September Summary

Great Black-backed Gulls & Royal Terns, Barnegat Light SP

September is peak migration for shorebirds, so we got a lot of those, and in the early middle of warbler migration, so, while didn't get great numbers all at once, we did do decently in that department too. For the month we had 150 species.

I think this may have been the first month this year that we birded entirely within New Jersey, so that just goes to show the kind of diversity of birds this little state gets. As to FOY there were only 4--obviously, as the year progresses, it gets more difficult to add new birds for the year. My count for Ocean County is up to 198, thanks to some new warbler species for me and also due to my desperation trip to Long Beach Island to finally chalk up pelicans and Royal Terns.

Many rare and/or hard to find shorebirds this month. Buff-breasted and Baird's Sandpipers on the same day and in the same scope view were obvious highlights. But to show how quickly one becomes jaded, after finding American Golden-Plovers in 3 or 4 different spots (it was a great season for that bird), I found myself saying to another birder that I'd seen enough of them and wasn't going to make the march out to the tip of Sandy Hook again to see one.

The most charming moment of the month occurred yesterday at the Officer's Club at Sandy Hook. I noticed something fluttering near my knee and assume it to be a falling leaf. But the leaf flew upward and turned out to be a Ruby-crowned Kinglet hovering around me.

Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cattus Island County Park

Not much in the way of raptors this month--though Northern Harriers were pretty easy to find. We didn't go to any hawk watches; maybe we'll make it down to Cape May's in October.

I found it interesting how the month split into two parts--the first half was concentrating on shorebirds and after a couple of weeks of intensive searching the sod farms, Whitesbog, and Brig, suddenly you didn't hear anything about sod farms or bogs and the search turned to warblers.

I've found a surprising number of warblers locally; the Pine Barrens are not noted for warbler diversity, but I had a hunch that the power line cut that runs to the south of Crestwood Village might be good in the mornings when a strong sun shines on the pines and jack oak and I wasn't wrong.

The month's list:
Counties birded:
Atlantic, Burlington Cape May, Mercer, Monmouth, Ocean

Species     Location

Canada Goose     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Mute Swan     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Wood Duck     Brigantine NWR

American Black Duck     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Mallard     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Blue-winged Teal     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Northern Shoveler     Brigantine NWR

Northern Pintail     Brigantine NWR

Green-winged Teal     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Wild Turkey     35 Sunset Rd

Common Loon     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Pied-billed Grebe     Brigantine NWR

Double-crested Cormorant     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Brown Pelican     Barnegat Lighthouse SP

American Bittern     Brigantine NWR

Great Blue Heron     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Great Egret     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Snowy Egret     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Little Blue Heron     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Tricolored Heron     Cattus Island County Park

Green Heron     White's Bogs

Black-crowned Night-Heron     Brigantine NWR

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron     Brigantine NWR

Glossy Ibis     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Turkey Vulture     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Osprey     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Northern Harrier     Brigantine NWR

Sharp-shinned Hawk     Cattus Island County Park

Cooper's Hawk     Reed's Sod Farm

Bald Eagle     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Red-tailed Hawk     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Clapper Rail     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Sora     Brigantine NWR

American Avocet     Brigantine NWR

American Oystercatcher     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Black-bellied Plover     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

American Golden-Plover     Reed's Sod Farm

Semipalmated Plover     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Piping Plover     Holgate

Killdeer     Reed's Sod Farm

Spotted Sandpiper     Brigantine NWR

Solitary Sandpiper     Brigantine NWR

Greater Yellowlegs     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Willet     Brigantine NWR

Lesser Yellowlegs     Wetlands Institute

Whimbrel     Brigantine NWR

Hudsonian Godwit     Brigantine

Marbled Godwit     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Ruddy Turnstone     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Red Knot     Holgate

Stilt Sandpiper     Wetlands Institute

Sanderling     Holgate

Dunlin     Brigantine NWR

Baird's Sandpiper     Brigantine NWR

Least Sandpiper     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

White-rumped Sandpiper     Brigantine NWR

Buff-breasted Sandpiper     Brigantine NWR

Pectoral Sandpiper     Reed's Sod Farm

Semipalmated Sandpiper     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Western Sandpiper     Wetlands Institute

