"...Bully bird species are naturally more aggressive and territorial about their feeding areas." (Tuesday's Truths WK 204)

Today I'm offering my 204th segement of my Tuesday's Truths series where I am pointing out this fact: No bird is intentionally cruel." 

But did you know, "bully bird species are naturally more aggressive and territorial about their feeding areas, protecting food sources exclusively for their own use." For instance, "House sparrows, often feed in flocks and can crowd out other birds so more species cannot access the seed. Some bully birds will even guard a feeder they perceive as theirs and will attack or chase away any other birds that try to feed." 

In the picture seen directly above (which was taken in my garden during the 2-1-2021 nor-easter), the sparrow at the left seems to be the one guarding the feeder. The quotes are from an article in The Spruce (which you can read by clickin here). As for sparrows, they are one of many bird types featured within my three volume book series, Words In Our Beak.

By the way, sparrows are featured in my three volume book series, Words In Our Beak.

Sunday Brunch in my Garden

This past Monday, here in NYC, we had a nor'easter (which I wrote about in a recent post here on Blogger). Now, six days later wet, heavy snow has been falling since early morning but this did not deter avian creatures from visiting my place, as evidenced in the photos atop this entry.

Friday's Follow-Up Re A Visiting Jay

Atop this entry is a copy of a Mutts cartoon created by Patrick McDonnell. It was initially posted in celebration of the 2018 Winter Solstice and I thought of the sentiment expressed by Mooch during the nor'easter which occured in NYC this past Monday (2-1-2021).

As I said in my blog post about the event (which I published the next day) an array of bird types (including a lone American robin, several Dark-eyed juncoes, a number of House sparrows, an entourage of Mourning doves, and a lone Northern mockingbird) spent a lot of time in my garden during this storm. 

The day following the storm, which happened to be Groundhog Day, a Blue jay stopped by my place.

2021's Ground Hog Day + NYC's 1st Nor'easter for this Year (Tuesday's Truths WK 203)

Results are in! A couple of hours prior to this seemingly pensive Blue jay (seen in the picture directly above) alighting on the branches of the smoke bush that I have in my garden, NYC's spokes-groundhog predicted an early spring. However, Phil, the spokes-groundhog for nearby Pennsylvania predicts six more weeks of winter.

Squirrel Appreciation Day was 1/21/2019 (Throwback Thursday)

It is has been one month since the official date for 2019's Squirrel Appreciation Day occurred but it's not necessary to wait for such a holiday or for it to be Squirrel Awareness Month, which occurs in October) to appreciate this animal! These creatures are fascinating to observe at any time of the year.

April 2018's Last Day: Was T.S. Eliot right?

As April comes to a close for the year 2018, I'm thinking about the T.S. Eliot quote that's featured in the image atop this entry. Most folks know April is a month associated with the adage, "April showers bring May flowers."

However, it's been my experince in terms of my rooftop garden that April showers TAKE AWAY May flowers, which is something I've discussed in prior entries here on Blogger, including ones which you may reference by clicking here as well as here.

These past thirty days have been trying times (weather wise) for the flora I grow here and two weeks ago, Monday, April the 16th was certainly no exception. NYC's April showers on that day were more like April's torrential downpours.

Rainy Days are FOR THE BIRDS!

IMAGE CREDIT

As far as I know, birds (other than the ones in the Peanuts comic strip atop this entry) never have to use an umbrella when the rain is falling.

In the first volume of the Words In Our Beak series, which is pictured below...

SEE PRESS RELEASE

... Cam, the protagonist (who is the cardinal featured on the book's cover and in the following pictures taken in my rooftop garden, where her story is set) explains that the reason birds tolerate rain is because they have "something" on their feathers that makes rain drops just slide right off.

CAM, THE NARRATOR OF "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

CAM, THE NARRATOR OF "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

CAM, THE NARRATOR OF "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

Cam goes on to say that this "something" on the feathers "is an oil that coats feathers and provides waterproofing, which is important since the only thing worse than being cold, is being cold and wet."

