November Wrap-up

Snowy Owl, Holgate

November is usually a good month for rarities and that proved to be true again with many western vagrants showing up around the state. However, the rarities seemed to be of two types: Hummingbirds on private property and elusive birds on Cape May. In the first instance you have to (at least if you're ethical about it) contact the owner of the property and ask for permission to try to see the bird and then be prepared to stand around for hours waiting for the the little hummer to show up. Not my idea of fun.

In the 2nd instance you have to be in Cape May when the bird is seen because the rarities are either flybys seen from the dune crossings or else one day wonders with the emphasis on wonder as in "I wonder why I bother to chase these birds."

There was a great rarity in Ocean County this month--an Ash-throated Flycatcher that Scott Barnes found on his Island Beach Audubon trip--but I missed it. Where was I? Cape May of course, missing all the rarities down there. The bruises from kicking myself are just starting to heal.

The big news in rarity sightings though was on Island Beach where a number of Snowy Owls have been roosting in the dunes. Four years ago there was an irruption of these charismatic birds and it looks like we're going to have another good year--if you consider photographers harassing birds good. My friend Steve spotted a Snowy along the beach at IBSP mid-month but kept it quiet. The day before Thanksgiving he saw one again; I was at an appointment in Toms River but, since I already have one for the year and county, I wouldn't have chased it anyway. On Thanksgiving, word got out and ever since birders and photographers have been chasing around the dunes there looking for and finding the birds, which may number as many as 6. To be fair, most people have kept their distance, but the thought of chasing one of these birds always makes me slightly queasy. I was at Island Beach last week, but I was looking for a different kind of "snow" bird--Snow Buntings for the county which I didn't find. I did find, finally, thanks to Steve, White-winged Scoters for the county. I had been walking up and down the beach there a number of days before Steve took pity on me and drove me up to a section where there was a small raft in the breakers.

White-winged Scoters (hens), Island Beach SP

I did, obviously from the picture above, see a Snowy Owl this month, but it was at Holgate, at the extreme south end of Long Beach Island, where I had gone to once again seek out Snow Buntings in the dune grass. Unsuccessfully. But, while trudging along the beach I saw two photographers with their cameras pointed to the dunes and knew immediately they had found an owl. No surprise, really--Holgate is perfect habitat for them and it was there, very early in the year, that I saw one. It is just that Holgate is relatively remote and a long walk through sand whereas Island Beach, even if you don't have a permit to drive on the beach, has many paths to access the beach, which makes finding an owl a whole lot easier.

Great Gray Owl, Sax-Zim Bog, MN

Not that I ever read the Harry Potter series, but I understand that a Snowy Owl is a character in the books and that has added to their appeal to non-birders. But while I was looking at the bird on Sunday at Holgate, it struck me not so much as a fierce raptor which can (and will) eat an eider, but as a rather jolly looking bird. Cute even. Thus, another aspect of their popularity--they disguise their fierceness. If you ever saw a Great Gray Owl, for instance, "cute" would not come to mind.

As for the rest of the month, it was uneventful. I only added two year birds to the list--both on the same day down at the Avalon Seawatch. That's somewhat to be expected this time of year--the longer the year goes one the fewer birds that are "new." But two is a pathetic number. And I don't think it will be much better next month, as, for various reasons, my birding opportunities are going to much more limited than usual.

So, for the month, 127 species. The only other rarities I saw this month was the returning Trumpeter Swans at Assunpink & an Orange-crowned Warbler when Shari & I were lucky enough to run into Scott and Linda up at Sandy Hook.

Counties birded:
Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Mercer, Monmouth, Ocean

Species             First Sighting

Snow Goose   Brig

Brant   Great Bay Blvd

Canada Goose   Brig

Mute Swan   Brig

Trumpeter Swan   Assunpink WMA

Tundra Swan   Brig

Wood Duck   Brig

Blue-winged Teal   Brig

Northern Shoveler   Brig

Gadwall   Assunpink WMA

American Wigeon   Brig

Mallard   Brig

American Black Duck   Brig

Northern Pintail   Brig

Green-winged Teal   Brig

Canvasback   Brig

Redhead   Assunpink WMA

Ring-necked Duck   Assunpink WMA

Lesser Scaup   Brig

Common Eider   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Harlequin Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Surf Scoter   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

