May Birding Social Distancing Edition

Brig Wildlife Drive

I don't really mind birding by my lonesome but trying to stay away from others does constrain me from chasing rare birds since everyone else is going to be chasing those birds too. There was a really interesting sea bird event this month that I opted out of--mostly because I hate seawatching, but also because I feared the crowds. And there is nothing more frustrating than hearing someone has the rarity in his scope and you can't find it and now you can't even share his scope.

Jen's Trail at Brig

I seem to gravitate to the same spots--Whitesbog, Colliers Mills, Manahawkin, Great Bay Blvd, with dollops of Manasquan River WMA and Double Trouble thrown in. All of them have the walking advantage. I don't enjoy standing in one place waiting for birds to fly by or appear at a feeder and I don't like driving along roads looking and listening. Yeah, you can get a lot of birds that way, but not every day is the World Series of Birding. Which, this year, was a virtual WSB that I participated in by going to Whitesbog and recording birds in my backyard. 

I stayed away from Island Beach SP to the detriment of my warbler list--again, places like Reed's Road are too popular. June is historically the start of the summer doldrums which are broken up by the appearance of rarities but see the first paragraph. The best solution--find my own rarities which is a rare event but it does happen. 

For the month I had 144 species of which 44 were year birds and a few of which were rarities. 

Counties birded: Atlantic, Burlington, Ocean

Species   First Sighting

Brant   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Canada Goose   Meadow View Ln

Mute Swan   Holly Lake

Wood Duck   Whitesbog

Mallard   Meadow View Ln

American Black Duck   Whitesbog

Bufflehead   Brig

Red-breasted Merganser   Reeves Bogs

Wild Turkey   35 Sunset Rd

Mourning Dove   Meadow View Ln

Yellow-billed Cuckoo   Manasquan River WMA

Black-billed Cuckoo   Colliers Mills WMA

Eastern Whip-poor-will   35 Sunset Rd

Chimney Swift   Manasquan River WMA

Ruby-throated Hummingbird   35 Sunset Rd

Clapper Rail   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Virginia Rail   Reeves Bogs

Black-necked Stilt   Brig

American Oystercatcher   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Black-bellied Plover   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Semipalmated Plover   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Killdeer   Meadow View Ln

Ruddy Turnstone   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Red Knot   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Dunlin   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Least Sandpiper   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

White-rumped Sandpiper   Brig

Semipalmated Sandpiper   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Short-billed Dowitcher   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Spotted Sandpiper   Whitesbog

Solitary Sandpiper   Reeves Bogs

Greater Yellowlegs   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Willet   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Lesser Yellowlegs   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Laughing Gull   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Herring Gull   Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve

Great Black-backed Gull   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Least Tern   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Gull-billed Tern   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Caspian Tern   Double Trouble State Park

Common Tern   Brig

Forster's Tern   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Black Skimmer   Brig

Common Loon   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Double-crested Cormorant   Meadow View Ln

Great Blue Heron   Meadow View Ln

Great Egret   Double Trouble State Park

Snowy Egret   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Little Blue Heron   Forsythe--Barnegat

Tricolored Heron   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Green Heron   Whitesbog

Black-crowned Night-Heron   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Glossy Ibis   Bunker Hill Bogs

Black Vulture   Manasquan River WMA

Turkey Vulture   Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve

Osprey   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Cooper's Hawk   Meadow View Ln

Bald Eagle   Whitesbog

Red-shouldered Hawk   Reeves Bogs

Red-tailed Hawk   Whitesbog

Great Horned Owl   Whitesbog

Belted Kingfisher   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Red-headed Woodpecker   South Park Rd

Red-bellied Woodpecker   Meadow View Ln

Downy Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd

Hairy Woodpecker   Whitesbog

Northern Flicker   Meadow View Ln

Eastern Wood-Pewee   South Park Rd

Acadian Flycatcher   Brig

Alder Flycatcher   Manahawkin WMA

Willow Flycatcher   35 Sunset Rd

Eastern Phoebe   Meadow View Ln

Great Crested Flycatcher   Meadow View Ln

Eastern Kingbird   Whitesbog

White-eyed Vireo   Meadow View Ln

Yellow-throated Vireo   Colliers Mills WMA

Blue-headed Vireo   Meadow View Ln

Warbling Vireo   Colliers Mills WMA

Red-eyed Vireo   Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve

Blue Jay   Meadow View Ln

American Crow   Meadow View Ln

Fish Crow   Meadow View Ln

Carolina Chickadee   Meadow View Ln

Tufted Titmouse   Meadow View Ln

Northern Rough-winged Swallow   Whitesbog

Purple Martin   Colliers Mills WMA

Tree Swallow   Meadow View Ln

Barn Swallow   Whitesbog

White-breasted Nuthatch   35 Sunset Rd

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher   Meadow View Ln

House Wren   Forest Resource Education Center

Marsh Wren   Manahawkin WMA

Carolina Wren   35 Sunset Rd

European Starling   35 Sunset Rd

Gray Catbird   Meadow View Ln

Brown Thrasher   Meadow View Ln

Northern Mockingbird   Meadow View Ln

Eastern Bluebird   Double Trouble State Park

Wood Thrush   Meadow View Ln

American Robin   35 Sunset Rd

Cedar Waxwing   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

House Sparrow   Subaru

House Finch   Meadow View Ln

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd

Chipping Sparrow   Meadow View Ln

Field Sparrow   Meadow View Ln

White-crowned Sparrow   Whitesbog

White-throated Sparrow   Meadow View Ln

Seaside Sparrow   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Saltmarsh Sparrow   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Savannah Sparrow   Whitesbog