This Wednesday's Wisdom is for Snowmen (And it's from Linus!)

Today, March 21st, marked the first full day of spring for 2018, the season "officially" began yesterday at 12:15 PM in NYC, but you would never know it from our weather, as I mentioned in yesterday's blog post.

And today, on our first full day of spring for the 2018 season, we are having our fourth nor'Easter since the new year began (a newspaper article re the event can be found by clicking here).

However, in spite of the inclement weather, I took a walk within nearby Central Park, and came upon a lone black squirrel (pictured directly above) nibbling on an abandoned snowball. On another side of the park, towards the lake, I came upon a snow-person holding a fishing pole.

The creation can be seen in the next picture (where the pole is indicated by a red arrow that I affixed to my photo).

Upon my seeing this snow creature, I recalled a Peanuts comic strip in which Linus had created a snowman standing on his head (and I've posted a copy of the strip directly below).

This strip was published 1-6-1975.

It's officially the 1st day of Spring in NYC but... (Tuesdays Truths WK 76)

This particular Tuesday marks the seventy-sixth week for my Tuesday's Truths series and it coincides with the first day of spring for 2018, but apparently NYC did not get the memo! Our fourth Nor' Easter is due in tonight. In any event, the silent video atop this entry (from Mutts) honors the season. I hope you enjoy it, dear reader, and that you have a happy spring!

Friday Follow-Up

According to Snoopy, "We know that Spring is neat when it begins to get windy," as evidenced in the Peanuts Comic Strip posted atop of this blog entry. As of this posting, the official onset of spring is still twelve days away, but the tulips in my rooftop garden apparently having gotten the memo.

Oh, the weather outside's been frightful! (BUT....)

The image atop this entry was taken by Juan V when he was here eleven days ago on May 9th, on his third visit for the 2017 growing season. I featured it in an entry on TLLG's FB page at that time; and I discussed certain attributes of the H.F. Young Clematis vine. This particular vine climbs up a pole which in the northwest corner of my rooftop garden. It produces strikingly beautiful purple flowers which can be seen in Juan's image. Moreover, I have a number of close-ups of this vine's blooms within my May 9th entry here on Blogger. Unfortunately, only four days after Juan worked with me in my garden, and after my publishing posts re the flowers of my H.F. Young clematis, a Nor'Easter struck NYC and surrounding areas.

Last Saturday, May 13th 2016, "a moisture-packed coastal storm that hit the New Jersey region on Saturday dumped almost a month's worth of rain in just one day in parts of the area." I've been try to find out how much rain fell in the NYC area.

The 2 WK (almost) Anniversary of STELLA

American robin

As of today, March the 27th 2017,  it will be one week since the "bombogenesis" nor'easter (snowstorm) named, Stella, did her (ahem) "magic" in many parts of the northeastern part of the United States. The snow which fell during her time in NYC, where I live and have my rooftop garden, was not our first snowfall for March of 2017.

The picture atop this entry, which was taken in my place, shows an American robin alighting upon the branches of my kiwi vines, during a snowfall that occurred here on a little over three weeks ago on the10th of March. Some folks in NYC found it unnerving because during the month of February, we had some very warm days, which followed our groundhog's prediction of an early spring.

However, that aforementioned snowfall during the month of March, when an early spring had been predicted, was not a first for NYC.

In his mini-essay, TOMORROW SNOW,  (which was published on March the 20th in 1948), E.B. White discussed this phenomenon.

Because I grew up in Illinois, I'm no stranger to snow occurring during the month of March. And, I do recall some severe snow storms happening in this month. However, I never got to observe the antics of wild birds as I did during Stella. I've written about it in my recent entries here on Blogger, which I posted on March 14th, March 15th, March 16th, and, March 18th.

Today I'd like to share something new that I learned re the small songbirds (who are also called perching birds or passerines): "They have very little feeling in their feet because their feet have few nerves and blood vessels. This adaptation allows songbirds to land on cold perches such as wires when the weather is frosty." 

