Moth Night is canceled tonight due to the uncertainty of the forecast, coupled with the wet ground and other factors.

It cannot be rescheduled due to other commitments.

I do have a pint of fermented moth bait if anybody is interested. Free to a good home.

Hope to see you next year!

I got a text from Donna at the Franklin Lakes Animal Hospital yesterday, asking if I could transport a young American Kestrel to The Raptor Trust.

Apparently some well-meaning soul had found the young falcon and called animal rescue in Passaic County, separating the young bird  from its parents and nest.  

American Kestrels are birds of Special Concern in New Jersey, and I was happy to give this young guy a lift.

I drove the falcon down to The Raptor Trust, along with a young Mourning Dove.

More about American Kestrels here. More about The Raptor Trust here.

I hope to post an update at some point with more information as to where it was found, and how it is doing. 

(Thanks to The Raptor Trust, Donna and the Franklin Lakes Animal Hospital!)

 STAY TUNED: A Decision about tonight's Moth Night at the Fell House will be made at noon today (Sunday). If forecasts for thunderstorms this evening continue, the event will be canceled.

Thursday's fifth annual Moth Night at DeKorte Park in the Meadowlands was another success, with enthusiastic crowds, an informative talk by National Moth week co-founder Elena Tartaglia and even some guest appearances by several moths  -- all with the Manhattan skyline in the background.

If my laptop hadn't crashed, I would have included some pix of the little guys.

Check this blog for possible weather cancellation. Lightning or thunder cancel.

Fyke Nature Association and the fine folks at the Fell House are among the thousands of individuals and scores of organizations around the world participating in the second annual National Moth Week this week.

On Sunday, July 31, from 8:30 to 10 p.m., we're hosting a free Moth Ball at the Fell House, featuring several moth-attracting lights (both mercury vapor and back lights) -- and some nifty moths dancing under the bright lights.

We might even have "Mothra vs. Godzilla" playing in the background. More info about National Moth Week follows.

A big tip o' the hat to Gaby Schmitt for all the continuing work she has done to clear the excess vegetation in front of the Pirie-Mayhood Tower so some pretty cool plants -- Butttonbush and Swamp Milkweed, for example -- can get some sun and room to grow.

Gaby writes:

For me, it's an enjoyable, ongoing project - especially when we can now see the bees (go pollinators!) and Common Yellow-throats in the swamp roses.

I'm hoping the uncovered plants/blossoms will also attract more varieties of butterflies. We've seen plenty of Cabbage Whites and the occasional Red Admiral.

And, a final note: maybe I'm tuned in a bit more to swampies now, for I've never noticed how many there are on the opposite shore, on either side of the mallard box. So lovely!

Thanks, Gaby!