White-winged Scoter   Avalon Seawatch

Black Scoter   Avalon Seawatch

Long-tailed Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Bufflehead   Assunpink WMA

Hooded Merganser   Brig

Red-breasted Merganser   Avalon Seawatch

Ruddy Duck   Assunpink WMA

Wild Turkey   Crestwood Village

Red-throated Loon   Brig

Common Loon   Great Bay Blvd

Pied-billed Grebe   Brig

Horned Grebe   Brig

Northern Gannet   Manasquan Inlet

Great Cormorant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Double-crested Cormorant   Great Bay Blvd

Great Blue Heron   Holly Lake

Great Egret   Great Bay Blvd

Snowy Egret   Brig

Tricolored Heron   Brig

Black-crowned Night-Heron   Great Bay Blvd

Black Vulture   Cloverdale Farm

Turkey Vulture   Warren Grove

Osprey   Assunpink WMA

Northern Harrier   Brig

Sharp-shinned Hawk   Brig

Cooper's Hawk   Brig

Bald Eagle   Assunpink WMA

Red-tailed Hawk   Wawa Galloway

American Coot   Assunpink WMA

American Oystercatcher   Great Bay Blvd

Black-bellied Plover   Great Bay Blvd

Semipalmated Plover   Great Bay Blvd

Killdeer   Horicon Lake

Ruddy Turnstone   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Sanderling   Avalon Seawatch

Dunlin   Great Bay Blvd

Purple Sandpiper   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Least Sandpiper   Brig

White-rumped Sandpiper   Brig

Semipalmated Sandpiper   Brig

Western Sandpiper   Brig

Short-billed Dowitcher   Brig

Long-billed Dowitcher   Brig

Greater Yellowlegs   Great Bay Blvd

Lesser Yellowlegs   Brig

Parasitic Jaeger   Avalon Seawatch

Bonaparte's Gull   Brig

Laughing Gull   Little Silver Lake

Ring-billed Gull   Brig

Herring Gull   Great Bay Blvd

Lesser Black-backed Gull   Cape Island

Great Black-backed Gull   Great Bay Blvd

Forster's Tern   Brig

Royal Tern   Manasquan Inlet

Rock Pigeon   Mercer Corporate Park

Mourning Dove   Great Bay Blvd

Great Horned Owl   I-195 MM 13

Snowy Owl   Holgate

Belted Kingfisher   Assunpink WMA

Red-bellied Woodpecker   Brig

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Colliers Mills WMA

Downy Woodpecker   Assunpink WMA

Hairy Woodpecker   Colliers Mills WMA

Northern Flicker   Colliers Mills WMA

Pileated Woodpecker   Assunpink WMA

Peregrine Falcon   Great Bay Blvd

Blue Jay   35 Sunset Rd

American Crow   35 Sunset Rd

Fish Crow   Forked River

Tree Swallow   Cape May Point SP

Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd

Black-capped Chickadee   Sandy Hook

Tufted Titmouse   35 Sunset Rd

White-breasted Nuthatch   Assunpink WMA

Brown Creeper   Assunpink WMA

Winter Wren   Sandy Hook

Carolina Wren   Brig

Golden-crowned Kinglet   Brig

Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Assunpink WMA

Eastern Bluebird   Brig

Hermit Thrush   Brig

American Robin   Assunpink WMA

Gray Catbird   Assunpink WMA

Northern Mockingbird   Assunpink WMA

European Starling   Forked River

Cedar Waxwing   Cape May Point SP

Snow Bunting   Sandy Hook

Orange-crowned Warbler   Sandy Hook

Palm Warbler   Great Bay Blvd

Pine Warbler   Whitesbog

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Great Bay Blvd

Chipping Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd

Field Sparrow   Colliers Mills WMA

Dark-eyed Junco   Great Bay Blvd

White-throated Sparrow   Great Bay Blvd

Savannah Sparrow   Brig

Song Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

Swamp Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

Northern Cardinal   35 Sunset Rd

Eastern Meadowlark   Brig

Red-winged Blackbird   Brig

Boat-tailed Grackle   Great Bay Blvd

House Finch   35 Sunset Rd

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd

House Sparrow   Union Transportation Trail