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Shayna Marchese

@shaynamarchese.com
156 followers 238 following 204 posts

photos & comics, birds & nature she/her shaynamarchese.com

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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 26/09/2026
Went to Barnegat Light on Monday, saw some birds… www.shaynamarchese.com/barnegat-lig...
shaynamarchese.com
Barnegat Light, NJ | September, 2026
I’m not sure I’ve ever been to Barnegat Light State Park in September… it’s heavily visited in winter by birders hoping to see “weird ducks” and that’s mostly when I’ve been there (trying not…
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 18/09/2026
Hudsonian Godwits (and shorebirds in general) in this week's @newyorker.com www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
newyorker.com
The Incredible Journey of a Migratory Shorebird
Godwits make the longest non-stop migration in the bird world. That might be the least of the shorebirds’ marvels. Can they survive a changing planet?
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 30/08/2026
Luminescent Panellus (Panellus stipticus), Morris County, NJ #mushrooms #bioluminescent
A group of Luminescent Panellus (Panellus stipticus) mushrooms photographed in the dark. Their gills are glowing green.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 23/08/2026
Macro mushrooms and friends, Rockaway, NJ #mushrooms #monotropa
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 18/08/2026
from a moth night at Troy Meadows, Parsippany, NJ (held by wildlifepreserves.org) #moths
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 03/08/2026
purple mushrooms, Rockaway, NJ
a purple coral mushroom from the complex Clavaria amethystinaA beautiful purple mushroom called a Viscid Violet Cort (Cortinarius iodes)Some sort of purple mushroom from the Tylopilus genus, which are boletes. This has a very thick stalk and could be a violet gray bolete but I really don't know.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 26/07/2026
Snoozing Mim #catsky
A small gray cat asleep on a gray fleece blanket with a cat-print pillow behind her. She looks very relaxed
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 10/05/2026
Fleeting looks at birds who like to skulk: Yellow-breasted Chat and White-eyed Vireo #birds
A Yellow-breasted Chat, partially visible in profile through the leaves of a shrub. The bird has a bright yellow throat and a thick white line above its eye with a smaller white line below it. Its head and back are olive-greenish.A White-eyed Vireo perched on a branch. The bird has yellow feathers around its very bright white eye, a yellow wash on its side, two white wingbars, and a gray head and throat.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 15/03/2026
It's falcon sex season -- we didn't see the male till right before he swooped in and then he was gone in a flash. #PeregrineFalcon #birds
A female Peregrine Falcon perched on a branch looking giant and foreboding. I wouldn't mess with her; would you? She's got some bloody gunk on her bill and she sports leg bands which identify her. She's kind of hunched over and when I took this photo I thought that meant she was getting ready to fly off, but it turns out it meant something else --->Peregrine Falcons having sex: The female (who is larger) leans forward as the male lands on her for a moment for a cloacal kiss. And then it's done!
