end, our newest exciting find, the great horned owl, was on the same branch again this morning. I looked but could not find a nest nearby, so I don’t know what exactly the situation is. Is this one alone this season, is there a nest that I just can’t see, or is this like a bachelor pad “in the city” to take a nap while mom (or dad!) watches the kids at home. Perhaps time will tell.
I have heard from fine fellow local amateur naturalist, Jim Kogutkiewicz, that “a great horned owl is nesting this spring in Downer Woods, and for the last couple weeks or so.” You can see Jim’s beautiful pictures at https://www.instagram.com/p/CNz_0rgnAbM/
While I was carefully walking up and down the river bank trying to find the best angle for a shot, I spotted our first live mussel I’ve seen in the river. I’ve been seeing shells, hole and in pieces since last year, but I always wondered if they were just left over from someone’s clam bake. Now we may surmise that they were locally grown.
Also at the north end, I spotted our first toadstool of the season. It might be one of several inky caps, of the genus Coprinopsis, or parasols, of the genus Parasola, but I can’t find a picture that matches exactly. Looks tasty, though, doesn’t it?
Anyway, on my way back south, I spotted our killdeer on the mudflats again, and I managed to get some nicer pictures this time. If you haven’t seen their “broken wing act” when they are trying to draw you from their “nest” flat on the ground, it is worth watching a video of one of nature’s most fascinating spectacles. You’d almost think it would just be easer to pick a better nesting site, but I guess they don’t see it that way.
Finally, some new blossoms have pushed through this colder weather and managed to bloom anyway.
Here’s a pretty white with blue speckles hybrid violet at the far north end that I don’t believe we’ve seen before.
Yesterday afternoon was so nice, I went out again and ran into our newest little buddy, the friendly American coot, at the south end again, almost within sight of the Capitol Ave bridge.
Then, this morning, I finally confirmed that there are indeed at least too coots on the river. Maybe our friendly coot from the south end met up with the shy coot from the north end. As with most birds, they look so similar, I’ll never know for sure, but here they are heading to the west side across from the mud flats in the pretty morning sun.
Above the falls, I spotted this pair of mallard drakes soaking up that morning sun after a pretty cold night. There was frost on the grass as I made my way to the river. One of our beaver poked its nose out of the water near there, too, but ducked back under as soon as it spotted me and must have kept swimming south because I didn’t see it again.
At the north end, there were a few wood ducks around, at least one hen, and at least 3 drakes. Here are two drakes who found a spot where the blue sky reflects nicely off the muddy water.
Here’s a tree trunk stretching out over the water from the northern island, and it was pretty crowded this morning. How many birds can you find on it?
I had hoped that I might find a warbler again in the trees east of the meadow there, but they were quiet this morning so I reluctantly headed back south. The river trail was seeing pretty good traffic by then, so I forded the little oxbow pond and kept close to the river.
As luck would have it, I found some litter to collect, and as I concentrated on picking it up without losing my phone or my keys, a big commotion erupted on the southern island just across the channel from me. A pair of mallards came first, on the wing and quacking for all they were worth, followed closely by a Canada goose doing the same. As I turned to gawk at the skeptical, I spotted a huge dark form land on a big branch high above.
At first I thought it was a hawk, but it was far too big for that. Then I thought maybe a young eagle who hadn’t gotten its white feather yet. Finally it dawned on me that this must, at long last, be an owl, a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus).
Well, I did the best mix I could manage of “as fast as I can” and “don’t make any sudden moves” and got out my camera. Meanwhile, our new guest quickly hopped down the branch into a less-conspicuous location.
It looks like that might be a thick grape vine beside the tree trunk that it found to hide behind. Here it is keeping an eye on me, at least for the moment.
Finally, it settled in behind that vine, and succeeded in waiting me out.
So, for the second time this week, I floated home on a cloud, at least until my reverie was broken by the call of this cardinal that was almost as bright as he was.
It did turn into a pretty morning, but it started out pretty grey. There is nothing new to report at the pond, which is good news as this point. Both geese were incubating at their respective ends of the island, and a third couple appear to have given up for the season. Well, two out of three is still two times better than last year.
At the river, I spotted a solo blue-winged teal drake off the mudflats with a pair of mallards. Here he is cutting in front of the mallard hen. With that face, I guess we should expect that he’d be cheeky, eh?
Here he is just chilling and cutting in front of anybody.
Just above the falls, I spotted the solo red-breasted merganser hen or immature male.
At the north end, the kingfishers toyed with me, and I didn’t even try today. Instead I found this guy who appears for all the world to be a male brown-headed cowbird, perhaps searching for that female we saw last Sunday.
