April in NJ & Mexico

Hooded Oriole, Puerto Morelos, Mexico

It isn't surprising that with migration starting up, April has been by far my most active month. Add in a week's trip to Mexico, even without very much birding, and that gives the month's total of 200 species a big boost.

As I have been complaining, seemingly ceaselessly, the weather has been against me all month. It has, at least provided a lesson on how resourceful birds can be. Without warm weather, insects have been sparse, so it hasn't been unusual to find Pine Warblers on our suet feeders, as they often are in the winter. But I have never before seen them eat seeds out of the tube feeders as they have been the last couple of weeks. They didn't get this far by not being adaptable.

Every year birders complain that migration is slow or even non-existent. No matter where you are, the birds have passed over you to a location farther north. And every year I hear that "we had no spring," instead, we went directly from winter to summer. I'm already hearing that last one, though summer weather hasn't come close yet. With all that, I have a lot of migratory birds for the month, and some of them--Louisiana Waterthrush, Prothonotary Warbler, Hooded Warbler--can be tough ones to get on the list. Rarities included White Ibis and Summer Tanager. I got good looks at 3 species of owls in two countries.

Here is the list for April
Key: LIFE BIRD, Year Bird, Rarity
County & States birded:
Mexico: Quintana Roo
New Jersey: Atlantic, Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean

Species            First Sighting

Snow Goose   Brig

Brant   Sandy Hook

Canada Goose   Sandy Hook

Mute Swan   Sandy Hook

Wood Duck   Butterfly Bogs

Blue-winged Teal   Manahawkin WMA

Northern Shoveler   Forsythe-Barnegat

Mallard   Sandy Hook

American Black Duck   Sandy Hook

Northern Pintail   Manahawkin WMA

Green-winged Teal   Manahawkin WMA

Ring-necked Duck   Sandy Hook

Greater Scaup   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Bufflehead   Sandy Hook

Common Goldeneye   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Hooded Merganser   Manahawkin WMA

Red-breasted Merganser   Sandy Hook

Plain Chachalaca   Sian Ka’an

Wild Turkey   35 Sunset Rd

Red-throated Loon   Sandy Hook

Common Loon   Sandy Hook

Pied-billed Grebe   Sandy Hook

Horned Grebe   Sandy Hook

Magnificent Frigatebird   Puerto Morelos

Northern Gannet   Sandy Hook

Great Cormorant   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Double-crested Cormorant   Sandy Hook

Brown Pelican   Puerto Morelos

Great Blue Heron   Colliers Mills WMA

Great Egret   Sandy Hook

Snowy Egret   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Little Blue Heron   Manahawkin WMA

Tricolored Heron   Cattus Island County Park

Black-crowned Night-Heron   Great Bay Blvd

White Ibis   Manahawkin WMA

Glossy Ibis   Manahawkin WMA

Black Vulture   Sandy Hook

Turkey Vulture   Sandy Hook

Osprey   Sandy Hook

Snail Kite   Sian Ka’an

Northern Harrier   Sandy Hook

Sharp-shinned Hawk   Sandy Hook

Cooper's Hawk   Sandy Hook

Bald Eagle   Island Beach SP

Red-shouldered Hawk   Sandy Hook

Red-tailed Hawk   Sandy Hook

Clapper Rail   Great Bay Blvd

RUSSET-NAPED WOOD-RAIL   Sian Ka’an

American Coot   Brig

American Oystercatcher   Sandy Hook

Black-bellied Plover   Sandy Hook

Semipalmated Plover   Great Bay Blvd

Piping Plover   Sandy Hook

Killdeer   Sandy Hook

Whimbrel   Great Bay Blvd

Ruddy Turnstone   Puerto Morelos

Sanderling   Sandy Hook

Dunlin   Island Beach SP

Least Sandpiper   Manahawkin WMA

Short-billed Dowitcher   Great Bay Blvd

Wilson's Snipe   New Egypt

Greater Yellowlegs   Cattus Island County Park

Willet   Manahawkin WMA

Lesser Yellowlegs   Manahawkin WMA

Bonaparte's Gull   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Laughing Gull   Wawa South Toms River

Franklin's Gull   Puerto Morelos

Ring-billed Gull   Cattus Island County Park

Herring Gull   Sandy Hook

Iceland Gull   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Great Black-backed Gull   Sandy Hook

