New Jersey is experiencing an unusually lengthy period of low humidity and windy conditions, especially for Spring. This makes the situation completely ripe for fires. The irony of this is not lost on anyone who lived through the unforgettable wet weather of 2011. It seems that everyday there is another red flag warning for a “Fire Weather Warning is in effect” issued by the National Weather Service. New Jersey Forest Fire trucks cruised Pleasant Plains Road in the Great Swamp N.W.R. this afternoon looking for telltale signs of a blaze. Numerous fires across the state are reported at nj.com. In Morristown, winds were from the west south west at 20 M.P.H. with gusts measured at 44 M.P.H. The relative humidity was 17%! This writer used lip balm today for the first time all year because it was so windy and dry.

Nevertheless, immune to our concerns, the raptors are moving. Morris County’s first three Broad-winged Hawks of 2012 were seen this afternoon by Simon Lane, Jim Mulvey and myself at the overlook on Pleasant Plains Rd. in the Great Swamp. Also seen were the two “local” Bald Eagles, an Osprey, 3 Northern Harriers, Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s Hawks, 3 American Kestrel, 7 Red-tailed Hawks, 6 Black Vultures, wind-blown Wilson’s Snipe and the typical species of the area.

Submitted by Jonathan Klizas