RED BANK: DREARY, DAMP, AND NOW, WINDY
A pair of deer seen wandering Locust Avenue in Red Bank near the Bellhaven wetlands Thursday afternoon.
A string of wet, dreary days continued with heavy fog Friday morning, along with a National Weather Service warning of possible strong winds through 7 p.m., with gusts up to 60 miles per hour. Sunshine was expected to return Saturday.
Check out the extended forecast below. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge.)
FAIR HAVEN: RACCOON FOUND TO BE RABID
By JOHN T. WARD
A raccoon that tussled with a dog in Fair Haven last month had rabies, redbankgreen has learned.
ON THE GREEN: WARM ENCOUNTER IN RUMSON
A deer checks out two-legged visitors enjoying a first-full-day-of-spring stroll in Rumson’s Meadowridge Park late Monday afternoon.
The post-winter thaw continues Tuesday, with temperatures expected to peak at about 55 degrees, and to climb as high as 68 on Wednesday, according to the Weather Underground. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
SEA BRIGHT: DOLPHIN STAY RAISES CONCERNS
A stand-up paddler got close to the dolphin in the Shrewsbury River between Sea Bright and Rumson last week. Marine experts say humans and boats should keep away from the animal. (Photo by Scott Longfield. Click to enlarge)
By JOHN T. WARD
Without much public notice, a lone bottlenose dolphin has been plying the Shrewsbury River for the past seven months, according to wildlife advocates who are growing concerned about its safety as temperatures drop and its food supply diminishes.
As it has in the past, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries unit regards the dolphin’s presence as a not unusual, and said the animal appears to be healthy.
But Bob Schoelkopf, founder and director of the independent Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, expressed frustration that NOAA hasn’t done anything to guide the dolphin northward through the strait that leads into Sandy Hook Bay, and that colder temperatures make such an effort more dangerous for humans.
RED BANK: DEER… OR REINDEER?
With Christmas over, were three of Santa’s reindeer hoping to reunite with Jolly St. Nick in Red Bank over the weekend? Borough resident Charlie Bierly photographed this deer trio in the intersection of Madison Avenue and — no kidding — St. Nicholas Place Saturday afternoon. (Photo by Charlie Bierly. Click to enlarge)
WHO FIXED THE NAVESINK OSPREY NEST?
The osprey nest as see Friday morning, above, and a year ago, below. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
A precariously leaning home to ospreys in the Navesink River has been fixed, according to a report on a conservation website.
The pole, a decommissioned channel marker between Fair Haven and Middletown, was nearly toppled during Hurricane Sandy, according to the original report by Ben Wurst, habitat program manager for the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.
NAVESINK RIVER OSPREY NEST NEEDS TLC
The osprey nest as seen last May. Below, adult ospreys sunning on a Red Bank dock last April. (Photo by John T. Ward. Click to enlarge)
Wildlife conservationists are looking for help to save the precariously leaning Navesink River home to an osprey nest before it falls over, according to a report on newsworks.org.
The pole, a decommissioned channel marker between Fair Haven and Middletown, was nearly toppled during Hurricane Sandy, according to the report, based on a blog post by Ben Wurst, habitat program manager for the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.