Winter Birds Arrive

Friday, October 27th, 2006

The last couple of weeks have seen the an influx of New York’s winter residents like this Winter Wren:

Winter Wren

Most birds fly south for the Winter, but for some species New York City is far enough south. Temperature doesn’t really bother them. As long as they can find food, they’re happy.
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Saltmarsh Moth Caterpillar

Wednesday, October 25th, 2006

Fuzzy orange caterpillar

Estigmene acrea, 2006-10-21, Mount Loretto Unique Area

ID not 100% certain

Raven Lite Now Free-as-in-Beer

Tuesday, October 24th, 2006

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has decided to release the Raven Lite sound analysis software as free-beer. Previously it cost about $25. I’d been meaning to try this product out since first hearing about it from Don Kroodsma at the ABA Convention back in June. Now maybe I’ll finally get around to it.

The professional version costs $800, which I think is ridiculous. Academic research software like this should be open source. Not only are Cornell and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology large recipients of tax dollars and charitable donations which I think gives them some obligation to open up more to the broader community. Most importantly, you simply get better science when the software is as open as the data.
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Differential Grasshopper

Monday, October 23rd, 2006

Green grasshopper, herring bone pattern on leg

Melanoplus differentialis, Mount Loretto Unique Area, 2006-10-21

Wooly Bear

Sunday, October 22nd, 2006

red and black fuzzy caterpillar

Wooly Bear caterpillar, Mount Loretto Unique Area, 2006-10-21
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Common Buckeye

Saturday, October 21st, 2006

Common Buckeye Butterfly

Junonia coenia, Mount Loretto Unique Area, 2006-10-21
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