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 08/03/2026
Spring is here, the plovers are back #PipingPlover #birds
A very round-looking Piping Plover with its head tilted to one side looking cuteA Piping Plover in profile walking across the sand near the ocean; it has orange legs, and orange and black bill, white belly and face, tan/gray back, big black eyes and a black ring around its neck and a black line on its forehead.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 16/02/2026
Spent some time with cool winter visitors: Purple Sandpipers #birds #PurpleSandpiper
A Purple Sandpiper in profile on a large rock with water behind it. The sandpiper's small and round with purplish feathers (they're more of a gray with a bit of a purple sheen to them) and it has orange-yellow legs.A Purple Sandpiper splashing around in a puddle on a rock. A Purple Sandpiper standing with the sun at its side looking at the camera. Here some of its feathers look more purple than gray, sort of.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 09/02/2026
Here's the second half of my hourly comics... (p.13-16) #hourlycomicsday #hourlycomicday #hcd
A black-and-white panel showing a browser folder list; all the folders have a bunch of items and all take up at least a few GB of space. The text reads: 10:00am: Back home. I have old unsorted photos I try to cull...A black-and-white drawing of a woman in glasses frowning, thinking to herself "Why did I never do this? This is so annoying; these photos all suck."A black-and-white drawing of a place setting for two; each plate has a poorly-drawn half-burrito and some lumps that I assure you are supposed to be plantains. The text reads: 12:00pm: Lunch: leftover takeout burritos & plantainsA black-and-white drawing of two buckets; there's a hand siphon in one with the hose going into the other. The text reads: Followed by chores. 1. Clean out rock tumbling stuff from the basement sink. One bucket is labeled as slurry water.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 08/02/2026
I definitely won't post them all today but here are some hourly comics... (of course they start with cats; every day starts with cats) #hourlycomicsday #hourlycomicday #hcd
A black panel with handwritten words saying: hourly comics / February 2, 2026A black-and-white drawing of a woman in bed with a large tabby cat leaning on her. The cat is licking and kneading her neck. Her eyes are scrunched closed. The accompanying text reads: 3:00am: Milo wakes me up with slobber.A black-and-white drawing of two cats sleeping. One is small and curled up into a ball and the other is larger and more of a long loaf. The text reads: 4:00am: Everyone goes back to sleep.A black-and-white drawing of three cats, all eating from separate bowls in a line. There are labels under the cats: the big tabby says Milo; the little gray cat says Mim, and the cow-cat says Astrid. The text reads: 5:00am: Breakfast for the cats...
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Brian Rusnica @neogonzo.bsky.social · 24/01/2026
For yesterday's @cornellbirds.bsky.social #BirdArtWeek2026 theme of #PhotoNotAvailable I wanted to recreate my favorite #BaldEagle image I saw last year (not my photo). Unfortunately for some reason, it isn't available on eBird anymore. Oh well, I hope I got all the little details right. 🪶🦅🖕🧊
A stylized illustration of a majestic adult Bald Eagle flying over a grafitti-marked landscape with bold letters spelling out F U C K I C E.  The illustration recreates a viral photo of the same subject that was posted on eBird in late 2025. A screenshot of an eBird photo of a majestic adult Bald Eagle flying over a grafitti-marked landscape with bold letters spelling F U C K I C E.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 04/01/2026
Weekend birds: Blue Jay and Peregrine Falcon (eating a... pigeon?) #birds
An inquisitive-looking Blue Jay perched on a branch on a gray winter day. Male Peregrine Falcon from a local pair perched on a tree limb on a sunny morning eating a prey item. There's not too much left of it and what can be seen is a pink foot (definitely from a bird) and some whitish-grayish feathers on the leg.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 29/12/2025
Some highlights from the 90th Boonton Christmas Bird Count #birds
A Barred Owl sits on a branch in a snowy tree with its feathers floofed up. We looked at many clumps of leaves and wasp nests before locating this owl, who was tucked in nicely amongst the trees.A Great Blue Heron portrait. This bird was right next to a bridge with a nearly-solid fence blocking the view and my lens was too long to fit more of the bird in.A Bald Eagle perched high in a tree on a snow-covered branch. The eagle is looking down at a flock of Canada Geese (not pictured).A female Belted Kingfisher paused briefly above a small stream. She sits on a snowy branch, looking down at the water.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 26/12/2025
From this year's Christmas Bird Count (12/14/2025): Our route is usually nearly all cemeteries with no ponds; this year we covered Lincoln Park in Jersey City and got to see more species than usual; here's a juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron hanging out by the edge of a mostly-frozen pond. #birds
A streaky-brown juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron is perched in some phragmites that are covered in snow. The bird has its head turned to the side; its eye is bright orange.A streaky-brown juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron is perched in some phragmites that are covered in snow at the edge of a mostly-frozen pond. The heron is in a typical hunched position where its neck does not look very long at all; Black-crowned Night Herons are often described as "stocky."
