Blogs by Patricia Hilliard
2017 A Better Year than Expected
12/11/2017 7:40:36 AM
With apprehension we entered the year and now end it with hope.
We entered the year 2017, with apprehension. The Hudson County Parks Dept. announced they were going to upgrade the pond. It had been a great place for bird watching and we were worried it would be destroyed. Where would the turtles go? What would happen to the Yellow-crowned Night Herons that used to roost in the willow trees? What would happen to the willow trees?
Bulldozers and backhoes have never meant anything good to our nature club. They usually indicate more development and habitat destruction.
But this year turned out better than expected. The Yellow-crowned Night Herons had built two nests in the forest area of the park, hatching out two clutches of chicks. The Parks Dept. kept their word and created a special place for the turtles until the pond was completed. The willow trees were preserved.
When the pond remediation was final, the turtles climbed over the dam into the new deeper pond. They headed for the rocks to sun themselves. Red-eared Sliders, Red Bellies and Painted Turtles--all three species had survived.
2017 turned out better than we expected. People suddenly became more concerned about the environment and got involved in fighting to save it. Now we're looking forward to a good year in 2018. We know there are good and bad uses for bulldozers and backhoes. We know what can be done to restore nature.
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More Blogs by Patricia Hilliard
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• After 200 years, Bald Eagles appear. - Thursday, April 6, 2023
• Bird Seedy - Wednesday, March 9, 2022
• Dehumanized Humans and Wildlife - Sunday, June 20, 2021
• Discrimination in the World of Bird Watching - Friday, June 11, 2021
• Big Day Bird Count 2021 - Monday, May 10, 2021
• Plant a Pollinator Garden - Sunday, February 28, 2021
• Bird Watching during the Covid-19 Pandemic. - Friday, February 5, 2021
• Clapping for Clapper Rails - Saturday, July 11, 2020
• Beginners and Enders - Monday, November 18, 2019
• Change is the only Constant - Saturday, July 6, 2019
• Sports and Global Warming - Thursday, May 9, 2019
• A Realistic Rodent - Thursday, March 28, 2019
• Bald Eagles Again - Monday, February 18, 2019
• Birds and Words - Thursday, December 20, 2018
• Big Day Bird Walks - Saturday, October 6, 2018
• Nature Therapy--It Works! - Sunday, May 27, 2018
• 2017 A Better Year than Expected - Monday, December 11, 2017
• What the Warbler Migration has Taught Me - Monday, November 27, 2017
• Irony: How a loss of habitat occurs and why. - Tuesday, July 11, 2017
• Bald Eagles Return - Monday, May 8, 2017
• King Rail in Bayonne NJ - Thursday, August 21, 2014
• Snowy Owl Olympics in New Jersey, USA - Saturday, February 15, 2014
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