Animals in the park

It was a beautiful day for animals in the park. Following the directions of Anne and Ed (AKA Swan Princess and Knight of the 1000 Swans), we found where one of the swan couples were nesting. What a great piece of real estate! The nest is on a little island of phragmites, far enough from the edge of the lake to be safe from any potential marauding humans. It looks like she sits all night, then swims nearby when the sun comes up and shines enough to keep the eggs warm. He is constantly nearby, hissing at geese and ducks to let them know to stay away. There may be another nest, but so far it is hidden away. The other adult male swan hangs out near
the Boathouse, so I suspect that the nest is near there.

We saw over a dozen turtles sunning themselves on various rocks. There was a horse left tied up by a tree to enjoy the sun and have a rest. Cayuga and entourage were by the beachy area of the lake, then went down to the water when we came by.

I got some nice shots of how beautiful the park looks - am getting better with the camera, since I figured out how to adjust for light. It only took 3 shots of the light at the end of the tunnel until I got one showing the light and the tunnel!


I am taking photos of the phragmites growing every other day, with JJ and Ber's knee as the gauge to see how fast they're growing. That is, I'm taking the pictures every other day. They grow every day. There's another burnt spot near the Peninsula, which is also starting to grow. it is filled with crap. Ber and I and some others got not one but TWO abandoned grills out of the area and took them to the trash. I love that people use Prospect Park as their backyards and BBQ there. I just wish they'd clean up after themselves, is that too much to ask?

There are a lot of people, including the current park administration, who want to get rid of the BBQing altogether. I just wish they'd have some kind of PR campaign - "It's your park. Use, enjoy, clean up!!!" I used to bike around Park Drive (a 3 mile loop) and on the weekends, you smell delicious food cooking the whole way around, families having picnics and parties, people really enjoying the park. It's amazing to watch. Someone comes out early in the morning to reserve a spot. Usually it's Grand;a with his chair and his paper, or 2-3 teenage-boys, who seem to need no props to keep themselves busy. Later, the party arrives - 1, 2, even 3 shopping carts with the grill, food, coolers, tablecloths and utensils, sometimes even party decorations. On a nice day, it's a whole day event. Most of them do clean up after, but it only takes one slacker to make the park horrible.