Song Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd

Swamp Sparrow   Whitesbog

Eastern Towhee   Meadow View Ln

Orchard Oriole   Whitesbog

Baltimore Oriole   Whitesbog

Red-winged Blackbird   Meadow View Ln

Brown-headed Cowbird   Meadow View Ln

Common Grackle   Meadow View Ln

Boat-tailed Grackle   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Ovenbird   Meadow View Ln

Worm-eating Warbler   South Park Rd

Blue-winged Warbler   Manasquan River WMA

Black-and-white Warbler   Meadow View Ln

Prothonotary Warbler   Bunker Hill Bogs

Common Yellowthroat   Meadow View Ln

Hooded Warbler   Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve

American Redstart   Reeves Bogs

Northern Parula   Colliers Mills WMA

Magnolia Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Yellow Warbler   Whitesbog

Blackpoll Warbler   Reeves Bogs

Black-throated Blue Warbler   Whitesbog

Palm Warbler   Meadow View Ln

Pine Warbler   Meadow View Ln

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Meadow View Ln

Prairie Warbler   Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve

Black-throated Green Warbler   Bunker Hill Bogs

Scarlet Tanager   Ephraim P. Emson Preserve

Northern Cardinal   Meadow View Ln

Rose-breasted Grosbeak   35 Sunset Rd

Blue Grosbeak   Ephraim P. Emson Preserve

Indigo Bunting   Manasquan River WMA Turkey up a tree in our backyard

Brig 5/31--Black-necked Stilt

Black-necked Stilts

I like Black-necked Stilts. They're a bird worth seeing. But since I have been paying very little attention to the rare bird alerts of late, I wasn't even aware that a trio was being seen at Brig until Friday when Bob Auster told me he was thinking going down there as it would be a state bird for him. He was successful yesterday, so today I got down there fairly early and started the hunt at Marker #4 where they had been reported. At first I had no luck, and decided to walk back to the beginning of the drive to see what I'd missed for the for first quarter of a mile. It was then that Steve pulled up, seeking the same bird. He said he'd text me if the bird showed up and drove up toward where I'd parked my car.

About two minutes later his text said that another birder had just had the stilts. I walked up there in no time but in no time they were gone behind some high grass. Now it was just a question of whether to wait. Of course I had to, it wasn't like they'd flown away, but there was always the chance of just standing there for hours waiting for them to emerge. I was halfheartedly scoping the mud flats when after about 5 minutes Steve called out that one was in sight. Through a curtain of high grass I saw one bird walking along then disappearing again where the curtain became a wall. 

I texted Bob to let him know I'd been successful and he said I should stick around; all three would eventually show. I told him I only needed one. 

After a non-eventful loop around the drive, I decided to walk around a bit--down to the Gull Pond and then, on the way back to the parking lot I figured I might as well walk up to #4 and see if the stilts were making a more satisfying appearance. A guy who'd been there when I originally saw the stilts was still there when I got back more than 2 hours later. "You're still here?" I asked in amazement. But, he pointed out, all three stilts were in sight and closer in, close enough for pictures, so his patience paid off for me. I out-sourced the waiting, I guess. 

Just an ordinary day at Brig--56 species without stopping a lot to scope the thousands of Semipalmated Sandpipers to look for the odd ones that might be mixed in with them. It was surprisingly windy today; surprising to me anyway who expected a warm calm day where the gnats and flies would be the problem. The wind eliminated that problem. It did however, give my new car its first coating of Brig's custom mixture of grit and bugs. Afterwards, I stopped at Amasa Landing Road, a tiny slice of Burlington County that juts into the salt marshes where you build up your county list with such supposed rarities as Boat-tailed Grackle, Saltmarsh Sparrow and Willet.

