Manasquan River WMA 5/17--Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Blue-winged Warbler

I couldn't abide the idea of not seeing a Blue-winged Warbler this year, so early this morning I went back to the Manasquan River WMA to find one. Not early enough, judging from the other lists I saw from there today, but I did find my target bird, two of them, just about where I would expect to find them. They too must be out of my hearing range because later, walking around with Steve, he heard them in the same spot I had seen them, but they were auditorily invisible to me.

The unintended consequence of the governor shutting down the state parks for 3 weeks was that it forced everyone to look for open spaces to go to. Since the WMAs weren't closed (which would be ne'er nigh impossible) people gravitated to them. And found out how great they are and didn't stop going to them when the parks were reopened (with all kinds of social distancing restrictions), so by about 10 o'clock, the birding became unpleasant in even the remotest parts of the WMA as guys on mountain bikes came zooming by Steve & me on tiny, hilly, dirt path while we were trying to locate a Worm-eating Warbler we'd heard was around. When I got back to the parking lot there were at least a dozen kids and accompanying adults about to take a bike tour of the WMA.

I thought I'd try the plowed field which hardly anyone walks in, just to finish out the day, but, even there, I came across dog walkers and their Golden Retrievers. Never mind Covid-19--I just don't want all these people around me. I did, however, in that field, finally, hear a Yellow-billed Cuckoo. It kind of seeped into my brain and then I had to stop and listen again, and again for the bird's call, since I'll only count a bird by ear if I hear it two times.

Compared to other lists I've seen from today, mine is paltry, but I got what I was looking for:

47 species

Canada Goose  1    Heard

Mourning Dove  2

Yellow-billed Cuckoo  1    Heard

Ruby-throated Hummingbird  1

Great Blue Heron  1

Glossy Ibis  1    Flyover

Turkey Vulture  2

Red-tailed Hawk  1

Red-bellied Woodpecker  1    Heard

Downy Woodpecker  1    Heard

Hairy Woodpecker  1

Northern Flicker  1

Eastern Wood-Pewee  1    Heard

Great Crested Flycatcher  5

Eastern Kingbird  18

Red-eyed Vireo  10

Blue Jay  1    Heard

American Crow  1    Heard

Fish Crow  2

Carolina Chickadee  5

Tufted Titmouse  2    Heard

Tree Swallow  5

White-breasted Nuthatch  3

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  1

Carolina Wren  1    Heard

Gray Catbird  15

Eastern Bluebird  10

Wood Thrush  3    Heard

American Robin  8

Cedar Waxwing  2

American Goldfinch  8

Field Sparrow  10

Song Sparrow  1

Eastern Towhee  5

Red-winged Blackbird  4

Brown-headed Cowbird  1    Back field

Ovenbird  12

Blue-winged Warbler  2    Back field

Common Yellowthroat  10

Hooded Warbler  1    Male singing

American Redstart  4

Northern Parula  1

Pine Warbler  1    Heard

Prairie Warbler  4

Northern Cardinal  3

Blue Grosbeak  2

Indigo Bunting  2