Marine Park--Southwest 6/17: YCNH, GLIB

High tide at the salt marsh this morning was 9:34; I got there on the B3 bus at 9:35. Arriving exactly at high tide, coupled with the aftermath of  last night's thunderstorms, didn't leave very much solid ground to walk on. By keeping to the approximately 2" wide strip of beach left exposed and taking a very circuitous route, I was able to make my way to the path in the woods without getting my boots wet too much above the toes. Happily, I wear waterproof boots when I go there.

I added 2 birds to my Brooklyn life list. The first one was a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron I flushed from some high grass while stepping carefully in the muck. I always feel bad when I flush a bird; they have enough stress in their lives without me adding to it. (Of course, the logical solution to this would be not to go birding, but I don't feel that bad.) The 2nd bird added was a Glossy Ibis flying over. Neither of these birds is likely to be found at Prospect Park where I do most of my Brooklyn birding.

Since the tide was so high, I didn't expect to see many waders today so I was happy with those 2 birds plus the Great Egret I also saw (& heard grunting) flying low on the water. As I was walking on the main trail I came to a wooded spot where I often see woodpeckers, warblers, thrushes. There was a Baltimore Oriole there, but I was surprised to see right in front of me this Black-crowned Night-Heron perched on a branch and even more surprised I could get a decent photo of it.

My favorite non-avian animals at the salt marsh are the thousands of Fiddler Crabs scurrying around in the sand, diving into their little holes as your shadow approaches. When I was first at the marsh I couldn't see any of course, but on the way back the water had receded enough for them to be out in force. Hard to get pictures of them as they blend so well with the sand and they move so quickly. I swear that once one of them actually waved to me with its big claw as it was descending into its burrow.

Nature has played a cruel joke on these crustaceans.

38 species from Avenue U to the beach and back:
Canada Goose  4
Double-crested Cormorant  3
Great Egret  4
Snowy Egret  1
Black-crowned Night-Heron  2
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron  1
Glossy Ibis  1
American Oystercatcher  7
Willet  1
Laughing Gull  32
Ring-billed Gull  5
Herring Gull  20
Great Black-backed Gull  3
Least Tern  2
Common Tern  2
Forster's Tern  1
Rock Pigeon  5
Mourning Dove  4
Monk Parakeet  2
Willow Flycatcher  3
Warbling Vireo  1
American Crow  1
Barn Swallow  4
Marsh Wren  2
American Robin  13
Gray Catbird  22
Northern Mockingbird  1
Brown Thrasher  1
European Starling  25
Cedar Waxwing  2
Yellow Warbler  6
Common Yellowthroat  4
Eastern Towhee  2
Song Sparrow  4
Northern Cardinal  3
Red-winged Blackbird  25
Baltimore Oriole  2
House Sparrow  10
And now...

 The Continuing Saga of the Smart Car Wreck

I intended to take another photo of the Smart Car that was dumped on the side of the trail about 3 weeks ago to document 

1) Its slow deterioration and

2) The fact that it was still there on the side of the trail despite being the most accessible wreck I'd found, one the city or Parks Dept could easily remove

but when I got to the spot                                                        

it wasn't there!  Only the burned patch was left. I was under no illusions that my rants have had any effect, but was happy that finally it had been removed. Great. Only about 10 more to go. However, on my way back from the shore, going up a different path, not 100 yards from where the wreck was I found

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? Dump it a little deeper in the grass so it's harder to see? Now, who did this? Did the original dumpers come back with a truck and a winch and move the car? Did a prankster do it? Or did the city slash parks slash sanitation department come along and move it "out of the way?" You be the judge.
Looking at the road, I could clearly see where the wreck had been dragged along, leaving charred bits of wood and metal along the way. And guess what? If the intention was to hide the car, they didn't do a very good job because it can easily be seen from the trail. I just happened to be looking to my right at some bird activity when I passed it the first time.

There's a theme in 19th century American Literature I remember studying in college relating to the "Machine in the Garden." Here, in the 21st, is ours.