canada geese...first snow

December 14, 2017 in 2017

The Canada Goose is an amazing bird in many ways. It is a bird of high moral standards. They have a support system with siblings and respect parents. A Canada goose mates for life with only one goose, if there is no mate, there is no sex. It may be not the most abundant bird species here in the Bucks County but definitely the most commonly-seen one as they are non-migratory birds - huge flocks of them cross the sky

or feed in fields

in any season.

They look as joyous and enthusiastic in the field covered with the first snow as in a warm summer day

Looking at them I frequently wondered what kind of the evolutionary process instigated the move from migratory behavior of a regular goose to the non-migratory one. As I found out to my surprise, this move had nothing to do with an evolution - the switch from migratory to non-migratory behavior was totally man-made and it happened in the lifespan of one generation: 'By the early 1960’s, the excessive hunting brought the population of Canada geese to near extinction. To counter this near extinction, the US Fish and Wildlife Service and many State wildlife agencies began a program of re-population of wild Canada geese. They did this by taking the eggs from the nests of the surviving resident Canada geese and artificially incubated these eggs. As a consequence, these geese were not taught the migration patterns and their descendants do not have the biological need to migrate.'

These geese have benefited from the agricultural practices that leave waste grain behind for winter foraging, thereby giving us great winter photo opportunities.

the day the moon blocked the sun...partially

August 21, 2017 in 2017

Eclipse-shmeclipse. For the li'l old Newtown it was just another midday at the office. And quite a humid midday, really hot on the sunny side of deserted trafficless streets.

Only a couple of single enthusiasts and several small groups with kids waited for the beginning of the show at the shore of Lake Luxembourg.

The show started on time. Unfortunately, because of the cloudy sky, it started behind the curtains. The viewers waited patiently for occasional glimpses of the Sun.

And their patience was rewarded with this amazing view.

tyler park...nostalgic party

August 13, 2017 in 2017

The park main attraction is the Neshaminy Creek. Local families stroll along its idyllic shores and explore numerous ways to practice patience, such as throwing pebbles into the water, pretending fishing, or walking their dogs.

But to every rule there is an exception - and there are daring people ready to demonstrate it. Just the other day I came across such amazing bunch of good sports - a group of parents and their kids that occupied shores of a small branch of the Creek with a bridge over it. Apparently parents were nostalgic about good old times when creeks were clean and the living was easy. So, they encouraged the kids to jump off the bridge into the shallow water and captured these priceless family moments with their iPhones and tablets.