Caspian Tern    Puerto Morelos

Forster's Tern   Island Beach SP

Rock Pigeon   New Egypt

Eurasian Collared-Dove   Puerto Morelos

Common Ground-Dove   Puerto Morelos

PLAIN-BREASTED GROUND-DOVE   Puerto Morelos

Ruddy Ground-Dove   Puerto Morelos

White-winged Dove   Puerto Morelos

Mourning Dove   Sandy Hook

Great Horned Owl   Brick

Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl   Sian Ka’an

Barred Owl   Ocean County

Eastern Whip-poor-will   35 Sunset Rd

Chimney Swift   35 Sunset Rd

Vaux's Swift   Sian Ka’an

Ruby-throated Hummingbird   35 Sunset Rd

CINNAMON HUMMINGBIRD   Villas Silvia

BLACK-HEADED TROGON   Sian Ka’an

TURQUOISE-BROWED MOTMOT   Sian Ka’an

Belted Kingfisher   Cattus Island County Park

YUCATAN WOODPECKER   Sian Ka’an

Golden-fronted Woodpecker   Puerto Morelos

Red-bellied Woodpecker   New Egypt

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Sandy Hook

Downy Woodpecker   Sandy Hook

Hairy Woodpecker   Double Trouble State Park

Northern Flicker   Sandy Hook

American Kestrel   Sandy Hook

Merlin   Sandy Hook

Peregrine Falcon   Great Bay Blvd

WHITE-FRONTED PARROT   Puerto Morelos

BLACK-FACED ANTTHRUSH   Sian Ka’an

TAWNY-WINGED WOODCREEPER   Sian Ka’an

IVORY-BILLED WOODCREEPER   Sian Ka’an

EYE-RINGED FLATBILL   Sian Ka’an

YELLOW-OLIVE FLYCATCHER   Sian Ka’an

ROYAL FLYCATCHER   Sian Ka’an

Eastern Phoebe   Sandy Hook

Brown-crested Flycatcher   Puerto Morelos

Great Kiskadee   Puerto Morelos

Boat-billed Flycatcher   Puerto Morelos

SOCIAL FLYCATCHER   Puerto Morelos

Tropical Kingbird   Puerto Morelos

Couch's Kingbird   Sian Ka’an

Eastern Kingbird   Reeves Bogs

Rufous-browed Peppershrike   Sian Ka’an

LESSER GREENLET   Sian Ka’an

White-eyed Vireo   Island Beach SP

Yellow-throated Vireo   Sian Ka’an

Blue-headed Vireo   Double Trouble State Park

YELLOW-GREEN VIREO   Sian Ka’an

YUCATAN VIREO   Sian Ka’an

Brown Jay   Sian Ka’an

Green Jay   Sian Ka’an

Blue Jay   35 Sunset Rd

American Crow   Sandy Hook

Fish Crow   35 Sunset Rd

Common Raven   Sandy Hook

Northern Rough-winged Swallow   Brig

Purple Martin   Woodmansee Blvd

Gray-breasted Martin   Aeropuerto Internacional de Cancun

Tree Swallow   Sandy Hook

Barn Swallow   Cloverdale Farm

Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd

Tufted Titmouse   Crestwood Village

White-breasted Nuthatch   35 Sunset Rd

Brown Creeper   Sandy Hook

Marsh Wren   Manahawkin WMA

Carolina Wren   Sandy Hook

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher   Island Beach SP

Golden-crowned Kinglet   Sandy Hook

Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Collinstown Rd

Eastern Bluebird   Colliers Mills WMA

Hermit Thrush   Double Trouble State Park

Wood Thrush   Manahawkin WMA

Clay-colored Thrush   Sian Ka’an

American Robin   35 Sunset Rd

Gray Catbird   Manahawkin WMA

Tropical Mockingbird   Puerto Morelos

Northern Mockingbird   Sandy Hook

European Starling   Wawa South Toms River

Cedar Waxwing   Sandy Hook

Ovenbird   Manahawkin WMA

Louisiana Waterthrush   Double Trouble State Park

Black-and-white Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Prothonotary Warbler   Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve

GRAY-CROWNED YELLOWTHROAT   Puerto Morelos

Common Yellowthroat   Double Trouble State Park

Hooded Warbler   Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve

American Redstart   Sian Ka’an

Northern Parula   Double Trouble State Park

Magnolia Warbler   Sian Ka’an

Yellow Warbler   Sian Ka’an

Palm Warbler   Forest Resource Education Center

Pine Warbler   35 Sunset Rd

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Sandy Hook

Yellow-throated Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Prairie Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Seaside Sparrow   Great Bay Blvd

Chipping Sparrow   Horicon Lake

Field Sparrow   Sandy Hook

Fox Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd

Dark-eyed Junco   35 Sunset Rd

White-crowned Sparrow   New Egypt

White-throated Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd

Savannah Sparrow   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Song Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd

Swamp Sparrow   Sandy Hook

Eastern Towhee   Sandy Hook

Summer Tanager   Double Trouble State Park

RED-THROATED ANT-TANAGER   Sian Ka’an

Northern Cardinal   Sandy Hook

Blue Grosbeak   Double Trouble State Park

YELLOW-BILLED CACIQUE   Sian Ka’an

Hooded Oriole   Puerto Morelos

YELLOW-BACKED ORIOLE   Puerto Morelos

YELLOW-TAILED ORIOLE   Puerto Morelos

Red-winged Blackbird   Sandy Hook

BRONZED COWBIRD   Sian Ka’an

Brown-headed Cowbird   Crestwood Village

MELODIOUS BLACKBIRD   Sian Ka’an

Rusty Blackbird   Whitesbog

Common Grackle   Sandy Hook

Boat-tailed Grackle   Sandy Hook

Great-tailed Grackle   Aeropuerto Internacional de Cancun

YELLOW-THROATED EUPHONIA   Sian Ka’an

House Finch   Sandy Hook

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd House Sparrow   Wawa South Toms River

Magnificent Frigatebird, Puerto Morelos