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 12/10/2025
Piping Plover, a little after sunrise, Jersey Shore. It's sporting leg bands, which are difficult to see as the bird's floofed up on a chilly morning #birds #shorebirds #PipingPlover
A young Piping Plover hunkers down on the beach in warm early-morning light. The bird's in profile; it has an all-black bill and soft brown coloring. A small shorebird on the beach in profile in early-morning sun. Part of a green leg band is visible. The Piping Plover has a short black bill and soft brown feathers on its upperparts; below it is white. It has orangey-yellow legs.
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The Public Domain Review @publicdomainrev.bsky.social · 21/08/2025
Specimens from Phantom Flowers, one of two books published in 1864 on the art of producing skeleton leaves. More in our latest post from @eayers0: publicdomainreview.org/collection/p…
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 11/08/2025
Ms. Mim of the dining room table
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 02/08/2025
Milo’s too big for cat beds so we got him a dog bed instead #caturday #catsky #catsofbluesky
A large tabby tux cat is zonked out on a colorfully striped dog bed. The cat has long legs, big ears, and looks very peaceful on his throne.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 31/07/2025
Seaside Sparrow #birds (Cook's Beach, Cape May County, May 2025)
A Seaside Sparrow perched in reeds, looking to the side. The bird is a drab grayish brown with a bit of yellow in front of its eyes and a brown mustache-like stripe running downwards from its bill, which is large for a sparrow.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 29/07/2025
It's flying lobster season #HummingbirdClearwingMoth
A green and burgundy hummingbird clearwing moth (Hemaris thysbe) visits bee balm (Monarda fistulosa). The moth looks like a fuzzy flying lobster with long antennae and a curled proboscis.
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Doug @douggg.bsky.social · 09/07/2025
Milo appreciation post #Cats #CatsofBluesky #Catsky
A brown and white tabby tux relaxes on a grey blanket. He's looking away from the camera with a happy and maybe slightly smug expression on his face
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 06/07/2025
Bees in the bee balm (Monarda fistulosa) #nativeplants
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 02/07/2025
In-progress rock tumble; a soothing break from *everything else*
An arrangement of many small smooth rocks on a black background; the rocks are mostly reddish-salmon or gray in color
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 21/06/2025
Crested Caracaras, Sarasota County, FL #birds #CrestedCaracara
A juvenile Crested Caracara walking on the ground. They're large falcons with big legs (for all the walking). The juvenile has bare pink skin around its face and a light blue bill.The same juvenile Crested Caracara, perched on a fence.An adult Crested Caracara perched on a rock by the side of a road. The adult has orange skin around the face instead of the pink of the juvenile.The adult Crested Caracara, still standing on the same rock, as the juvenile swoops in off to the side. The juvenile's blurry.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 17/06/2025
In case you need yet another reason to hate AI nonsense:
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Rebecca Heisman @rheisman.bsky.social · 16/06/2025
Welp, I did it, I wrote a piece for @therevelator.org on the proposed funding cuts to the Bird Banding Lab & Breeding Bird Survey and what they would mean for bird research & conservation in the U.S. Definitely a different sort of writing than I usually do. 🪶 therevelator.org/trump-vs-bir...
therevelator.org
Trump vs. Birds: Proposed Budget Eliminates Critical Research Programs • The Revelator
Experts say there’s “no substitute” for the Bird Banding Laboratory or the Breeding Bird Survey, which help reveal the health and status of avian populations across the country.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 15/06/2025
Gulf coast shells and other beach finds from Captiva, FL
An assortment of colorful shells. I don't know the names of all of them but the assortment includes Atlantic calico scallops, turkey wing ark clam, and cat's paw.An assortment of colorful shells. I don't know the names of all of them but the assortment includes giant heart cockle, yellow cockle, slipper shell, and calico clam. There are a couple rock-like things too.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 13/06/2025
Well this hit hard already but I've just learned that Douglas McCarthy was a birder: "Dad and I were twitchers, I had my Young Ornithologists Club enamel badge, and we would get up super early, go out, cut samphire on the mudflats of Canvey Island, and go home."