During Stella, I certainly observed a number of small songbirds (including an American robin), who seemed to cope well in terms of having their tootsies tolerating the elements.

American robin

American robin

This continued to be the case five days after most of the snow from Stella had melted, but stubborn patches of frozen-snow remained.

American robin

Wednesday's Wisdom: Robert Burns nailed it! ("The best laid schemes of mice and men...")

The picture atop this blog entry is a screenshot of an image that was included in my newsfeed for my Facebook Page for The Last Leaf Gardener.

It came from the FB Page for Gowanus Nursery in Brooklyn; a place where I have gotten a number of the trees (as well as other flora varieties) that grow in my rooftop garden, which is still in a state of winter-to-spring-limbo, as evidenced by the following image.

This photograph was taken by Kreshnik Vushaj. It is a picture which I included in yesterday's entry here on Blogger.

Like the folks at Gowanus nursery, who had scheduled a re-opening (after their winter hiatus) for March 18th 2017; I've been anticipating de-winterizing my rooftop garden; and I had planned to do so with Juan V, a few days before Gowanus's intended date.

However STELLA (the "bombogenesis" nor'easter), decided to visit our area causing all of us to rethink our gardening plans! Juan V and I have rescheduled the date to de-winterize, and Gowanus has rescheduled their season opener, which I saw in my newsfeed; and have posted below.

As you can see, they now hope to open one week later than planed. Juan V and I have also opted to reschedule one week later than planed! We hope to de-winterize a week from today, but from the looks of my garden, as seen in Kreshnik Vushaj's photo, I'm not sure if the weather will be in line with our plans. And last I heard, we are ruled by weather, it is not ruled by us!

So, while I'm hunkered down as far as gardening is concerned, let me take the opportunity to show you some aspects of my garden. I am thankful to Kreshnik Vushaj for my being able to do this, for he surprised me by emailing me a few more views of my wonderful garden.

Here are the copies of Kreshnik Vushaj's photographs, which I've marked up with arrows and numbers in order to tell you what's what.

The arrow marked with numeral one is referring to my Canadian Palm Tree, seen in a solo photo-op below.

The picture of my Canadian Palm Tree is an image I've included in a number of entries here on Blogger, but thanks to Vusha, you can now have a sense of where it stands in relation to the flora and objects which I have here. But getting back to the aforementioned image taken by Kreshnik Vushaj, the arrow indicated with the numeral two, is my bird bath. I have to really monitor the conditions of the water in that bath, for as you can surmise, frozen temps might crack the bird bath; as it is a ceramic piece.

Numbers three-five indicate where I have some of my bird-feeders, while number six indicates the location of much of my flora, huddled together near the building's wall, where they are somewhat protected from the high winds. The next  picture by Kreshnik Vushaj,

shows my place from a different angle. Once again, numeral one indicates the Canadian Palm Tree, the number two indicates my bird bath, and the number three indicates one of my bird feeders (the one which accommodates whole peanuts). However in this image, the number four indicates a small bowl holding water for my visiting birds. The water in both the bird bath and this bowl can easily freeze over in these conditions, so I have to monitor it carefully, which I do, as water is very important to a bird's survival. The number five in this image, as well as in Vushaj's other image, indicates my bird feeder that I call a Monopoly Feeder. I gave it that name because it looks like one of the trinkets from the infamous board game. And, again, as it did in Vushaj's previous image, the number six indicates the location of much of my flora, huddled together near the building's wall.

In Vushaj's next photo,

the ceramic bird bath is noted by the number one; and one of my whole peanut feeders is referenced by the number two. Number three is referencing the birds' water bowl; number four points to the Monopoly feeder; number five indicates my huddled plants; and, the number six is  pointing at my Canadian Palm Tree.

And with that, I'll leave you with an unmarked photograph by Kreshnik Vusha,

and a recommendation that should you ever need any painting done or interior construction contract related services, contact Kreshnik Vushaj's company Tani & Nick Painting Corp.

