Divine Ibises

Thoth, an ancient Egyptian god who represented the Moon, wisdom, hieroglyphics, knowledge, writing and art, often took the form of an ibis or a man with the head of an ibis. Last October through January 19 of this year, the Metropolitan Museum of Art featured Thoth and other Egyptian deities in Divine Egypt, an exhibition with almost 250 works of art and objects. The exhibition, for me, showed how much the ancient Egyptians revered animals and how little the ibis has changed over the more than 2,000 years since this bird was worshipped.

Statue of an ibis and devotee on a base inscribed for Padihorsiese, 664-525 BCE

Hieroglyphic inlay depicting Thoth as an ibis with a Maat feather, 360–343 BCE

In 2024 and 2025, I had the opportunity to photograph glossy ibises at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge and white ibises on Staten Island. There are 27 extant species of ibises, but most of the ibises we see in the New York City area are glossy ibises and occasional visits from white-faced and white ibises. When I visited the end of Delwit Avenue on Staten Island on August 1, 2025, I was able to see both young white ibises and glossy ibises side by side, and to see how the profiles of these birds so resemble the profiles of the birds depicted in the Met’s displays.

Glossy ibises and young white ibises, Delwit Avenue, Staten Island, August 1, 2025

Young white ibises, Delwit Avenue, Staten Island, August 1, 2025

Glossy ibis, Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, August 31, 2025

Visits to the Bronx Zoo allowed me to see some ibises that do not visit our area in the wild. These are beautiful birds that show us how their profiles so resemble those on the ancient artifacts. The black-faced ibis (Theristicus melanopis) and the scarlet ibis (Eudocimus ruber) are South American birds, with the scarlet ibis found in the Caribbean as well.

Black-faced ibis, Bronx Zoo, December 22, 2025

Cornice block with relief showing the king’s purification, 41-68 CE

Scarlet ibis, Bronx Zoo, December 22, 2025

Arm panel from a ceremonial chair showing Thoth standing by Thutmose IV, ca. 1400-1390 BCE

I have put together a video, Ibises, Descendants of Thoth, featuring glossy and white ibises seen in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in 2024 and 2025 and the immature white ibises seen on Staten Island in 2025. You can also see the scarlet and black-faced ibises in the Bronx Zoo. The music is by Bach.

This gallery has photos from 2024 and 2025 of ibises seen at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, on Staten island and at the Bronx Zoo. I am extremely captivated by these beautiful birds.

The Divine Egypt exhibition had some remarkable items. Especially interesting were some other animals revered by the ancient Egyptians. I include a sample here and encourage you to check out more on the Met’s Web site. For me, the falcon was an inspiration, as were the cats and hippos.

Lintel depicting Horus offering an ankh sign to the Horus name of King Amenemhat I, ca. 1981-1952 BCE

Inlay of the Horus falcon on the hieroglyph for “gold,” 360-343 BCE

Statue of Horus as a falcon protecting King Nectanebo II, 360-343 BCE

Relief plaque with vulture and cobra on baskets, 400-30 BCE

Relief of the Goddess Maat, with a curled ostrich feather worn on her head, ca. 1294-1279 BCE

Statuette intended to hold a mummified cat, 332-30 BCE

Canopic chest of Khonsu, ca. 1279-1213 BCE

Falcon box with wrapped contents, 600-30 BCE

Special Appearances at JBWR: Birthday Birdies

A walk around Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge becomes a pilgrimage in the late summer, when both the West Pond and the East Pond are visited by some of the most spectacular water birds to be found in New York City.

Glossy ibis, East Pond, JBWR, August 16

My birthday is in mid-August, and each year I try to get to a beach, park or wildlife refuge to photograph what I call my “birthday birdies.” This year, I went to JBWR, one of the most brilliant stars in the Gateway National Recreation Area firmament.

A very confident and vocal northern mockingbird, JBWR, August 16. If I can get a nice photo of a mockingbird on any of my wanderings, I feel as if I’ve struck pictorial gold.

I have a routine for my JBWR jaunts. I take the Far Rockaway A train to the Broad Channel stop, walk across Cross Bay Boulevard to Hamberry’s and buy a sandwich, potato chips and drinks, and then hike north to the JBWR parking lot entrance. After dining al fresco at a picnic table and talking to the squirrels begging for a snack, I begin my trek around the West Pond. Usually I spend some time watching the osprey nest behind the nature center, which is a little too far to get good photographs.

On this birthday trek, I spotted a boat-tailed grackle perched in a tree. On the sides of the path were wild roses and their hips, yucca plants and other marsh flora. I then checked out the pond north of the breach. Happily swimming in the fresh water were ruddy ducks, mallards, great-crested cormorants and mute swans. Above me, common terns, laughing gulls, ringed-billed gulls, herring gulls and great black-backed gulls were dancing their aerial ballets.

Ruddy duck, West Pond, JBWR, August 16

Wild rose, JBWR, West Pond, August 16

Rose hip, August 16

I always check a certain tree for egrets and other herons on my way around West Pond (I once spotted a tri-colored heron on this tree). Sometimes the tree is empty, but on my birthday the tree had sprouted multiple great and snowy egrets.