My Brig list

Canada Goose  50

Mute Swan  23

Mallard  6

Mourning Dove  1    Heard

Clapper Rail  2    Heard

Black-necked Stilt  3    

Black-bellied Plover  1

Semipalmated Plover  3

Ruddy Turnstone  20

White-rumped Sandpiper  1

Semipalmated Sandpiper  2000

Greater Yellowlegs  1

Willet  25

Laughing Gull  100

Herring Gull  50

Great Black-backed Gull  4

Gull-billed Tern  3

Caspian Tern  1

Forster's Tern  10

Black Skimmer  108

Double-crested Cormorant  4

Great Blue Heron  2

Great Egret  10

Snowy Egret  5

Glossy Ibis  45    Most were in pool by Jen's Trail

Turkey Vulture  1

Osprey  3

Bald Eagle  1    In tree before loop goes by Jen's Trail

Red-bellied Woodpecker  1    Heard Bristow Trail

Eastern Wood-Pewee  2    Heard

Willow Flycatcher  3

Great Crested Flycatcher  1    Heard

Eastern Kingbird  2

White-eyed Vireo  1    Heard Parking lot

Blue Jay  2

American Crow  1

Fish Crow  5

Carolina Chickadee  2    Bristow Trail

Purple Martin  40

Tree Swallow  10

Barn Swallow  15

House Wren  1    Heard parking lot

Marsh Wren  3    Heard

Carolina Wren  1    Heard parking lot

Gray Catbird  6

American Robin  2

Chipping Sparrow  2

Field Sparrow  1    Heard

Seaside Sparrow  20

Red-winged Blackbird  100

Brown-headed Cowbird  4

Boat-tailed Grackle  1

Common Yellowthroat  3    Heard

Yellow Warbler  1    Heard Jen’s Trail

Pine Warbler  1    Heard Jen’s Trail

Northern Cardinal  1    Bristow Trail

Brig 5/26--Common Tern, Black Skimmer, Acadian Flycatcher

Black Skimmer

Shari & I went to Brig today. It had been a month since our last visit which was on a sunny, Saturday. Today it was foggy, a weekday, and much less crowded. Two of the advantages of a light fog: no glare--the gray light was perfect for viewing species--and no wind.

I had one bird in mind, one of our favorites in the big-nosed bird category and that of course is the Black Skimmer. A dozen were right where they usually roost, a small sand spit off the south dike, but they were all facing away, so my pictures were unsatisfactory. At the dog leg there was a large group, but too far away for photography. At around the last culvert on the north dike we saw two skimmers skimming and they cooperatively landed just off the road and posed. If you click the photo above to enlarge, you can really see the undershot mandible with which the skimmer skims.

Traill's Flycatcher

Also in its reliable spot today, at the northeast corner, was a Common Tern. If I go to Brig to many times in a month it gets tedious because you know, almost yard by yard, what birds are going to be where, but when you want a year bird, this knowledge comes in handy.

At the dogleg there was what I had to list as a Traill's Flycatcher, the name that use to encompass both the Willow Flycatcher and the Alder Flycatcher. "Best told apart by voice" as Sibley says and this bird was silent. I didn't fret too much over its identity since yesterday I managed an Alder Flycatcher at Manahawkin and last week we actually had a Willow Flycatcher in our backyard for the first time.

I did get a new flycatcher today at the Overlook (formerly known as the Experimental Pool). I saw one flying low in the brush but wouldn't venture a guess until a little later I heard an explosive "Pizza!" a couple of times and that's the tell-tale "song" of the Acadian Flycatcher.

Finally, probably the most unusual bird we saw today was a hen Bufflehead floating in the channel off the north dike. "Infrequent" according to eBird, but not rare--yet.

60 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose  100

Mute Swan  6

Wood Duck  1

Mallard  3

Bufflehead  1

Clapper Rail  2    Heard

Black-bellied Plover  2

Semipalmated Plover  15

Ruddy Turnstone  20

Dunlin  500

Least Sandpiper  3

White-rumped Sandpiper  4

Semipalmated Sandpiper  1000

Short-billed Dowitcher  15

Greater Yellowlegs  1

Willet  50

Laughing Gull  40

Herring Gull  25

Great Black-backed Gull  8

Gull-billed Tern  25

Caspian Tern  2    At dogleg

Common Tern  1    at NE corner, historical spot

Forster's Tern  20

Black Skimmer  50

Double-crested Cormorant  25

Great Blue Heron  3

Great Egret  15

Snowy Egret  2

Black-crowned Night-Heron  1    Gull Pond

Glossy Ibis  40

Turkey Vulture  2

Osprey  15

Bald Eagle  1

Acadian Flycatcher  1    Pizza at overlook

Willow Flycatcher  1

Alder/Willow Flycatcher (Traill's Flycatcher)  1    At dogleg. Bird didn't sing.

Eastern Kingbird  1    At entrance to Jen's Trail

White-eyed Vireo  2    Heard

Blue Jay  1    Heard

American Crow  1    Heard

Fish Crow  5

Tufted Titmouse  1    Heard

Northern Rough-winged Swallow  1

Purple Martin  40

Tree Swallow  5

Barn Swallow  1

Marsh Wren  2    Heard

Carolina Wren  2    Heard

European Starling  3

Gray Catbird  8

American Robin  1    entrance

House Finch  2

American Goldfinch  1    Heard

Field Sparrow  2    Heard

Seaside Sparrow  15

Song Sparrow  3

Eastern Towhee  2    Heard

Red-winged Blackbird  100

Common Yellowthroat  20

Pine Warbler  1    Heard

Northern Cardinal  1    Heard, exit of Jen's Trail

Gull-billed Tern with Semipalmated Sandpipers