October Review

Kind of a paltry month in terms of numbers and only a couple of new birds for the year. Weird weather and going back and forth between NY & NJ was partially to blame; bad birding, just being off my game, was probably most of the problem.

There were a few highlights for me though:
Horicon Lake--I stopped there one morning after getting the car serviced and was very happy to find 3 Pied-billed Grebes on the water. I'm hoping this lake near our house will be productive in the winter.

Whiting WMA--Bald Eagle flying away from me when I reached the lake was a thrill. I was pleased to get my first Golden-crowned Kinglet of the year there (though that's a bird that shouldn't take until October to find), and I was glad to see a Brown Creeper one morning close by me on a tree off the trail. I like Brown Creepers a lot--I guess because they're the only representative of their very small family (only 7 species in the world) in the east. It's not that they're uncommon, it's that there's nothing else like them around. I took a walk in the WMA this morning but there was nothing there that I couldn't find at our feeders. I'm hoping activity doesn't fall off there in the winter.

Our house--Heard 3 Great Horned Owls calling to each another one evening. We were on the edge of awe-struck.

Central Park--I don't know how many more times I'll get to bird there but if this was the last time it was a good experience with both a Wood Duck and my first Winter Wren of the year.

78 species for the month. The ducks are coming back, so I think I'll have a lot more species November.
Counties birded:
New Jersey: Monmouth, Ocean
New York: Kings, New York

Species	First Sighting
Canada Goose	Crestwood Village
Mute Swan	Prospect Park
Wood Duck	Prospect Park
American Black Duck	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Mallard	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Northern Shoveler	Prospect Park
Ruddy Duck	Prospect Park
Pied-billed Grebe	Horicon Lake
Double-crested Cormorant	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Great Blue Heron	Cattus Island County Park
Great Egret	Cattus Island County Park
Turkey Vulture	Laurita Winery
Osprey	Cattus Island County Park
Bald Eagle	Whiting WMA
Northern Harrier	Sandy Hook
Cooper's Hawk	Whiting WMA
Red-tailed Hawk	Sandy Hook
Merlin	35 Sunset Rd
American Coot	Prospect Park
Spotted Sandpiper	Prospect Park
Greater Yellowlegs	Cattus Island County Park
Laughing Gull	Horicon Lake
Ring-billed Gull	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Herring Gull	Sandy Hook
Great Black-backed Gull	Sandy Hook
Rock Pigeon	Prospect Park
Mourning Dove	Whiting WMA
Great Horned Owl	35 Sunset Rd
Belted Kingfisher	Cattus Island County Park
Red-bellied Woodpecker	Laurita Winery
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	Sandy Hook
Downy Woodpecker	Whiting WMA
Hairy Woodpecker	Whiting WMA
Northern Flicker	Whiting WMA
Eastern Wood-Pewee	Whiting WMA
Eastern Phoebe	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Blue Jay	Laurita Winery
American Crow	Whiting WMA
Fish Crow	Toms River
Tree Swallow	Horicon Lake
Carolina Chickadee	Whiting WMA
Black-capped Chickadee	Prospect Park
Tufted Titmouse	Whiting WMA
White-breasted Nuthatch	Whiting WMA
Brown Creeper	Sandy Hook
Carolina Wren	35 Sunset Rd
Winter Wren	Central Park
Marsh Wren	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Golden-crowned Kinglet	Whiting WMA
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	Whiting WMA
Eastern Bluebird	Whiting WMA
Hermit Thrush	Prospect Park
American Robin	35 Sunset Rd
Gray Catbird	Horicon Lake
Northern Mockingbird	Sandy Hook
European Starling	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Ovenbird	Whiting WMA
Black-and-white Warbler	Whiting WMA
Nashville Warbler	Laurita Winery
Common Yellowthroat	Sandy Hook
Northern Parula	Prospect Park
Blackpoll Warbler	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Palm Warbler	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Pine Warbler	Whiting WMA
Yellow-rumped Warbler	Laurita Winery
Black-throated Green Warbler	Prospect Park
Eastern Towhee	Sandy Hook
Chipping Sparrow	Laurita Winery
Savannah Sparrow	Sandy Hook
Song Sparrow	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Swamp Sparrow	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
White-throated Sparrow	Whiting WMA
Dark-eyed Junco	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One
Northern Cardinal	35 Sunset Rd
Red-winged Blackbird	Cattus Island County Park
House Finch	35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch	35 Sunset Rd
House Sparrow	Brklyn Brdg Pk--Pier One