The weather was iffy but the turnout was great -- especially all the families and Monarchs.

Congratulations to Bergen County Audubon Society and the NJ Sports and Exposition Authority for an excellent event, with lots of informative walks and talks and plenty of kid-friendly activities.

On a purely insectival level,  got great looks at a Snowberry Clear-wing Moth, a Red Admiral and a Cicada Killer Wasp (but no cicadas). (Click images to enlarge).

I am sorry to note the passing of John Bajor 1929-2021),  one of the last Celery Farmers from the days when Allendale had produce farms.

You can read an obituary here. As the obit mentions, "John was the second youngest of 8 growing up on the Bajor Celery Farm which also raised cows, chickens, rabbits and pigs. He served his country faithfully during the Korean War primarily stationed in Japan and later went on to have a successful career at Ford Motor Company in Mahwah, NJ for over 25 years..."

Last winter I did a Zoom talk about the Bajor Farm with John's two nieces, Patricia Cooper and Marie Breen.

You can get an idea of what it was like in the old days in this YouTube recording of the talk, featuring lots of photos from the Bajor farm from the 1950s:

On Monday I wrote:

In honor of National Moth Week this week, can you identify this guy, photographed in Franklin Lakes? (Thanks, Sally!)

More on National Moth Week here.

Denise Farrell came through: "Blinded Sphinx. Also called Blind-eyed Sphinx." (Thanks, Denise!)

More on Blinded Sphinx Moths here.

Above is a video of a Raptor Trust staffer releasing Susan the Red-shoulder from Allendale on Thursday. Susan was taken to The Raptor Trust after falling out of her nest as a nestling. The Raptor Trust treated and banded her.

Above is a video of Stiles Thomas releasing Laura the Red-shoulder in March of 2008. Susan had been taken to The Raptor Trust after flying into a window. The Raptor Trust treated and banded her.

Above left is Courtney last week. Above right is Susan two days ago. (Click on images to enlarge.)

P.S. The Lee Memorial Library has a copy of Survival, the book several of us did a decade ago about the Allendale Red-shoulders. Or you can download a free e-book copy here:

Download Survival-compressed1(1)

The young Red-shouldered Hawk that fell out of its Allendale nest in late May was released at The Raptor Trust near the Great Swamp after a 56-day rehab for a lung problem that likely occurred when it fell.

(The young hawk's sibling fledged and is doing well in Allendale.)

The Raptor Trust not only treated the young Red-shoulder with TLC, but the bird rehabilitation and education center also leg-banded the young Red-shoulder with Federal  Band no. 1266-00175.

Judging from the large band size, The Raptor Trust believes that the Red-shoulder is a female.  Since the sibling appears to be of a similar size, we figure the sibling is a female as well.

The Allendale Red-shoulder was released at The Raptor Trust with a second-year Red-shoulder from Chatham that had been rehabbed.

It was thought that the two may have bonded, and there was some concern about releasing the younger hawk back in Allendale so near the downtown area with its automobile traffic and other challenges, so the two were released together within a minute of each other at The Raptor Trust.

Both landed in nearby trees within shouting distance of one another.

Red-shouldered Hawks in New Jersey are endangered when nesting. The release of the Allendale Red-shoulder and her rehab mate was a bit of welcome news at a time when bird populations are in decline.

In honor of Allendale resident Susan Bailey, who first saw the nestling on the ground near its nest tree, we are naming Red-shoulder No. 1266-00175 "Susan." (Photo of fallen nestling Susan at right.)

In honor of Susan's neighbor Courtney, who also helped us monitor the nest, we are naming the sibling "Courtney."

Their entire neighborhood has been wonderful.

Naming the two young Red-shoulders is a tradition started by none of than Marsh Warden Emeritus Stiles Warden.

Red-shoulders have nested in Allendale and nearby Ramsey for two decades, with uneven success. The Raptor Trust has treated a few over the years.

In March 2008, a resident in Ramsey very near Allendale reported that a Red-shouldered Hawk had flown into a window there. Stiles and I took the dazed hawk to ... The Raptor Trust, where she was banded with Federal Band No. 2206-27509.

Stiles named her Laura after the woman who found her on the ground. We maintain that tradition by naming the two young Red-shoulders for Susan and Courtney.

We cannot thank The Raptor Trust enough!!

(And a big thank you to fellow Celery Farm Deputy Marsh Warden Gaby Schmitt, who rescued the fallen Red-shoulder and took it to The Raptor Trust.)

P.S. The Lee Memorial Library has a copy of Survival, the book several of us did a decade ago about the Allendale Red-shoulders. Or you can download a free e-book copy here:

Download Survival-compressed1(1)

Tomorrow on the blog: A very short video of Susan the hawk's release -- plus a golden oldie video of Stiles Thomas releasing Laura (the hawk).