Last week the showy-flowering magnolias and ornamental cherries began to reveal their petals. The photo above is of a Star Magnolia flower emerged from a terminal bud. Leaves are also housed in the terminal buds of this species. This flower is not open phenologically speaking–the petals are still obscuring the reproductive organs. Outside of their…
Last week, we released Part Two of a mini-series about parents who bird on the Your Bird Story podcast. You will hear stories from Jen Kepler (Brooklyn, NYC) and Bryony Angell (Washington state). Bryony describes the episode: “We talk about making the most of the immediate surroundings to bird, opportunistic birding and insistence to the…
Leave the leaves is a rallying cry and campaign to land managers to let nature’s mulch, fallen leaves, do the work of insulating the soil, providing habitat for ground dwelling and feeding animals, and returning nutrients to the soil. In Washington Square Park, leaves that fall on lawns are collected, mechanically clipped, and reallocated throughout…
Our lead photo is of the two tuliptrees in the park. The picture was taken on November 15, 2021 and shows the trees slightly post-peak foliage. Although there are still green leaves, some of the colored leaves are dried but persisting on the trees. We are monitoring the tree on the right year-round as part…
As always, we’ve got “feather and foliage” news. On October 16th, we hosted a Birdtober 2021 count. The group observed 21 species including yellow-bellied sapsucker, flicker, ruby-crowned kinglet, various thrushes and sparrows, towhee, and palm warbler. Thank you to the folks who participated in this collabirdtive event. The park is still full of birds. We…