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  • PRESERVE & RESTORE
    • Ecology >
      • RutgersSiteVisit
      • Ponds
      • Reforestation
    • Invasive Species
    • NativePlants
    • Trails Maintenance
    • Clean Ups
    • ScoutProjects
    • noelTaylor
  • ENJOY
    • Calendar
    • Photos
    • GreenHerons
    • Birding
    • Trail Maps
    • coyotes
  • B W Kids
    • Nature Detectives - the latest news
  • History
    • neighborhood
  • About
    • Board of Directors
    • Chuan-Chu Chou Blog
    • Perspectives on the Park
    • MemberInfo >
      • archive
    • presidentReport-Jan-21
    • Volunteer Spotlight
    • newsletters
    • PastEvents >
      • Halloween-24
      • brightwoodDay-24
      • Halloween-23
      • halloween-22
      • brightwoodDay-23
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brightwood park discoveries



Heron Friends

7/31/2023

 
 A blue heron has accepted me as a friend.  We hung out together for more than an hour each time we met.  One day the tall fellow kept posing for my photo shots.  Finally I had to quit because of being summoned by the boss at home.

The green heron chicks are turning into young adults.  Their baby hair is being replaced by beautiful feathers.  As I watched them, they tested their wings by flapping up and down.  Before flying away, they took turns to let me take passport pictures for them.  Like kids, they sometimes make funny faces.  The mom was watching from the central island, looking relaxed and fulfilled.

On the other side of the pond, near the meadow area, a young green heron from another family likes coming close to the shore, not only looking for food but also showing off at me how flexible its body can be.  I was curious whether green herons have their versions of yoga lessons.

Glorious Colors of Mushrooms

7/31/2023

 
 Because of the rainfalls and humidity, the park has not only turned into a rainforest but also has become a mini-gallery of the Creator's art exhibitions.  The diversity of morphology and color is amazing.  A few photos of the same set of mushrooms were taken on different days.  Some grew and changed their face shapes like teenagers.  A dark-colored large mushroom aged fast and seemed like a man who stopped shaving and getting haircuts.  

While we are cautious about picking wild mushrooms, birds, squirrels, or insects appear to have a good knowledge of which ones are edible to them.  One mushroom looked like a left over apple with half being bitten away.

Brightwood Bird Apartment

7/12/2023

 
 Recently a friend pointed out a tall dead tree being converted to a bird apartment.  There appeared to be multiple levels and a diversity of residents.  Red-bellied woodpeckers live on upper levels.  The outside wall showed some interesting drawing patterns looking like Martian language to me.  European starlings occupy lower levels.  A brown-colored bird claimed residency in a middle-level unit.  House hunters like downy woodpeckers and Northern flickers come by regularly to visit and check out remaining units.
Both the red-bellied woodpeckers and European starlings had babies or youngsters.  The little ones are always hungry and stick their heads out.  The parents are constantly going back and forth bringing food home and taking the garbage out.



Recently pointed to by a friend Danny Mo, I saw a tall dead tree being converted to a bird apartment.  The tree is located on the left side passing the Prospect Street entrance of Brightwood Park, right outside the fence of the nearest house.  There appeared to be multiple levels and a diversity of residents.  I have watched the tree holes for about a week.  Red-bellied woodpeckers live on upper levels.  The outside wall showed some interesting drawing patterns looking like Martian language to me.  European starlins occupy lower levels.  A brown-colored bird claimed residency in a middle-level unit.  House hunters like downy woodpeckers and Northern flickers come by regularly to visit and check out remaining units.

Both the red-bellied woodpeckers and European starlings had babies or youngsters.  The little ones are always hungry and stick their heads out.  The parents are constantly going back and forth bringing food home and to take garbages out.

Recently pointed to by a friend Danny Mo, I saw a tall dead tree being converted to a bird apartment.  The tree is located on the left side passing the Prospect Street entrance of Brightwood Park, right outside the fence of the nearest house.  There appeared to be multiple levels and a diversity of residents.  I have watched the tree holes for about a week.  Red-bellied woodpeckers live on upper levels.  The outside wall showed some interesting drawing patterns looking like Martian language to me.  European starlins occupy lower levels.  A brown-colored bird claimed residency in a middle-level unit.  House hunters like downy woodpeckers and Northern flickers come by regularly to visit and check out remaining units.

Both the red-bellied woodpeckers and European starlings had babies or youngsters.  The little ones are always hungry and stick their heads out.  The parents are constantly going back and forth bringing food home and to take garbages out.

Recently pointed to by a friend Danny Mo, I saw a tall dead tree being converted to a bird apartment.  The tree is located on the left side passing the Prospect Street entrance of Brightwood Park, right outside the fence of the nearest house.  There appeared to be multiple levels and a diversity of residents.  I have watched the tree holes for about a week.  Red-bellied woodpeckers live on upper levels.  The outside wall showed some interesting drawing patterns looking like Martian language to me.  European starlins occupy lower levels.  A brown-colored bird claimed residency in a middle-level unit.  House hunters like downy woodpeckers and Northern flickers come by regularly to visit and check out remaining units.

Both the red-bellied woodpeckers and European starlings had babies or youngsters.  The little ones are always hungry and stick their heads out.  The parents are constantly going back and forth bringing food home and to take garbages out.


Abundant Summer Fungi

7/12/2023

 
 The summer this year has come with plenty of rainfall.  The heat and the humidity have created an ideal environment for fungi to sprout and grow.  In the past few weeks, just walking on the trail surrounding the large pond of Brightwood Park, I saw a variety of them.  Some are colorful like opera performers and others are like ballet dancers or gypsy dancers.  I particularly marvelled at red jelly fungi.  They seemed to be here for a special exhibition, appearing one day and gone the next day.  The patterns looked like work presented by designers.  Some looked like cute stuffed animals.  Others were like a touch of the magic brush in an artist's hand.  

If you are interested, you can look for a clown face wearing a chef's hat in one of the polyporaceae fungi.  You can also look for two slugs crawling among dried up red jelly fungi.

I included a few pictures of the sun shining through the woods and spraying the light on tree leaves.  These were taken this morning, before the police department announced closing the park because of coyote sightings.

Also included is the recording of the dancing performance by a psaudopollenator using a flower as the stage.

    Chuan-Chu Chou

    I am a frequent visitor of Brightwood Park and enjoy sharing my discoveries.


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Location

Brightwood Park is on the North end of Prospect Street.  Go past Franklin School and look for the entrance on the left.

What Our Members Are Saying

"I love the work you are doing at Brightwood.  Your efforts have shone a light on the essential elements of the park that we all cherish: its natural beauty and tranquility."

"I have a deep fondness for Brightwood park and would like to see it restored, remain natural and continue to be a site of passive recreation."

"I loved growing up in Brightwood Park !"


"I found Brightwood a few years ago and it's a great place to find wildlife, fish, and enjoy nature. Nice and quiet; good place to un wind and relax. Love it!!!"

​"As a resident for almost thirty years in the Brightwood area of Westfield, I am thrilled to see what is happening to improve and preserve Brightwood park for today and future generations. "


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