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 09/06/2025
So Florida Scrub Jays are pretty great #birds #FloridaScrubJay
A Florida Scrub Jay is perched in a bush (I think it’s sand live oak) on an overcast day. The bird is blue and gray with light gray on its head and front. It’s tilting its head to one side, looking inquisitive. A Florida Scrub Jay is perched in a bush (maybe sand live oak) on an overcast day. The bird is blue and gray with light gray on its head and front. It’s looking right at the camera and appears to have a bit of an attitude. I received this glower after the jay figured out I didn’t have any offerings for it.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 24/05/2025
A surprise Black-billed Cuckoo seen while kayaking the Rockaway River. I've only seen this species one other time... it did that very cuckoo thing where you've spotted it and it hunches over and just moves a little but somehow disappears completely (what is with them!?) #birds #blackbilledcuckoo
A Black-billed Cuckoo perched on a tree limb, seen in profile. In addition to its namesake black bill, it has a long tail, white front, brown head and back, and bright red ring around its eye.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 14/05/2025
Yellow-breasted Chat, South Cape May Meadows #birds
Warbler-like bird with a yellow breast, olive back, and white spectacles perched at the top of a shrub that is wrapped in vines. Chats were once thought to be warblers but have more recently been classified into their own family.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 11/05/2025
Shorebirds on the Delaware Bay #birds #shorebirds
A large mixed group of shorebirds coming in for a landing along the Delaware Bay. Most recognizable amongst the chaos are Ruddy Turnstones and Red Knots. Also present are Dunlin, Semiplamated Sandpipers, and Sanderling.A group of shorebirds taking off: it's mostly Ruddy Turnstones and Red Knots.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 11/05/2025
Saw some shorebirds! Delaware Bay, NJ #birds #RedKnot
A Red Knot (a medium-sized shorebird with a reddish head and front) stands with its head in profile as a wave hits behind it.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 09/05/2025
Fluorescent minerals from Franklin, NJ (ID'd as best I can) #minerals #fluorescent
Photo of a rock taken in the dark using a shortwave (255nm) flashlight. This contains Willemite (green) and calcite (red); I believe the dark parts are Franklinite.Photo of the previous rock under regular lighting.Photo of a rock taken in the dark using a shortwave (255nm) flashlight. This contains calcite (red) and Willemite (green); the dark parts may be Franklinite.Photo of the previous rock under regular lighting.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 06/04/2025
No kings, only kinglets #birds
A Ruby-crowned Kinglet perched in profile on a branch on an overcast early spring day. The bright red feathers on top of its head are just visible.A Golden-crowned Kinglet (very) momentarily paused on a branch on an overcast day. The overall gray of its surroundings makes its yellow crown really pop.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 15/03/2025
Purple Sandpiper, Barnegat Lighthouse State Park #birds
A Purple Sandpiper on a rock with the ocean behind it. The bird is in profile and it only looks vaguely purple.A Purple Sandpiper on a rock looking for food as the ocean water is splashing around it. Some droplets are in front of the bird's face.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 14/03/2025
It was cloudy but there were some breaks #LunarEclipse
Photo of the mood during a lunar eclipse; the moon looks reddish
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 19/02/2025
Winter falcons: They seem to be eating well (evidenced by full crops and victims' feathers scattered below them). They have some sort of agreement to never sit on the same branch though! #birds
Male Peregrine Falcon perched on a branch on an overcast day. The bird's in profile and there's a bulge in his neck (a full crop) which means he's recently had a meal. He looks rather serious.Male and female Peregrine Falcons sitting near one another on winter branches on a sunny day. The male is a bit behind and is out of focus. The female's closer and it's obvious she's much larger. Her feathers are more brown with darker marking. She's looking right at the camera and there's blood on her talons.Female Peregrine Falcon perched on a branch on an overcast day. She's stretching her wings and her tail feathers are fanned out. She has a full crop (her neck is bulging out) and there's blood smeared on her feathers around her feet and talons. She has a "do not mess with me" face. On the pavement below her (not seen in the photo) there are clumps of feathers scattered around, presumably from her breakfast.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 17/02/2025
Harbor Seal cuteness, Barnegat Inlet, NJ
A Harbor Seal swimming in an ocean inlet, seen in profile. The seal's fur is gray with faint spotting. It has black eyes and mostly white whiskers which are a bit catlike.A Harbor Seal swimming in an ocean inlet sticking its head out of the water.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 17/02/2025
The weekend shift: Black Vultures gathered on the roof of a pebbled building in a corporate park #birds
ten black vultures lined up on the roof of a brown pebbled building with no visible windows on an overcast day
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Alex Tomlinson @alextomlinson.com · 12/02/2025
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 07/02/2025
It's Friday afternoon and that means Mona's on WFMU so something is good in the world www.wfmu.org/playlists/sh...
