Thursday, April 16, 2015

Washington Avenue Green, Philadelphia, PA


There's a fairly new park in my neighborhood.  It's only been open for a year or so.  Jack and I walked down to see it last fall and decided we liked the relative peace there.  It's sandwiched between busy Columbus Boulevard and the equally commercial Delaware River, so 'relative' is the operative word.

The park is attractively designed, with a nice new pier walk and a few informational signs.  From 1870 until 1915, Pier 53 was an immigration station, primarily for immigrants from eastern and southern Europe.  The station was demolished in 1915.  So, like many places in Philadelphia, we have the ruins of what once was.








For us, the big draw is the opportunity to see some birds that we don't see much of anymore.  When we lived in the country in Massachusetts, on the banks of a stream and with wetlands and woodlands, we saw anything and everything.  Around our current house and in the city, we see mostly pigeons, starlings, sparrows, robins, a few mourning doves (which I adore), and the occasional hawk.  I hear a cardinal every now and then, but I almost never see one.  This winter, we had a pair of Slate-colored (Dark-eyed) juncoes that we fed on our tiny patio.  So we were delighted to see cormorants and ruddy ducks and a pair of tree swallows.  We also saw a downy woodpecker, but he / she flew off before I could get a photo.  And you'll just have to take my word that those dots in the water are ruddy ducks, lovely small ducks with white on their heads and perky little tails.




As we were entering the park, I noticed this strange object hanging in the branches.  What do you think?  Voodoo?




8 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Was that 'wow, what a great place' or 'wow, that's a sorry excuse for a nature park'?

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    2. Sorry...wow what a great place! :-)

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    3. Just wasn't sure which way that 'wow' went!

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  2. I think that looks like a great place to walk, I love all the old wooden bits from the past too. What sort of bird is the one in the second last photo? That bundle of sticks in the tree looks like a bug motel to me, we use them here so that insects can crawl in and find a safe home, all sorts like ladybirds/bugs and lacewings. Than again, in Philly it might be Voodoo!

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    1. I like ruins, too, but I think it's sad that Philly demolishes so many historic sites (while not demolishing things that should be demolished, like the massive, illegally built structure ruining my neighborhood) . That bird is a tree swallow. They're lovely birds with iridescent blue / green and white feathers and the graceful flight of swallows everywhere.

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  3. What a lovely area and how nice it is in your neighborhood. The thing in the tree looks kind of like an attempt to make a nesting place for mason bees but I can't tell if the sticks are hollow or not. If they are, definitely for bees.

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    1. It's about a mile from us, which makes for a decent walk. Today we walked farther into the park, on a walking path which leads to - Walmart!

      Katrina suggested some sort of insect haven, too. I hadn't thought about that at all. I'll be watching it to see if I see any sort of insects, bees or otherwise, around it. I felt so bad the other week when it had been warm and then got cold. I rescued a bumblebee that got too cold and fell onto the sidewalk. I wrapped him loosely in a tissue and put him in a planter. I hope he warmed up. I would have brought him home but I was afraid he wouldn't be able to find his way back to his home.

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