Inside The New York Botanical Garden
Posted in Photography on December 23 2011, by Ann Rafalko
In the depths of winter, sometimes all I want to do is hunker down in a warm place and read poetry. In February 2011, I took refuge in one particular poem by William Carlos Williams, that helped me find new beauty in the Garden’s winter landscape.
Posted in Photography on October 31 2011, by Ann Rafalko
Trick? Or treat?
Great-Horned Owl in the Thain Family Forest (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)
Posted in Around the Garden on October 28 2011, by Ann Rafalko
Join Debbie Becker on one of her weekly bird walks this Saturday, and you just might see more sweet little phoebes at the Garden.
Northern Phoebe on Twin Lakes (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)
Posted in Around the Garden, Birding Bite on September 1 2011, by Ann Rafalko
Debbie Becker’s ever-popular Bird Walks return this Saturday with a hunt for those tiny gems of the garden; hummingbirds! The walks begin at 11 a.m., leaving from the Reflecting Pool in front of the Visitor Center. A limited number of binoculars are available for loan at the Visitor Center Information Booth, so if you have a pair, bring them along, and be sure to wear sturdy shoes.
The diverse habitats of the Botanical Garden offer bird-watchers a chance to see dozens of species of birds throughout the year. The Garden’s magnificent 250-acres of outdoor gardens and collections, open meadows, native forest, and waterbodies such as the Bronx River and Twin Lakes entice birds migrating through the area in spring and fall and those that stay to nest in summer or to spend the winter.
We talked to some visitors and staff about their favorite birds and why they love birding at the Garden.
Upcoming Bird Walk themes include:
– In Pursuit of Hummingbirds September 10
– Great Hawk Migration September 24
– In Search of the Great Horned Owls November 19
– Annual Bird Count December 10
– Great Backyard Bird Count February 18
Tell us (by leaving a comment): What is your favorite bird? Have you had a great birding experience at the Garden?
Posted in Wildlife on July 26 2011, by Thomas Andres
| Thomas C. Andres is an Honorary Research Associate at the Garden. |
Humans weren’t the only ones suffering during last week’s record-breaking heatwave. The Garden’s plants and animals were also feeling the heat. And while the plants relied upon human-intervention to maintain their cool, the Garden’s feathered and fluffy residents were able to take matters into their own hands, paws, and wings.
Coping Mechanism One: Cool Off the Belly On a Mossy Tree Trunk
Eastern Gray Squirrel
Coping Mechanism Two: Sip a Mimosa
Tiger Swallowtail feeding on the nectar of a Mimosa tree, Albizia julibrissin
Posted in Video, Wildlife on June 3 2011, by Rustin Dwyer
The Garden is an oasis for birds and birders alike.
We talked to some visitors and staff about their favorite birds and why they love birding at the Garden. Take a look, and then tell us (by leaving a comment): What is your favorite bird? Have you had a great birding experience at the Garden?
Want to learn more about birding at the Garden? Then join Debbie Becker for one of her free, weekly Saturday bird walks! To join the walk, meet at the Reflecting Pool near the Leon Levy Visitor Center before 11 a.m.
Posted in Photography on May 27 2011, by Ann Rafalko
I see you, little bird!
Baby Bird (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)
Posted in Photography, Wildlife on May 18 2011, by Ann Rafalko
NYBG Member and photographer Laura Meyers sent this picture in to us. She says, “This nest is right off the bridge between the Twin Lakes. Took the picture this Friday, May 13. The Garden looks soooo beautiful this time of year.”
Thanks for the picture and the kind words Laura!
See more of Laura’s fabulous photos on her website: www.laurameyers.com and on her blog: Bird’s Eyes and Butterflies.
Do you have a photo you’d like to share with us? You can send it to us at blog AT nybg DOT org, or you can submit it through our tumblr blog here.
Posted in Photography on May 9 2011, by Ann Rafalko
Mallards are common. But when you look closely, they’re anything but.
Duck Nap (Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen)
Posted in Birding Bite on April 29 2011, by Ann Rafalko
 |
Debbie Becker leads a free bird walk at the Garden every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., beginning at the Reflecting Pool in the Leon Levy Visitor Center. Photos by Debbie Becker. |
Every April, birders’ fingers start to twitch. They step a bit more lightly and are strangely polite. They are gracious to their loved ones, work harder than ever at their jobs, and make sure everyone is satisfied and happy. They whistle while they work, and perhaps when no one is looking, they will take a cloth and carefully wipe down the lens of their Nikon Monarch binoculars. At night, while everyone is sleeping, they secretly open Peterson’s Guide to Birds East of the Rockies, slip a CD into the player, and sit quietly listening, careful not to wake anyone, to the bird calls emanating from the speakers. It is April, which is followed, naturally, by May, and that means only one thing to the obsessed birdwatcher: The warblers are coming! The warblers are coming!
Suddenly, birdwatchers’ wives are widows, children wonder what happened to their parents, teachers are marking students absent, and employers anxiously eye the empty desks of their employees.
I know birders who plan entire vacations around the last two weeks in April and the first two weeks in May. They don’t get into a plane or drive across the country. They don’t even visit a beach. The birders park themselves in The New York Botanical Garden, Central Park, Pelham Bay Park, Riverside Park, Van Cortlandt Park, Rye Nature Center, or anywhere else that is green, and then they wait. They spend all year anticipating the spring migration of the warblers.
Warblers are tiny colorful birds that migrate from South America up to the Canadian border during our spring. Their brilliant plumage is for breeding purposes, but not only do they attract a mate, they also attract the eyes of millions of birdwatchers as they work their way up the eastern seaboard. The Garden is a flyway for these little critters, and birders turn out in the hundreds to see the orange glow of the Blackburnian warbler or the brilliant yellow of the Prothonotary warbler. The Black-throated blue warbler is majestically blue and a woodland warbler. The male’s call is hypnotic and can be heard from quite a distance away. The chatty Common Yellow throat and Yellow warbler often nest at the Botanical Garden and can be heard chanting their mating song while working the new maple leaves for insects.
The Pine, Palm, and Prairie are early warblers and can easily be seen before all the trees leaf out. This year, NYBG was lucky to have an early Prothonotary warbler show up at Twin Lakes on April 14th. The sunny yellow bird hung around for about a week and then continued his migration north. Many birders crowded the banks of Twin Lakes scouting out the precious little bird, and all were rewarded for their efforts as the Prothontary put on a spectacular show.
So far we have seen Northern Waterthrush, Black and White, Yellow Rumped, Palm, Pine, and Prairie warblers. Other spring migrants include: cat birds, orioles, kingbirds, indigo buntings, gnatcatcher, kinglets, vireos, tanangers and thrush.
Spring is alive at the Garden with song and color, so come join us as we rejoice and bathe in the warmer temperatures and put the snowy, cold winter of 2010/2011 behind us.