It doesn’t take much imagination to convince yourself that these egrets sprang full-grown from this tree. August 16

Snowy egret in the “magic tree,” August 16

Mute swan, West Pond, JBWR, August 16

Usually when I’m about halfway around the West Pond, I take a little break on a certain bench that overlooks the pond. In front of me there is a snag tree, denuded by Hurricane Sandy but still standing, that often hosts ospreys, merlins and other raptors. What a delight on my birthday to see a glorious peregrine falcon perched there.

Peregrine falcon, West Pond, JBWR, August 16

I continued to circle the pond, stopping to appreciate a spectacular view of the Manhattan skyline across the bay.

Manhattan skyline, viewed from across the West Pond, JBWR, August 16

I was looking for yellow warblers, which breed at JBWR, and I was not disappointed, for they were flying around. However my attempts to photograph them failed, as they often do, since the birds are fast and my camera is heavy. But imagine my surprise when looking for glimpses of yellow to spy three juvenile yellow-crowned night herons perched in one of the trees.

Juvenile yellow-crowned night herons, August 16

After watching these herons for a while, I trudged on to check out Lady Di’s nest in hopes that I had just missed her my previous visit. When I had last been there, in June, I couldn’t find Lady Di and the nest looked unoccupied. Alas, there was to be no birthday sighting, and my thoughts turned to the wish that my favorite osprey had found another nest and there were baby Lady Di’s somewhere else this year.

Disappointed and mosquito-bitten, I crossed to the east side of Cross Bay Boulevard to visit Big John Pond. It was very quiet there, with very low water levels and one lone young robin to photograph.

American robin, Big John Pond, JBWR, August 16

It was now time for the south end of the East Pond. The water is lowered each year to attract shorebirds and to make it possible to walk along the south edge of the pond. Oh joy! There were glossy ibises, one of my favorite birds. I set up my camera on the monopod and spent a lot of time photographing one particularly photogenic bird.

The ibis was considered a sacred bird by both the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. Mummified ibises have been found in Egypt, and I still remember all the hieroglyphic ibises I saw both times I visited the pyramids in Giza and the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. You can see from the inlay photo from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York that this ancient bird has not changed all that much since the god Thoth was depicted in 360 BCE.

Glossy ibis, East Pond, JBWR, August 16

Inlay depicting Thoth as the ibis with a Maat feather, 360–343 BCE, © The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Also brightening my birthday was a nice flock of short-billed dowitchers, the “sewing machines” of the shorebirds. (There are both long-billed and short-billed dowitchers, and I admit I do not have a good reputation for knowing which are which when I see them in the field. I asked the Merlin app for help with these photos, and Merlin said short-billed.)

There were some lesser yellowlegs on the mud flats. (I believe they were lesser yellowlegs, and Merlin said they were lesser yellowlegs. Again, I will admit error if I’m wrong.)

Lesser yellowlegs, East Pond, JBWR, August 16

I did see other birds on my birthday walk, but the ones you see here are the ones that I was able to photograph. There were some rarer birds reported on eBird that day that I never found (for example, a white pelican and a marbled godwit, which were probably at the unvisited north end of East Pond). While I did get some birthday mosquito bites, I didn’t suffer too much. All in all, it was another special JBWR photo jaunt.

At of the time of this posting, the United States government is in a shutdown, which means the national parks are unstaffed and the rangers unpaid. Many national parks have been closed, but to my knowledge Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge is open, although the nature center and bathrooms are not accessible. I send good wishes to the remarkable JBWR park rangers, whose dedication ensures that I can see magnificent birds on my birthday, and on every day I visit.

Van Gogh's Flowers at the New York Botanical Garden

To look at the flower paintings of Vincent van Gogh is to enter a world of overwhelming energy, movement and color. The New York Botanical Garden recognizes this and is now presenting Van Gogh’s Flowers, which highlights the profound effect of flowers and other flora on van Gogh’s art. This spring/summer show encourages us to appreciate the power in van Gogh’s paintings by looking at them from different perspectives.

Iris, Perennial Garden, New York Botanical Garden, June 12

NYBG commissioned several artists to create works influenced by van Gogh: Catherine Borowski and Lee Baker of Graphic Rewilding (Irises On Yellow Columns; All His Flowers in the Round), Amie J. Jacobsen (four large-scale sculptures inspired by four of van Gogh’s iconic floral paintings), and Cyril Lancelin (Pyramid Sunflowers).

I visited the exhibition on June 12 and 15 and filmed and photographed much of the show. This video takes you through the installations and the flower displays. The video is accompanied by music by Erik Satie, Emmanuel Chabrier and Maurice Ravel. These pieces were composed around the time van Gogh was painting many of the canvases included in the NYBG show.

