A big thank you to Mike Lefebvre (on the right)for leading the Celery Farm walk this a.m.

Learned so much. And wait till you see the next Monday Morning (Murder?) Mystery.

The Monday bonus mystery asked:

Is this what I think it is?

If it is, then it has one of the most (appropriately( disgusting names ever...)

From High Mountain today....

I figured it was either Colonel Mustard scat or Dog Vomit Slime Mold. iNaturalist said the latter, and so did  Carol Flanagan.

Kudos to Carol.

Meet at the Green Way entrance to the Celery Farm on Saturday, September 18, at 9 a.m. for a plant identification walk led by Mike Lefebvre, who completed a compilation of plants at the Celery Farm earlier this summer.

I will sell 2022 Celery Farm calendars before the walk. $15 each.

The rain date is the following Saturday, Sept. 25. Free and open to the public.

Had a delightful afternoon at State Line Hawk Watch yesterday, even if the Broad-wings ignored my memo and stayed away in droves. Highlights included nine Bald Eagles and 25 American Kestrels. Plus lots of Monarch butterflies and a skink or two.

(A big thanks to everyone with eyes on the skies!)

Here's more pix and the list:

My "Bird Watcher" column in The Record today is all about the current broad-winged hawk migration, and why now is prime time.

The star of the column is Karl Soehnlein's photo of a broad-winged hawk over the State Line Lookout in Alpine.

(Thanks, Karl!)

You can read the column here:

Attention, all Broad-winged Hawks!

I am the official counter at the State Line Hawk Watch from 12:30 to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 16., and in my Bird Watcher column for The Record on that day, I say you guys might be flying over in large numbers.

Could you throw me a bone (as Dr. Evil used to say) and fly over the Palisades at the Stateline Lookout on Thursday?

We offer lots of updrafts and beautiful views of the Hudson River -- free of charge.

If you know any humans, please tell them to be on hand as well. We offer great views, local Peregrines, a snack bar with restrooms and -- if you hawks cooperate -- lots of raptors as well.

I could use their help in spotting and counting, as I cannot count above 10 without taking my shoes off.

See you there!

                                                                                                                      Photo credit: Friends EBEC

Spotted Lanternflies are being seen more and more in our region. I hope you don't see any near you. If you do, kill 'em.

They multiply faster than Albert Einstein.

Here are several informative webpages:

All about them

Why you need to obliterate them

One way to kill them

You can learn more in a Rutgers Zoom presentation on Sept 20. You can read about the presentation here.

By the way, I hear that praying mantises and catbirds are the lanternflies' top predators.

If you haven't checked out the updated Fyke Nature Association website yet, what are you waiting for?

Tom Mitchell has done a nifty makeover, adding all sorts of content.

New sections include an honor roll of long-time Fykers like Stiles and Lillian Thomas as well as Celery Farm contributors and trail maintainers, and a history of the preserve -- reprinted and updated a tad from a chapter in the book I did with Jerry Barrack, In the Presence of Nature.

You can see the honor roll here. Please point any omissions. It's a work in progress.

You can see the history section here.

The updated Frequently Asked Questions are here.

You can see the YouTube interview with the two women who grew up next to the Celery Farms in the 1950s here.

(Thanks, Tom!)

Sept. 18 (Saturday)

Meet at the Green Way entrance to the Celery Farm on Saturday, September 18, at 9 a.m. for a plant identification walk led by Mike Lefebvre, who completed a compilation of plants at the Celery Farm earlier this summer.

The rain date is the following Saturday, Sept. 25. Free and open to the public.

Is this what I think it is?

If it is, then it has one of the most (appropriately( disgusting names ever...

From High Mountain today....

Beautiful day, great events, terrific walks -- all for free. Who could ask for more?

Gabriel Willow was the keynote speaker. Steve Quinn got a much-deserved award. Giselle Smisko did a live-raptor presentation, the NJSEA's Drew McQuade talked about the Meadowlands Breeding Bird Atlas, and the BCAS's Don Torino led a plant walk and kept everything running.

(And a big shout-out to all the BCAS volunteers!)

You can read The Record's story here.

After I saw a Spotted Lanternfly at High Mountain last week, I started giving unusual insects a second look.

Saw this guy near the house. I think I know what it is, and I wish I'd killed it (or tried to).

I post this in part as a warning to be on the lookout for strange bugs.

What is it, and why is it bad?

Had a nice afternoon at the Hawk Watch yesterday. Highlights included a fly-by from seven Blackhawks helicopters, a rescue of an injured hiker by boat, several Monarchs and an assortment of raptors, including the local Peregrines. Two Spotted Lanternflies.

Heres' the count and an assortment of pix...