My latest column for The Record today is about where you can go birding at the Shore this summer when it's too cool or too cloudy to go to the beach.

The link is here.

Not sure how I got this, but am running out of room in the house and thought someone else might like it.

It's 16 inches by 14 inches including frame. Not sure of artist -- Karen [Something.] ....   Quite nice,

I like how the stick pile has vegetation...

Free to a good home. FC,FS.

When Elaine Kiernan Gold, historic preservationist for Bergen County, recently visited the Fell House, she had a surprise observer.

This Turkey Vulture was looking in a second-floor window. (Thanks, Elaine!)

I stopped by the Brotherton house sale last week to see if I could find something to remember John by, and came across this incredible Christmas Bird Count map featuring the Ramsey circle.

The map, though musty, is a glimpse of our region before it got developed to a fare-thee-well. The map includes a ZIPcode for Hagstrom, so it can't be older than 1963.

Fyke got the map scanned, and it's now on view on the Fyke website.

You can see it here, and see how undeveloped this area was 50 years ago. You can enlare the map and see amazing details.

Does anyone know how old it is, and who drew the circle, etc., and who did the lettering?

As many folks who've been to the CF of late have noticed, there's a young Black-crowned Night Heron hanging around the Warden's Watch peninsula, often with two adult BCNHs nearby.

The question is, Was the young BCNH hatched here? Your thoughts most welcome.

Responding to my earlier post about the young heron, Barbara Dilger writes:

I just read your blog on your young BCNH, nice picture of your young bird. White's Pond in Waldwick used to have the BCNHs and the YCNHs every year, until they killed off the crayfish with some treatments to the water.

One day, I had all four herons there, The GB, Green, Black and Yellow - before the water treatment and the building of new homes near the waterfall.

I found the quickest way to tell them apart as young birds was the feathers on the lower sides. The YCNH has white vertical lines that edge the feathers like an outline and the BCNH has more of white
blotches.

Two pictures of the Waldwick young herons of the Yellow and Black variety.

The YCNHs  have not returned the last two years, but the BCNHs has come back every year. It is sad, as the YCNHs nested in Boro Park for many years, they are missed.

(Thanks, Barbara! Her Waldwick night heron photos are below.)