Nature Note: A Naturalist's Travels Through Nature

All puns aside, this is a post about the Whiskered Tern ( Chlidonias hybridus ) (sort of) and my visit to Cape May on Sunday. After working all last week and seeing report after report of this Code 5 Whiskered Tern at the state park at Cape May Point, I made the 2 1/2 hour journey from Horsham to Cape May and started my quest for the tern. After arriving at 10:45am and asking around at the hawkwatch platform, I was dismayed to find out that it had been visiting regularly in the afternoon instead. Despite this setback, I decided to comb the park for some year birds instead. I didn't have to wait long as I secured two Little Blue Herons ( Egretta caerulea ) and a Pied-billed Grebe ( Podilymbus podiceps ) on Bunker Pond, as well as a Blue-winged Teal ( Anas discors ) on the nearby ponds. The skies and bushes were filled with the sounds of nature. Overhead migrating raptors like Ospreys ( Pandion haliaetus ), an immature Bald Eagle ( Haliaeetus leucocephalus ), and soaring Turkey Vultu...

As the first week at the Outdoor School* ended and the weekend arrived, I thought about what to write about this week. I had made it a goal to learn some common night-singing insect calls by visiting the Songs of Insects website and while I haven't done that yet, Sunday isn't over either. After returning from Giant to get some milk, I went for a walk to find some subjects for this weeks post. I decided to settle on three invasive plants that have appeared on the property over the summer. We were introduced to the first during orientation while walking from the group challenge field over the Pennypack Creek that runs through the property. The plant's huge leaves were what surprised me the most, as well as seeming so tropically out of place with the mid-Atlantic environment they were now living in. Initially we were stumped as to their identity, but after one of my bosses did some research, he determined that they were Empress or Princess Trees. Their scientific name is Pa...

As my first weekend in Horsham continues, I took a trip to two nearby reservoirs to try my luck at finding some migrating waterfowl and shorebirds. It has been an interesting transition with having gotten a bigger room than I had last spring*, nearly getting Poison Ivy ( Toxicodendron radicans ) the first day here, dealing with itchy bug bite ridden legs from having refused bug spray at a barbeque on Labor Day, and anticipating the prospecting of using washing machines that I'm fairly certain use a type of detergent that I'm allergic to. Other than that, it's been smooth sailing. As I left this morning, I drove along the familiar routes that I'd taken in the spring to a local spot called Bradford Dam Recreation Area. Located about 5 minutes up the road from where I'm currently living, it's where I saw my first Bobolinks ( Dolichonyx oryzivorus ) and Broad-winged Hawk ( Buteo platypterus ) of the year. As I trod near to the pond, I looked at the murky pond weed...