wfmu.org
Mona's show
Audio & playlist from February 7, 2025
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 03/02/2025
I finished up hourly comics (two days later, of course of course), and posted them all on my website: www.shaynamarchese.com/hourly-comic... (and the rest here ↓) #HourlyComics #HourlyComicsDay2025
shaynamarchese.com
hourly comics, 2025
Hourly comics, February 1, 2025
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 01/02/2025
#HourlyComics #HourlyComicsDay2025
A black-and-white ink drawing of a man wearing glasses sitting at a table drinking coffee and looking at a laptop. There is a black-and-white cat on the floor behind him saying "mrr." The text reads "Doug is up and greeted by Astrid." The time is 7:00am.A black-and-white ink drawing of a man wearing glasses pouring water from a bucket into a bird bath. The text reads "I clean out (with bleach_ the bird bath and refill it." The time is 8:00am.A black-and-white ink drawing of some turkey-tail-like fungus; it basically just looks like a bunch of swirls. The text reads "And check on the fungus growing on the back of the cherry stump. It's perked up a bit after yesterday's rain." The time is 8:00am.A black-and-white ink drawing of a coffee cup and a muffin that's wrapped in an oversized paper wrapper. The text reads "Coffee & a muffin from the local coffee shop." The time is 9:00am.
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Shayna Marchese @shaynamarchese.com · 01/02/2025
This will probably be 80% cats but, well. #HourlyComicsDay #HourlyComicsDay2025
A black-and-white ink drawing of a black-and-white cat on a black background; the cat is saying "mrr?" and looks very awake. The time is 4:00am.A black-and-white ink drawing of two cats eating. The text around the tabby cat reads "Earl, 15. - Gets dry kitten food as it's the only thing he'll currently eat" The text around the black-and-white cat reads "Astrid, 2. - Wet food in the bathroom so she doesn't eat Earl's." The time is 5:00am.A black-and-white ink drawing of a tabby cat sitting on a mat that's on top of a blanket. The text reads "Earl's settled onto his heating pad in front of the radiator after a post-breakfast wander." The time is 6:00am.A black-and-white ink drawing that's divided into two parts. On top is a French coffee press next to two coffee mugs and an English muffin on a plate. The text reads "I make coffee and and English muffin." The bottom drawing is of a woman wearing glasses sitting on a couch reading a book. The text reads "Then a brief, horrifying look at the internet, followed by some time with a book." The time is 7:00am. The book is The Strange Bird by Jeff VanderMeer, but it's pretty illegible in the drawing.
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Saltzshaker @saltzshaker.bsky.social · 05/01/2025
This morning I did some (sonic) winter birding in MN's 200 mile Sax-Zim Bog, on @wfmu.bsky.social, filling in for the lovely folk show, Everybody's Songs. 2hr set featuring: Gray Owl & Chickadee chirps, Québécoise folk, Thai mouth organs, "Zithertronics," and more 🌱 www.wfmu.org/playlists/sh...
Old man  in snow observing a gray owlPlaylist excerpt, readable at link
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Richard A. Fleming @donflan.bsky.social · 02/01/2025
I swear these turkeys literally waited for the walk sign! #statenisland #birds #birding #birdsseenin2025 #animalintelligence This is Hylan Boulevard, one of the island’s busiest thoroughfares!
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