Reflecting on Irises

The first display in the Enid Haupt Conservatory is Irises On Yellow Columns by Graphic Rewilding. This sculpture is beautifully reflected in the pool (although I was not impressed by the vinyl decals on the floor, which I found static and uninviting).

Irises On Yellow Columns, Catherine Borowski and Lee Baker, Graphic Rewilding

The painting that inspired the Graphic Rewilding installation was van Gogh’s Irises (1889), in the Getty Museum. After I saw the NYBG show, I visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art to re-experience that museum’s van Gogh collection. Here is his Irises in the Met Museum, a wonderful painting that captures so much movement and color. While I would have enjoyed seeing live irises near the Graphic Rewilding sculpture, I do understand that bearded irises were not blooming at the time I was at the show. So I’ve included a photo of the irises I did see later in my visit in the Perennial Garden.

Vincent van Gogh, Irises, 1890, Metropolitan Museum of Art

Irises, New York Botanical Garden, June 12

Sculpted Not-So-Still Lifes

Amie J. Jacobsen’s four large-scale sculptures, inspired by four of van Gogh’s floral paintings, are “framed” by foliage and surrounded by flowers. The pieces range between 5 and 8 feet in height. The signage shows the van Gogh painting that inspired each sculpture. Below you can see my photographs of these sculptures, plus photographs of van Gogh’s paintings I saw in the Met Museum and reproductions I have in books.

Oleanders: Van Gogh Eren, Amie J. Jacobsen, 2025

Vincent van Gogh, Oleanders, 1888, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City

Irises: Van Gogh Eren, Amie J. Jacobsen, 2025

Detail: Irises: Van Gogh Eren, Amie J. Jacobsen, 2025

Imperial Fritillaries: Van Gogh Eren, Amie J. Jacobsen, 2025

Roses: Van Gogh Eren, Amie J. Jacobsen, 2025

Detail: Roses: Van Gogh Eren, 2025

Signage showing Vincent Van Gogh’s Irises, 1890, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam

Detail: Irises: Van Gogh Eren, Amie J. Jacobsen, 2025

Vincent van Gogh, Imperial Fritillaries in a Copper Vase, 1886, Musée d’Orsay, Paris

Vincent van Gogh, Roses, 1890, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City. Jacobsen’s sculpture reflects the original pink color of the roses in the painting. That color has since faded.

The flowers surrounding the Jacobsen sculptures are stunning, and many are flowers van Gogh might have seen. This field poppy and the slide show that follows offer some of my favorite flower photos from my visit.

Field poppy. Van Gogh’s depiction of poppies as dabs of paint can be seen at the bottom of his cypress painting at the Met Museum.

Reimagining the Hospital Garden at Arles

In 1889, van Gogh spent much of the year at a hospital in Arles, France, where he painted the view from his window. The botanical garden has a room in the conservatory that suggests this garden, and as you will see in the video, also suggests the yellow-trimmed walkway in the courtyard.

NYBG’s circle garden, after Vincent van Gogh’s Garden at the Hospital at Arles, 1889

Signage for the circle garden at NYBG.

The Joy of Sunflowers

Van Gogh wrote to Theo van Gogh, his brother, in 1888: “Sunshine, a light which, for want of a better word I can only call yellow—pale sulfur yellow, pale lemon gold . . . How beautiful yellow is!” It is thrilling to look out over so many sunflowers in front of the conservatory. Cyril Lancelin‘s Pyramid Sunflowers welcomes visitors into the garden, with the swaying flowers and the buzzing bees.

Vincent van Gogh, Sunflowers, 1887, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City

Pyramid Sunflowers, Cyril Lancelin

Fascinating sunflower facts in the sunflower garden.

Detail: Pyramid Sunflowers

Framed Flower Art in the Perennial Garden

In the garden outside the conservatory are several easels set up with flowers and foliage bursting through golden frames, a tribute to the attraction of artists to flowers and plants.

I love how the flowers and leaves spill over the gold frame.

Throughout the walk to the Enid Haupt Conservatory and elsewhere in the garden are quotes from Vincent van Gogh from his letters.

The Perennial Garden has exquisite flowers to savor, with the framed floral art nestled among the blooms. The selection of flowers will change during the run of Van Gogh’s Flowers depending on what plants are in season. I was so happy I was there when I could see the purple irises, when some of the peonies were still buds while others had opened fully, and when the clematis was climbing up the trellises. The photo below and those in the slide show that follows show some of the brilliant blossoms from mid-June.

Outside the NYBG gift shop is a fun sculpture of a painter’s palette, with the “paint” made of flowers. I didn’t note the artist who created it.

Vincent’s Subjects in the Round

The Graphic Rewilding sculpture in the fountain down the walk from the restaurant and gift shop was my last stop in the Van Gogh’s Flowers show. Other parts of the New York Botanical Garden are stunning (I am so attracted to the Thain Family Forest and the Rock Garden) and can make for a very full summer’s day visit. There are also special programs offered on some evenings. Van Gogh’s Flowers can be visited through October 26.

All His Flowers in the Round, Catherine Borowski and Lee Baker of Graphic Rewilding