Wednesday, April 30, 2014

April Roundup

Brown Thrasher singing at Whitesbog
April was not the cruelest month but migration did start slowly due to the Winter-That-Will-Not-End, but it did start and it was great to see warblers that were not of the Pine or Yellow-rumped variety. Shorebird migration has also started and the waders are back too.

Despite the grumbling about the weather we had a great month. I did a lot more birding with friends than I usually do, sometimes by design but a couple of times I was just lucky to run into a friend in the field. I was especially lucky at Whitesbog where a friend put me on to my first Prairie Warbler of the year and astoundingly lucky to meet Greg at Double Trouble and finally see after three tries, the elusive Louisiana Waterthrush that he originally found along the canal next to Cedar Creek.

One rarity I missed was a Neotropic Cormorant up north in Hunterdon County. The location is 94 miles from here but somehow those 94 miles seem much farther away than the 90 or so miles I would have to travel south to Cape May. Probably because I know my way around Cape May while Hunterdon falls into the "Hic Sunt Leontes" category. Had it been a life bird I would have steeled myself for the drive. As it is, it's one bird I won't have on my state list until one shows up closer to home.

Again this month almost all the birding was done in NJ--there was one quick trip into the city. That will change next month as we're headed to New Mexico for a week.

Finally, enough time has passed to show these pictures from earlier in the month. Greg and I went to Island Beach State Park. While standing in an open, sandy area on the bay side, we spotted 4 fox kits (pups, cubs) coming in and out of the den their mother had dug into a hill. She was off to the side, watching them as they investigated the area and seemed to have only half an eye on us. I took a couple of mediocre photos and held off posting them so as to not to tempt anyone to seek out the foxes. I felt both nervous and guilty being so near them. But they were cute.


For the month I had 143 species, by far the best count of the year.
Counties birded:
New Jersey: Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland, Monmouth, Ocean, Union
New York: New York
Species           Location
Snow Goose     Brigantine
Brant     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Canada Goose     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Mute Swan     Stafford Forge WMA
Tundra Swan     Crestwood Village
Wood Duck     Whitesbog Ocean County portion
Gadwall     Brigantine
American Wigeon     Brigantine
American Black Duck     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Mallard     Crestwood Village
Blue-winged Teal     Brigantine
Northern Shoveler     Brigantine
Northern Pintail     Brigantine
Green-winged Teal     Crestwood Village
Canvasback     Brigantine
Redhead     Crestwood Village
Ring-necked Duck     Crestwood Village
Greater Scaup     Riverfront Landing
Lesser Scaup     Assunpink WMA
Harlequin Duck     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Black Scoter     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Long-tailed Duck     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Bufflehead     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Hooded Merganser     Stafford Forge WMA
Common Merganser     Assunpink WMA
Red-breasted Merganser     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Ruddy Duck     Riverfront Landing
Wild Turkey     35 Sunset Rd
Red-throated Loon     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Common Loon     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Pied-billed Grebe     Assunpink WMA
Horned Grebe     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Northern Gannet     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Double-crested Cormorant     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Great Cormorant     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Great Blue Heron     Brigantine
Great Egret     Cattus Island County Park
Snowy Egret     Brigantine
Little Blue Heron     Cattus Island County Park
Tricolored Heron     Cattus Island County Park
Glossy Ibis     Brigantine
Black Vulture     Assunpink WMA
Turkey Vulture     Crestwood Village
Osprey     Cattus Island County Park
Northern Harrier     Brigantine
Sharp-shinned Hawk     Island Beach SP
Cooper's Hawk     Island Beach SP
Bald Eagle     Brigantine
Broad-winged Hawk     Estell Manor Park
Red-tailed Hawk     Crestwood Village
Clapper Rail     Heislerville WMA
American Coot     Brigantine
American Oystercatcher     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Black-bellied Plover     Island Beach SP
Killdeer     Whitesbog Ocean County portion
Greater Yellowlegs     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Willet     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Lesser Yellowlegs     Heislerville WMA
Whimbrel     Brigantine
Ruddy Turnstone     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Dunlin     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Purple Sandpiper     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Least Sandpiper     Brigantine
Semipalmated Sandpiper     Brigantine
Short-billed Dowitcher     Heislerville WMA
Wilson's Snipe     Cattus Island County Park
Bonaparte's Gull     Brigantine
Laughing Gull     Palmyra Cove Nature Park
Ring-billed Gull     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Herring Gull     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Great Black-backed Gull     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Gull-billed Tern     Brigantine
Caspian Tern     Brigantine
Forster's Tern     Cattus Island County Park
Rock Pigeon     Bayview Marina
Mourning Dove     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Eastern Whip-poor-will     35 Sunset Rd
Chimney Swift     Brigantine
Ruby-throated Hummingbird     Belleplain State Forest
Belted Kingfisher     Cattus Island County Park
Red-bellied Woodpecker     Crestwood Village
Downy Woodpecker     Crestwood Village
Hairy Woodpecker     35 Sunset Rd
Northern Flicker     Cattus Island County Park
American Kestrel     Assunpink WMA
Merlin     Brigantine
Peregrine Falcon     Brigantine
Eastern Phoebe     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Great Crested Flycatcher     Double Trouble State Park
White-eyed Vireo     Whitesbog
Blue Jay     Crestwood Village
American Crow     Cattus Island County Park
Fish Crow     Crestwood Village
Northern Rough-winged Swallow     Whitesbog
Purple Martin     Brigantine
Tree Swallow     Riverfront Landing
Barn Swallow     Whitesbog Ocean County portion
Carolina Chickadee     Stafford Forge WMA
Black-capped Chickadee     Central Park
Tufted Titmouse     Stafford Forge WMA
White-breasted Nuthatch     Stafford Forge WMA
Brown Creeper     Palmyra Cove Nature Park
Carolina Wren     35 Sunset Rd
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher     Colliers Mills WMA
Golden-crowned Kinglet     Whitesbog Ocean County portion
Ruby-crowned Kinglet     Central Park
Eastern Bluebird     Cattus Island County Park
Hermit Thrush     Island Beach SP
American Robin     Stafford Forge WMA
Gray Catbird     Island Beach SP
Brown Thrasher     Whitesbog
Northern Mockingbird     Bayview Ave Park
European Starling     Stafford Forge WMA
Ovenbird     Belleplain State Forest
Worm-eating Warbler     Belleplain State Forest
Louisiana Waterthrush     Belleplain State Forest
Black-and-white Warbler     Colliers Mills WMA
Prothonotary Warbler     Belleplain State Forest
Common Yellowthroat     Whitesbog Ocean County portion
Yellow Warbler     Brigantine
Palm Warbler     Double Trouble State Park
Pine Warbler     Crestwood Village
Yellow-rumped Warbler     35 Sunset Rd
Yellow-throated Warbler     Estell Manor Park
Prairie Warbler     Whitesbog Ocean County portion
Eastern Towhee     Assunpink WMA
Chipping Sparrow     35 Sunset Rd
Field Sparrow     Brigantine
Savannah Sparrow     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Seaside Sparrow     Brigantine
Song Sparrow     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Swamp Sparrow     Cattus Island County Park
White-throated Sparrow     Crestwood Village
White-crowned Sparrow     Assunpink WMA
Dark-eyed Junco     Crestwood Village
Northern Cardinal     Crestwood Village
Red-winged Blackbird     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Common Grackle     Double Trouble State Park
Boat-tailed Grackle     Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Brown-headed Cowbird     Crestwood Village
House Finch     Crestwood Village
American Goldfinch     35 Sunset Rd
House Sparrow     Riverfront Landing

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