While I was looking up, this Cooper’s hawk took off and climbed through a couple of lazy circles before heading west.
Finally, still at the north end, I spotted at long last our first warbler for the season. I’ve been hearing of sightings for a couple of weeks now, but this is the first one I’ve been able to capture in an image. It is a male yellow-rumped warbler (Setophaga coronata) in “Myrtle” plumage, on his way to breeding grounds that start upstate and continue to Hudson Bay.
He was very busy mining this tree for bugs and just about a nimble as a chickadee or a kinglet. It took me forever to get even these half-way decent shots.
The sky was turning blue and the sun was warm as I came home from campus for lunch, so I had my hopes up, but by the time I ate and took care of some work chores, the clouds were back and the wind was cold. Oh well.
I went out anyway, and I don’t think I saw a single mammal, let alone reptiles, amphibians, or insects. Luckily, there were a few birds about, and here they are.
Finally, on the shore of the northern island was this lone American coot, perhaps the same one we saw there yesterday on that same island. It sure was not as friendly as the one that came to visit me much farther south yesterday.
Speaking of that friendly coot from yesterday, here’s another picture.
And one more, without goop hanging out of its bill this time.
Okay. Last one from yesterday, and this time one of the beaver, in which you can just see a bit of its grey tail on the ground just under its mouth.
The forecast is for mostly sunny to sunny tomorrow morning, so keep your fingers crossed.
The park was very quiet this morning, under a cold grey sky, and things got off to a pretty slow start. When I arrived at the pond, this little critter was gleaning scraps that the geese and ducks failed to find on the west lawn.
The goose on the southern tip of the island was still on her nest, and as I walked around to the north side to check on the second one, I accidentally spooked these two.
That’s right, a pair of blue-winged teals right on our tiny little pond. They booked clockwise around the island, so I headed counterclockwise to meet them on the other side, where I was able to capture this slightly nicer portrait of the drake. Oh, and the second goose is also still incubating.
There was a kingfisher again, and I think a female for a change, but she eluded me, so I headed down to the river. Neither robin was on her nest this morning, but that’s not necessarily bad news yet. They could be still laying their clutches and not yet incubating.
Above the falls, I stopped to scan ahead to see if there is anybody I should try not too spook, and look who I saw. Hot Diggity Dog! With that white beak and black body, it sure looks like an American coot, so I headed off in hot pursuit, taking the back way, where I hoped it wouldn’t see me coming.
When I got up beside that northern island, there was no coot to be found, sadly, but as I searched in vain, I did spot another teal, this time a solo drake amongst the geese.
Oh well. I figured I might as well pick up the new trash brought in by the high water, and after a bit, look who decided to show up.
With a spring in my step, I headed back south along the river, and I hadn’t gotten more than a couple hundred yards, when this handsome downy woodpecker couple obliged me as they foraged in front of a nice dark background, instead of the grey sky, which had brightened.
So, now I was pretty anxious to get home, and I continued along the river, but took the higher path, where I expected to find much less litter to distract and slow me down. This was my reward. I probably wasn’t even 20 feet away when he or she popped out of the water and paused a bit to scratch a few itches before continuing upstream.
This one even showed off its webbed hind foot.
Now I really wanted to get home, but I had to stopped for this pretty little sight. That’s early meadow rue (Thalictrum dioicum) looking like the buds of a bunch of flowers before it opens up and turns into green leaves instead.
Here’s a quick look at the progression from tiny purple balls into little green leaves.
Okay, now I am finally heading home, but there’s this one spot right on the water where a bunch of fresh white Styrofoam™ scraps has accumulated, and it is actually still early, and I even still have a couple of empty bags in my pocket, so I make just one more stop.
As I’m crouched down, intently picking up mostly just the bigger pieces so at least it isn’t an eyesore from the trail, look who I just happened to notice also intently foraging. An American coot again, giving me a third chance for a decent photo!
I don’t know if there is more than one on the river right now, but this little rascal was hardly 6 feet away from me, and maybe didn’t notice me either, until I looked up. At that point, I guess it figured that if I was going to eat it, I would have already, so it just kept on foraging as I slowly took out my camera to started taking pictures. I absolutely could not believe my luck. It eventually worked its way around the tiny peninsula of drift wood I was on, and then calmly headed down river.
Will wonders ever cease? A that point, I just floated home on a cloud and found my keys on the first try, securely zipped into my fleece breast pocket, right where I put them.
Two geese were still incubating on the island in the pond, this cool morning, but it is not clear if the third goose is even laying eggs yet. We’ll know soon enough, I guess.
The breakout star at the pond this morning is this cheerful little white-throated sparrow, belting out Oh-sweet-Canada in the brief morning sun for all to hear.