I live in a rental apartment, so I have not personally seen Kreshnik Vushaj's work close-up, but I've seen it from the distance of my rooftop to the building he has been working on. Moreover, if Kreshnik Vushaj can take such detailed photos, as evidenced in his pictures here, I imagine his attention to detail in assignments is unsurpassed.

Upon reflection, had Juan V and I  been able to do our de-winterizing when we had planned, I might not have had the opportunity to ask Kreshnik Vushaj to take some images for me. I did on a chance encounter, knowing he has access to interesting vantage points of my garden; as evidenced here.

Therefore I cannot be too disappointed re postponements for as Robert Burns knew, “The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft a-gley.”

Tuesday's Truths WK 33: STELLA's occurrence was one week ago!

Welcome to Week Thirty-Three of my Tuesday's Truths series. As of today, March the twenty-first, it will be one week since the "bombogenesis" Nor'Easter, named, STELLA, hit NYC and much of the Eastern seaboard of our country.

You can most likely imagine the consequences of a storm of such magnitude, and they pretty much left me homebound, where I spent my time making sure my avian visitors had plenty of water as well as food to eat.

My posts that covered STELLA and her aftermath can be found here on Blogger, they mostly deal with the impact that STELLA had on my rooftop garden as well as my feathered friends who frequent it. The garden is on a roof extension, and a partial view of it can be seen below,

beneath my string lights, in an image which was taken yesterday, March the 20th, by a workman (who is named Kreshnik Vushaj). He is on assignment at a building two doors west of me.

As for the photo atop this entry, of a Common Grackle, it was taken by yours truly, this past Sunday when I was in Central Park. That was the first time I'd been there since the storm. The temperatures were still cold and frozen snow covered non paves surfaces; but the sun's heat, and the antics of a lone Common Grackle warmed me up.

Throwback Thursday: Mr. Eugene Schieffelin (He was for the birds, especially starlings.)

The photograph atop today's entry was taken during this past Tuesday's nor'Easter; a "bombogenesis," winter storm named STELLA. It's a picture featuring a representative of one of the dozens upon dozens of dozens of European starlings who spent the entire day in my rooftop garden, eating and squawking (not sedate like the one seen here) while the blizzard raged on (as evidenced in the following images).

This bird type that I'm speaking of is a member of the Sturnus vulgaris family whom are also known by the common name of European starling. Evidently this variety of bird was brought to NYC from England by Eugene Schieffelin in March of 1890, and he subsequently released them in Central Park. 

I first learned of Eugene Schieffelin's antics in March of 2014 and wrote about the news-worthy topic on TLLG's Facebook Page. I also wrote about it on hometalk, with a follow-up entry here on Blogger. 

Now, in preparation for today's throwback Thursday post, I've read other interesting information re Eugene Schieffelin's "responsibility" in bringing starlings across the pond, as well as interesting facts re this ubiquitous bird type, all of which I'm sharing in this entry.

Tuesday's Truth, The Thirty-Second Week: STELLA, a "bombogenesis" is for the BIRDS!

We are currently having a Nor' Easter style winter storm that has been named Stella; and she has received the distinction of being called a "bombogenesis" storm!

According to weather.com, to be considered as a bombogenesis, a given storm must be known to have "rapidly intensifying area of low pressure."

And, weather.com also states that another criteria to be classified as a weather bomb, "is that the central pressure of a low-pressure system must drop at least 24 millibars within 24 hours." This source points out that, "at 8 p.m. EDT Monday (last night) the central pressure was 1007 millibars, and as of 3:30 p.m. EDT Tuesday (today when the storm took place) the pressure had dropped to around 976 millibars. This equates to a pressure drop of 31 millibars in only 19.5 hours, easily exceeding the requirements for bombogenesis." 

In NYC, where I live, schools were closed and certain forms of public transportation were suspended as a result of the storm. However, folks were given a few days warning and many of them heeded it, as evidenced by the long lines just to get into many a grocery store.

