Yesterday I took a morning walk in Green-Wood Cemetery and today I walked around Prospect, early, before the crowds arrived. I live very close to both places, so I tend to go there with just what I need, keys, a phone, my camera, and binoculars. So more often than not, I don't take on the look of your typical Brooklynite (whatever that look might be). This weekend I also added my new hiking boots to the mix, to break them in for a future adventure in my future.
When donning binoculars and looking like you're on safari in and urban park, folks often ask you what you're looking for. A gentleman asked me just that today, "What kind of birds are you looking for today?" I told him anything that comes my way, I was just out to enjoy the morning- but I made sure to mention I also had my eyes peeled for rabbits, turtles, frogs, and butterflies. He replied to me, "Amazing, isn't it, all right here in the middle of Brooklyn!" We bid each other a great rest of the day, and he's absolutely right- the nature here in the middle of Brooklyn always puts a smile on my face, it is amazing!
Enjoy the sights!
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| A cabbage white feeding on flowers at Green-Wood cemetery. I noticed the cemetery added more beehives-- I would hope they add more native plantings to help the bees out. |
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| A species of skipper butterfly extending its proboscis. |
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| The same, little dainty skipper as above. |
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| One of the many mockingbirds in the cemetery- this one proclaiming its ownership over Hazel Path. |
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| You can always guarantee a decent mockingbird photo in Green-Wood. |
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| T first I thought I was looking at an avian design on a headstone... |
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| Nope-- just two freshly fledged mourning doves! This one was a bit smaller than... |
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| ...The other one. |
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| Baby pigeons and doves are the most awkward looking things as babies. |
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| A blue dasher dragonfly suns itself on the Dell Water. |
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| No, you're not seeing double-- the Eastern Amberwing shadow is made lifelike by the amber coloration of their wings. |
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| A large bullfrog in the Dell Water that I could sneak up on to get a decent picture of. |
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| On my walk back, the young doves gathered on Daniel L. Starr's Headstone. |
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| A silver-spotted skipper atop a quiet Lookout Hill this morning, in Prospect Park. While the bird activity has died down, the insect activity has been on the rise. |
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| An Eastern Cottontail and I engaged in a staring contest to see who would move first. I won. |
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| At the upper pool, while the sun was not in my favor, the activity was-- A mother wood duck and her chick, resting on a rock were visited by another creature. |
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| A red eared slider was looking to come up and bask on the rock. The young duck was not willing to let this happen. |
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| Mom provided back-up, but the turtle was persistent. If there is one thing you should know about turtles, it's that they ALWAYS get their way, or they will die trying. |
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| Wood duck mama does not seem to keen on sharing with the slider. |
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| An odd little line-up. |
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| I feel like that look of the wood duck, is the universal look of "What the ----?!" |
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| One of these things is not like the other things... |
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| In the end, the odd turtle out won. |
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| The upper pool was filled with wood ducks... |
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| A male up front, a female to the right, and two immature males to the left. |
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| A female with an interesting family, one much older chick (right behind her) and the rest are all of the same age, and fairly young. |
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| A bull frog on the lower pool... who probably eats baby wood ducks. |
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| Found a freshly bathed robin, with a slight underbite on the shores across from the boathouse. |
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| Attempting to dry itself? |
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| A grey catbird lit by the reflective waters of the Lullwater. |
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| I really like these guys, they are the get-up in your face, kind of bird, that can still sing a pretty song. |
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| And they have perfected the head-tilt. |
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| One scraggly looking butterfly before heading home! |
