Thursday, December 31, 2015

December's List

It wasn't a particularly exciting month of birding. The warm weather seems to have kept the ducks up north--they move when they have to, unlike the passerines and shorebirds that move according to day length and other cues. I added no year birds. By the middle of December I was happy to find month birds. The only rarity I came across was the American Avocet at Brig. This is not to say that I had a lousy time birding. Almost each day brought birds I enjoy and I wandered around places like Whitesbog, Assunpink, and the cranberry bogs in South Toms River-- all places I find agreeable. I just had to forget about my lists and enjoy the birding, which, of course, is what it's really about anyway. Plus, I practiced. I practiced identifying quick flying birds. I practiced pishing out stubborn birds. I practiced "ducks at a distance." And I think I got better. I know I'm a better birder this year than I was last year. And I plan to apply all I learned next year. Before the list, some pictures of birds I found this month:
Cooper's Hawk in the backyard
Fox Sparrow at Double Trouble
Hermit Thrush at the cranberry bogs
American Tree Sparrow at the cranberry bogs
Eastern Bluebirds at Cattus Island
Tundra Swans at the cranberry bogs
The list for the month, 106 species:
Counties birded: Atlantic, Burlington, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Somerset, Ocean
Species                  Location
Snow Goose     Brig
Brant     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Canada Goose     Rt. 70--Manchester
Mute Swan     Marshall's Pond
Tundra Swan     Whitesbog
Wood Duck     Brig
Gadwall     Brig
American Wigeon     Brig
American Black Duck     Butterfly Bogs
Mallard     Bunker Hill Bogs
Northern Shoveler     Brig
Northern Pintail     Brig
Green-winged Teal     Brig
Redhead     Assunpink WMA
Ring-necked Duck     Bunker Hill Bogs
Common Eider     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Harlequin Duck     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Surf Scoter     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
White-winged Scoter     Sandy Hook
Black Scoter     Sandy Hook
Long-tailed Duck     Sandy Hook
Bufflehead     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Common Goldeneye     Sandy Hook
Hooded Merganser     Brig
Red-breasted Merganser     Sandy Hook
Ruddy Duck     Cattus Island County Park
Wild Turkey     35 Sunset Rd
Red-throated Loon     Sandy Hook
Common Loon     Sandy Hook
Pied-billed Grebe     Double Trouble State Park
Horned Grebe     Sandy Hook
Northern Gannet     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Double-crested Cormorant     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Great Blue Heron     Cattus Island County Park
Great Egret     Brig
Black Vulture     Union Transportation Trail
Turkey Vulture     Crestwood Village
Northern Harrier     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Sharp-shinned Hawk     Cranberry Bogs--Dover Rd
Cooper's Hawk     35 Sunset Rd
Bald Eagle     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Red-tailed Hawk     Cranberry Bogs--Dover Rd
Virginia Rail     Brig
American Coot     Brig
American Avocet     Brig
American Oystercatcher     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Black-bellied Plover     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Killdeer     Bunker Hill Bogs
Sanderling     Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Dunlin     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Bonaparte's Gull     Sandy Hook
Ring-billed Gull     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Herring Gull     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Glaucous Gull     Sandy Hook
Great Black-backed Gull     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Rock Pigeon     Manasquan Inlet
Mourning Dove     35 Sunset Rd
Belted Kingfisher     Cattus Island County Park
Red-bellied Woodpecker     Bunker Hill Bogs
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker     Assunpink WMA
Downy Woodpecker     35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker     Assunpink WMA
Northern Flicker     Union Transportation Trail
Peregrine Falcon     Brig
Blue Jay     35 Sunset Rd
American Crow     35 Sunset Rd
Fish Crow     Union Transportation Trail
Horned Lark     Sandy Hook
Carolina Chickadee     35 Sunset Rd
Black-capped Chickadee     Sandy Hook
Tufted Titmouse     35 Sunset Rd
Red-breasted Nuthatch     Cranberry Bogs--Dover Rd
White-breasted Nuthatch     35 Sunset Rd
Brown Creeper     Whitesbog
Winter Wren     Sandy Hook
Carolina Wren     35 Sunset Rd
Golden-crowned Kinglet     Bunker Hill Bogs
Ruby-crowned Kinglet     Whitesbog
Eastern Bluebird     Cattus Island County Park
Hermit Thrush     Double Trouble State Park
American Robin     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Gray Catbird     Assunpink WMA
Northern Mockingbird     Sandy Hook
European Starling     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Cedar Waxwing     Sandy Hook
Snow Bunting     Sandy Hook
Yellow-rumped Warbler     35 Sunset Rd
American Tree Sparrow     Double Trouble State Park
Chipping Sparrow     35 Sunset Rd
Field Sparrow     Assunpink WMA
Fox Sparrow     Double Trouble State Park
Dark-eyed Junco     35 Sunset Rd
White-crowned Sparrow     Assunpink WMA
White-throated Sparrow     35 Sunset Rd
Savannah Sparrow     Double Trouble State Park
Song Sparrow     Bunker Hill Bogs
Swamp Sparrow     Bunker Hill Bogs
Eastern Towhee     Brig
Northern Cardinal     35 Sunset Rd
Red-winged Blackbird     Great Bay Blvd WMA
Common Grackle     Whitesbog
Boat-tailed Grackle     Great Bay Blvd WMA
House Finch     35 Sunset Rd
Pine Siskin     Double Trouble State Park
American Goldfinch     35 Sunset Rd
House Sparrow     Barnegat Lighthouse SP

No comments:

Post a Comment