Short-billed Dowitcher     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Long-billed Dowitcher     Brigantine NWR

Laughing Gull     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Ring-billed Gull     Holgate

Herring Gull     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Lesser Black-backed Gull     Holgate

Great Black-backed Gull     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Least Tern     Holgate

Gull-billed Tern     Brigantine NWR

Caspian Tern     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Common Tern     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Forster's Tern     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Royal Tern     Sandy Hook

Black Skimmer     CMPSP Hawkwatch Platform

Rock Pigeon     Reed's Sod Farm

Mourning Dove     Reed's Sod Farm

Yellow-billed Cuckoo     Sandy Hook

Eastern Whip-poor-will     35 Sunset Rd

Chimney Swift     Sandy Hook

Ruby-throated Hummingbird     Union Transportation Trail

Belted Kingfisher     Crestwood Village

Red-bellied Woodpecker     Colliers Mills WMA

Downy Woodpecker     Union Transportation Trail

Hairy Woodpecker     Brigantine NWR

Northern Flicker     Crestwood Village

Merlin     Holgate

Peregrine Falcon     Brigantine NWR

Eastern Wood-Pewee     35 Sunset Rd

Least Flycatcher     35 Sunset Rd

Eastern Phoebe     Crestwood Village

Eastern Kingbird     Brigantine NWR

White-eyed Vireo     Brigantine NWR

Red-eyed Vireo     Sandy Hook

Blue Jay     Reed's Sod Farm

American Crow     Crestwood Village

Fish Crow     Crestwood Village

Horned Lark     Reed's Sod Farm

Purple Martin     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Tree Swallow     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Bank Swallow     Brigantine NWR

Barn Swallow     Reed's Sod Farm

Carolina Chickadee     Union Transportation Trail

Black-capped Chickadee     Sandy Hook

Tufted Titmouse     Crestwood Village

White-breasted Nuthatch     Crestwood Village

House Wren     Crestwood Village

Marsh Wren     Brigantine NWR

Carolina Wren     Reed's Sod Farm

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher     Brigantine NWR

Golden-crowned Kinglet     Sandy Hook

Ruby-crowned Kinglet     Brigantine NWR

Eastern Bluebird     Colliers Mills WMA

American Robin     Wetlands Institute

Gray Catbird     Union Transportation Trail

Brown Thrasher     Brigantine NWR

Northern Mockingbird     Wetlands Institute

European Starling     Wetlands Institute

Cedar Waxwing     Sandy Hook

Northern Waterthrush     Sandy Hook

Black-and-white Warbler     Colliers Mills WMA

Common Yellowthroat     Whiting WMA

American Redstart     Brigantine NWR

Northern Parula     Sandy Hook

Magnolia Warbler     Crestwood Village

Yellow Warbler     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Blackpoll Warbler     Sandy Hook

Black-throated Blue Warbler     Sandy Hook

Palm Warbler     Sandy Hook

Pine Warbler     Colliers Mills WMA

Yellow-rumped Warbler     Colliers Mills WMA

Prairie Warbler     Crestwood Village

Black-throated Green Warbler     Colliers Mills WMA

Eastern Towhee     35 Sunset Rd

Chipping Sparrow     Union Transportation Trail

Savannah Sparrow     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Saltmarsh Sparrow     Brigantine NWR

Seaside Sparrow     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Song Sparrow     Reed's Sod Farm

White-throated Sparrow     Colliers Mills WMA

Scarlet Tanager     Allaire State Park

Northern Cardinal     35 Sunset Rd

Blue Grosbeak     Brigantine NWR

Indigo Bunting     Union Transportation Trail

Bobolink     Brigantine NWR

Red-winged Blackbird     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

Common Grackle     Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Boat-tailed Grackle     Cape May Osprey Boat Tour

House Finch     35 Sunset Rd

American Goldfinch     Crestwood Village

House Sparrow     Reed's Sod Farm Least Sandpipers, Cattus Island County Park