Just below her, on the river, Mrs. Mallard took a nap.
While Mr. Mallard kept a watchful eye on me.
Meanwhile, a young red-tailed hawk flew lazy circles over the Oak Leaf Trail.
Finally, I found a few trout lilies that must have received enough warm sun yesterday afternoon to open up for us, and here’s the most photogenic one, even with that stick by its side.
Lastly, I somehow averted disaster again this morning. When I first got home, I couldn’t find my keys, and I figured I’d lost them somewhere along the river. They sadly do not have a feature to show me on a map where they are, and Anne was out. So after waiting around for a few minutes, I headed back into the park, which worked out nicely because that’s when I spotted the lilies and the hawk. Anyway, Anne returned, let me in, and that’s when I found my keys zipped up nice and secure in the breast pocket of my fleece, exactly where I put them to keep them safe. Ha! I really outsmarted myself this time.
The big news from Estabrook this morning is that it appears as though a third pair of geese might have finally found a nesting site. She was off it again by the time I left, and it’s not on the island, so we’ll have to see if they can make a go of it there, but best of luck to them!
Meanwhile, I am pleased to report that the incubation continues on both the northern and southern tips of the island.
At the river, I found another robin nesting in a spot that seems far too obvious, so I hope that works out, too. The one we saw a couple of days ago was on the nest again as I walked past. Fingers crossed for both of them. Sorry about the blurry picture, but I’m trying to be as unobtrusive as I can so they don’t abandon.
Just a bit north of there, was another pair of geese making all the appearances of hoping desperately to find a nesting site of their own, literally looking high and low, but nothing in that vicinity looked promising to me. Oof, that’s gotta be an awful feeling.
At the north end, I spotted one of our furry little aquatic friends again, a muskrat this time.
On my way back south, I found this cute pair of mourning doves foraging beside the little stream that runs from the pond down to the river. All winter, they were surprisingly shy, so I was very surprise to see how unperturbed they appeared to be today.
Lastly, I spotted this little clutch of eggs on the back side of a small tree trunk, and I wonder what they’ll hatch into.
Finally, there are a couple of new splashes of color in the park. At the south end, beside the river, I found this specimen, about the size of a quarter that Pl@ntNet assures me with 97.7% confidence is Bristly buttercup (Ranunculus hispidus)
At the north end, also beside the river, are these pretty white and blue violets, apparently a hybrid (Viola melissifolia).
The orb-weavers (Araneidae) are back, and with the sun coming out this morning after the rain and heavy fog last night, their artistry looked amazing! I didn’t see any of the actual spiders themselves, but their work was unmistakable.
She was calling, too, and maybe to this handsome devil across the pond.
Also at the pond, the goose on the southern tip of the island was off her nest again, but I could clearly see 4 eggs in it now. They say that she won’t incubate until she’s laid all her eggs so that they hatch at about the same time, and maybe she’s still got one or two left in the hopper.
A few wood ducks were also there this morning. Here’s the hen with her current pretty boy checking out the lawn will the other two drakes were on the island plotting their schemes.
The morning sun also brought out the turtles, who’ve been laying low, literally under water, while we got our April showers.
Finally, a kingfisher came by the pond for the first time this season that I’ve seen, and he perched perfectly at the top of a dead birch tree on the island against a bright blue sky. Magic! I hustled around to the other side to get the sun at my back. I was approaching as carefully as I knew how, because they are so skittish, but just before I got to a clear shot through the brush and trees, the geese got into an argument, again, and she was out of there. This is what I was left with. Dang.
Oh well. On to the river, where I was surprised to find Mrs. Gadwall is still kicking around. At first I thought she was a mallard, but when she high-tailed it for the far shore as soon as she saw me, I should have realized who she was. Luckily, the far shore happened to be closer that its ever been, so here you go. Plus, she couldn’t have been to bothered by my presence too much because she immediately went about preening herself, and this is one of the few shots I got in which she’s actually looking our way.
The northern flickers are still plentiful and shy as ever.
As are the cardinals northern cardinals, but less shy.
For some reason, the black-capped chickadees were especially photogenic this morning.
Plus, I spotted a couple working on their nest. It first I thought they were finding something to eat in the top of a dead tree trunk, but as I worked my way around to the back side, I found that they were actively excavating a nesting hole. I had no idea.
Finally, the cowbirds have just arrived, too, and here’s a female rustling up some breakfast.
PS. I finally scored a reach extender that somebody left behind in the park last week, and I thought I’d never use one, but I discovered that they sure come in handy when I’m trying to fish some litter out of the water. This morning, I finally tied my old camera strap to it so I could sling it over my shoulder, like Dead Pool, and that thing was handy as heck. Who could have known?
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 
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