January: 136 Species

Long-Tailed Duck (hen) Barnegat Light SP

Common Eider (hen), Barnegat Light SP

Cackling Goose with Canada Goose, Conine's Millpond
Photo: Mike Mandracchia

Red-tailed Hawk, Whitesbog

The edge of the dreaded Polar Vortex has kept me pretty much confined to quarters the last couple of days of this month, though I did get out yesterday for a walk along the Union Transportation Trail in Upper Freehold where I added my 136 species for the year, a hard one for me to get too, a Winter Wren moving rapidly through the undergrowth, but clearly seen--and heard.
I'm way ahead of my pace from last year and that's because I deliberately went after the "hard " birds like owls and rare geese, not to mention the Townsend's Warbler at the Trenton Sewage Ponds.

However, I didn't chase a Black Phoebe that was way up in Northern New Jersey, nor a Northern Shrike in the same vicinity. Or a hen Barrow's Goldeneye in the Delaware. I wasn't even tempted. Some birds are just too far.

I really concentrate on Ocean County and the surrounding counties with Mercer an honorable mention. I don't have a big Mercer list, but with the Townsend's Warbler this month, it has some really interesting birds on it, like last year's Ash-throated Flycatcher, and previous year's crossbills, Barnacle Geese, Virginia Rail, Least Bittern...even a Crested Caracara a few years ago. But generally I feel, the closer the rarity, the more valuable the rarity.

Birds I want for Ocean County, soon: American Woodcock, the aforementioned Winter Wren, a Purple Finch, and an American Bittern. That's quite a shopping list but not out of the question.

As to geese: We're still waiting for Pink-footed Goose and Ross's Goose to show up somewhere in the state.

Tomorrow is a new month. February tends to be really dead, so unless some new rarities show up I don't think I'm going to hit as high a number as I did this month. I'm not a "month" birder (yet) so I'm not going to go out of my way to get a Trumpeter Swan, for example, just to get a Trumpeter Swan for the month. However, if I happen to be in the vicinity....

Birds in bold italics are rarities for the month--either really rare, or just rare for the time of the year. All were exciting to see.

Species               First Sighting

Snow Goose   Brig

Brant   Sandy Hook

Barnacle Goose   Conine’s Millpond

Cackling Goose   Lake Takanassee

Canada Goose   Seven Presidents Park

Mute Swan   Lake Takanassee

Trumpeter Swan   Stone Tavern Lake

Tundra Swan   Whitesbog

Wood Duck   Little Silver Lake

Northern Shoveler   Monmouth Beach

Gadwall   Lake Takanassee

Eurasian Wigeon   Shark River

American Wigeon   Lake Takanassee

Mallard   Lake Takanassee

American Black Duck   Lake of the Lilies

Northern Pintail   Brig

Green-winged Teal   Allenhurst

Canvasback   Mathis Veteran's Memorial Park

Redhead   Lake of the Lilies

Ring-necked Duck   Mathis Veteran's Memorial Park

Greater Scaup   Bayview Ave Park

Lesser Scaup   Assunpink WMA

Common Eider   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Harlequin Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Surf Scoter   Sandy Hook

White-winged Scoter   Sandy Hook

Black Scoter   Sandy Hook

Long-tailed Duck   Sandy Hook

Bufflehead   Sandy Hook

Common Goldeneye   LBI Bayside

Hooded Merganser   Lake Takanassee

Common Merganser   Conine’s Millpond

Red-breasted Merganser   Sandy Hook

Ruddy Duck   Lake Takanassee

Ring-necked Pheasant   New Egypt

Wild Turkey   New Egypt

Pied-billed Grebe   Lake Takanassee

Horned Grebe   Sandy Hook

Red-necked Grebe   Sandy Hook

Rock Pigeon   Little Silver Lake

Mourning Dove   Seven Presidents Park

American Coot   Lake Takanassee

Sandhill Crane   Pemberton Twp MUA Fields

Killdeer   Lakewood Wawa

Ruddy Turnstone   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Sanderling   Manasquan Inlet