The mayor urged people to stay put once the storm began to take place. However, not everyone followed his plea, especially the birds that visit my rooftop garden. I'm not naming names re who failed to comply with the mayor's request, but I will say that they included a large number of European starlings (a few of them can be seen in the picture atop this entry) along with a lone mourning dove.

I'm not sure why the storm was given the name of Stella, but, as you may surmise, this sparked a lot of Marlon Brando clips being uploaded to various social media platforms.

After all, it's hard to not reference his famous yelling "Stella," to his wife (Stella Kowalski) in his role of Stanley Kowalski for productions of Tennessee Williams' play and movie, titled A Streetcar Named  Desire.

In any event, you can see that this Stella-Brando reference is not lost on my prolific birds! One of the starlings pictured above is reenacting Brando's Stanley Kowalski, and yelling "Stella." European starlings are known for their skill in mimicking, and I must say this starling nailed Brando!

The mourning dove is also quite well read and while the starling focused on Stanley Kowalski, she focused on Blanche Dubois (Stella Kowalski's sister); for as she munched on the suet that fell from the feeder, she quoted Blanche saying, “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.”

Strong, Strong Winds

I confess I decided to post this song by Heart, after hearing that we will be having some strong, strong winds (think the nor'easter variety) in NYC today!

Although I've seen this Heart's album cover countless times, I hadn't noticed it featured an image of a male cardinal! How cool is that? Especially since I helped this bird type, albeit, the female variety, write the book, Words In Our Beak Volume One, which among many things, raises awareness about the plight of wild birds!

P.S. Volume Two will include how nor'easter's impacted migration re NYC birds!

ADDENDUM FALL 2018: 

The non-hardcover version (or versions)  of Volume One within the Words In Our Beak book series that are mentioned in this entry may only remain available for a limited time, but hardcover versions of Volume One, Two and Three can now be found wherever books are sold. Please click here to go to my blog post that provides details as to where you can get these books.

MY BOOK SERIES

Additionally, I have rendered some images from these books into other formats and they are available via Fine Art America (FAA). Some of my other photographs (Black & White Collection, Kaleidoscopic Images and the famous Mandarin duck who visited NYC) can also be found on my FAA pages.

"another year over AND a new one just begun . . . " PART TWO (For February 2013)

Hello and welcome to part two of my 2013 year-end garden review which I introduced in a prior post here on Blogger when I discussed certain "events" that occurred in my urban (NYC) terrace garden in January of 2013. 

Today's post will focus on a specific event that seemed to be the main focus re my garden in February 2013. That event was the unexpected and brutal "attack" of Nemo, a nor'easter causing a couple of my trees to topple over from the wind and weight of heavy snowfall; and not from the cocktails they may or may not have been drinking.

Waiting for Spring

MALE HOUSE FINCH

This is the last "official" weekend of shorter daylight hours! Next Sunday, March the tenth, those of us who are living in the majority of the states in the U.S.A. will set our clocks forward one hour; and from that period on, we will experience longer hours of daylight until November the third of 2013, at which time we will set our clocks back by an hour: in either case proving Kermit to be right for "time is fun when you are having flies."

Cures for the Last Straw Moments?

According to an on-line dictionary, the meaning of an expresion known as "the last straw" is this: "the last of a series of annoyances or disappointments that leads one to a final loss of patience, temper, trust, or hope." 

And I must confess that since my last posting here on Blogger, I have had a number of such experiences, all of which have demanded my full attention and kept me from posting here on Blogger! Fear not, dear reader, I have no intention of burdening you with the details of my scenarios, for I am in full agreement with something which was once said to my mother, which is this: "we all have our private  hell . . . "

All I can say, as humorless as I have felt, I'm grateful to have my sense of humor back (or at least I have it as of this posting) and since I call myself The Last Leaf Gardener, have placed a vase of straws (pictured above) in my succulent garden as a reminder that even last straw moments dissipate.