Northern Flickers
Earlier this week we were looking for a Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) photo because, as you have likely seen, over 99% of the content we use we make ourselves. This is something we take pride in at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History. We write, we photograph, we record, we film, and we create. We do not use outside materials except when there is no other alternative…and then we immediately try to get out and get the missing content ourselves. Twan and I did not have many Northern Flicker pictures, each of us with only one real usable image. They fall into that...
Read MoreClimate Change in the United Kingdom
Around 20-30 plants should be flowering on New Year’s Day in the United Kingdom. This year there were 368 species in bloom. Three hundred sixty-eight. That is a strong 15% of all flowering plants and comes after 2014 was the warmest year on record in the UK. Now THAT is some changing climate.
Read MoreSnowy Owl irruption…underway? Again?!
Yes, my friends, here we are again! Is a Snowy Owl irruption into the southern parts of Canada and the lower 48 states already underway? The answer certainly looks to be a firm yes considering recent list serv reports. The eBird Snowy Owl map below highlights sightings from August 1, 2014 through November 9, 2014. It also says yes… Remember that sightings in the last 30 days are in bright orange. Look how far south some birds have already been spotted! Now let us remember that a certain number of Snowy Owls move to the south every winter. If you live near a major migratory corridor or...
Read MoreNew York state 24-hour precipitation record
Unbelievable! A preliminary all-time New York state 24-hour precipitation record has been broken today at Islip MacArthur Airport with 13.26 inches of rain as of 9:30AM besting the previous record of 11.6 inches at Tannersville, New York over August 27-28, 2011 (Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene). Here’s the dual-pol storm total estimated rainfall as of 8AM via NWS New York, NY. Remember again…turn around, don’t drown.
Read MoreDelta-spotted Spiketail (Cordulegaster diastatops)
Last June we discovered a Delta-spotted Spiketail (Cordulegaster diastatops) along a busy road that turned out to be a first Chautauqua County record. This past weekend I discovered an individual of a new population at a second location in CHQ that Twan photographed here. We are hoping to record other spiketail species this spring and summer at a few more sites in the Chautauqua-Allegheny region.
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