Dunlin   Manasquan Inlet

Purple Sandpiper   Manasquan Inlet

Spotted Sandpiper   Barnegat Municipal Dock

Greater Yellowlegs   Poplar St Boat Launch

Razorbill   Sandy Hook

Ring-billed Gull   Lake Takanassee

Herring Gull   Sandy Hook

Lesser Black-backed Gull   Lake Takanassee

Glaucous Gull   Manasquan Inlet

Great Black-backed Gull   Sandy Hook

Red-throated Loon   Monmouth Beach

Pacific Loon   Manasquan Inlet

Common Loon   Sandy Hook

Northern Gannet   Sandy Hook

Great Cormorant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Double-crested Cormorant   Point Pleasant Beach

Great Blue Heron   Lake Takanassee

Great Egret   Great Bay Bvld.

Black-crowned Night-Heron   Brig

Black Vulture   Fischer Blvd-Toms River

Turkey Vulture   35 Sunset Rd

Northern Harrier   BC Fairgrounds

Sharp-shinned Hawk   18 Aberdeen Avenue

Cooper's Hawk   Lake Takanassee

Bald Eagle   Sandy Hook

Red-shouldered Hawk   Brig

Red-tailed Hawk   Point Pleasant Beach

Rough-legged Hawk   Stafford Township

Eastern Screech-Owl   Beach Ave

Great Horned Owl   Beach Ave

Snowy Owl   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Long-eared Owl   Assunpink WMA

Northern Saw-whet Owl   Pole Farm

Belted Kingfisher   Bayview Ave Park

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Cattus Island County Park

Red-bellied Woodpecker   Marshall's Pond

Downy Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd

Hairy Woodpecker   Assunpink WMA

Pileated Woodpecker   Assunpink WMA

Northern Flicker   Cedar Bonnet Island

American Kestrel   Pemberton Twp MUA Fields

Merlin   Toms River

Peregrine Falcon   Sandy Hook

Eastern Phoebe   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Blue Jay   Lake of the Lilies

American Crow   35 Sunset Rd

Fish Crow   New Egypt

Northern Rough-winged Swallow   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Tree Swallow   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd

Tufted Titmouse   Cattus Island County Park

Red-breasted Nuthatch   Cattus Island County Park

White-breasted Nuthatch   Cattus Island County Park

Brown Creeper   Colliers Mills WMA

Winter Wren   Union Transportation Trail

Carolina Wren   Sandy Hook

Golden-crowned Kinglet   Cattus Island County Park

Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Assunpink WMA

Eastern Bluebird   Cloverdale Farm

Hermit Thrush   Taylor Ln

American Robin   Marshall's Pond

Gray Catbird   Assunpink WMA

Brown Thrasher   Manahawkin WMA

Northern Mockingbird   Lake of the Lilies

European Starling   South Toms River

Cedar Waxwing   Taylor Ln

House Finch   Cattus Island County Park

Pine Siskin   Cloverdale Farm

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd

Snow Bunting   Sandy Hook

American Tree Sparrow   Shelter Cove Park

Fox Sparrow   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Dark-eyed Junco   Whitesbog

White-crowned Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

White-throated Sparrow   59 White Rd, Jackson

Savannah Sparrow   Cedar Bonnet Island

Song Sparrow   Cattus Island County Park

Swamp Sparrow   Manahawkin WMA

Eastern Meadowlark   Pole Farm

Red-winged Blackbird   Cattus Island County Park

Brown-headed Cowbird   New Egypt

Common Grackle   New Egypt

Boat-tailed Grackle   Lake of the Lilies

Orange-crowned Warbler   Great Bay Bvld.

Palm Warbler   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Pine Warbler   Cloverdale Farm

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Cedar Bonnet Island

Townsend's Warbler   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Northern Cardinal   Assunpink WMA

House Sparrow   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Redheads, Lake of the Lilies