March Wrap-up--117 Species

Hairy Woodpeckers, Whitesbog

The Lion/Lamb cliche about March wasn't in evidence today, as Mike & I tried to bird Great Bay Blvd in ridiculously windy conditions. In fact, for most of the month I stayed away from the ocean & bay because birding in wind is "challenging" and no fun. This explains the lack of Sanderlings, Purple Sandpipers, turnstones, etc., on the list. 

The only year bird I skipped in my entries was Glossy Ibis. Not much to say about that one. I drove down Bay Parkway in Waretown on my way back from Manahawkin out of idle curiosity. A few days before ibises had been reported there. The mud flats were empty, and the bay had practically nothing in it, but, when I happened to scan the sky, I saw a single ibis flying over the marsh. I watched it swoop down and up and around, finally landing in an inaccessible area beyond some cedars. I suppose it could have been a White-faced Ibis and strictly speaking I should list it as "Ibis sp" but I'm going with the odds and calling it a Glossy. 

For the month I had 117 species. Most of my time seemed to be spent at Colliers Mills and Whitesbog--in other words, "inland." 11 year birds for the month. That number will surge upward in April as migration gets into full swing. If it doesn't, then something is drastically wrong. 

Counties birded: Atlantic, Burlington, Ocean  

Species           First Sighting
Snow Goose  Brig
Brant  Manasquan Inlet
Canada Goose  Colliers Mills WMA
Mute Swan  Lake of the Lilies
Tundra Swan  Colliers Mills WMA
Wood Duck  Colliers Mills WMA
Northern Shoveler  Brig
Gadwall  Brig
American Wigeon  Manahawkin WMA
Mallard  Colliers Mills WMA
American Black Duck  Colliers Mills WMA
Northern Pintail  Whitesbog
Green-winged Teal  Brig
Redhead  Holly Lake
Ring-necked Duck  Colliers Mills WMA
Greater Scaup  Great Bay Blvd
Lesser Scaup  Colliers Mills WMA
King Eider  Island Beach SP
Common Eider  Island Beach SP
Long-tailed Duck  Island Beach SP
Bufflehead  Colliers Mills WMA
Common Goldeneye  Great Bay Blvd
Hooded Merganser  Colliers Mills WMA
Common Merganser  Brig
Red-breasted Merganser  Great Bay Blvd
Ruddy Duck  Lake of the Lilies
Wild Turkey  35 Sunset Rd
Pied-billed Grebe  Double Trouble SP
Horned Grebe  Barnegat Municipal Dock
Rock Pigeon  New Egypt
Mourning Dove  35 Sunset Rd
American Coot  Holly Lake
American Oystercatcher  Great Bay Blvd
Killdeer  Lake of the Lilies
Dunlin  Brig
American Woodcock  Crestwood Community Gardens
Wilson's Snipe  Brig
Greater Yellowlegs  Forsythe-Barnegat
Laughing Gull  Barnegat Municipal Dock
Ring-billed Gull  Lake of the Lilies
Herring Gull  Holly Lake
Great Black-backed Gull  Great Bay Blvd
Red-throated Loon  Great Bay Blvd
Common Loon  Great Bay Blvd
Northern Gannet  Great Bay Blvd
Great Cormorant  Island Beach SP
Double-crested Cormorant  Lake of the Lilies
Great Blue Heron  Great Bay Blvd
Great Egret  Shelter Cove Park
Snowy Egret  Cattus Island County Park
Glossy Ibis  Waretown--Bay Pkwy
Black Vulture  New Egypt
Turkey Vulture  Colliers Mills WMA
Osprey  Shelter Cove Park
Northern Harrier  Brig
Sharp-shinned Hawk  Brig
Cooper's Hawk  Lake of the Lilies
Bald Eagle  Great Bay Blvd
Red-shouldered Hawk  Budd’s Bogs
Red-tailed Hawk  Colliers Mills WMA
Eastern Screech-Owl  Budd’s Bogs
Great Horned Owl  Budd’s Bogs
Belted Kingfisher  Whitesbog
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  Colliers Mills WMA
Red-bellied Woodpecker  Colliers Mills WMA
Downy Woodpecker  35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker  Colliers Mills WMA
Northern Flicker  Colliers Mills WMA
Merlin  Cranberry Bogs
Peregrine Falcon  Great Bay Blvd
Eastern Phoebe  Colliers Mills WMA
Blue Jay  Colliers Mills WMA
American Crow  35 Sunset Rd
Fish Crow  New Egypt
Carolina Chickadee  35 Sunset Rd
Tufted Titmouse  Colliers Mills WMA
Northern Rough-winged Swallow  Budd’s Bogs
Tree Swallow  Whitesbog
Barn Swallow  Budd’s Bogs
Golden-crowned Kinglet  Colliers Mills WMA
White-breasted Nuthatch  Colliers Mills WMA
Brown Creeper  35 Sunset Rd
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  Colliers Mills WMA
Winter Wren  Budd’s Bogs
Carolina Wren  Colliers Mills WMA
European Starling  Colliers Mills WMA
Gray Catbird  Brig
Brown Thrasher  Manahawkin WMA
Northern Mockingbird  Colliers Mills WMA
Eastern Bluebird  Colliers Mills WMA
Hermit Thrush  Colliers Mills WMA
American Robin  Colliers Mills WMA
Cedar Waxwing  Manasquan River WMA
House Sparrow  Colliers Mills WMA
House Finch  35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch  35 Sunset Rd
Chipping Sparrow  Brig
Field Sparrow  Colliers Mills WMA
American Tree Sparrow  Cranberry Bogs
Fox Sparrow  Colliers Mills WMA
Dark-eyed Junco  35 Sunset Rd
White-crowned Sparrow  Budd’s Bogs
White-throated Sparrow  Crestwood Community Gardens
Savannah Sparrow  Colliers Mills WMA
Song Sparrow  35 Sunset Rd
Swamp Sparrow  Whitesbog
Eastern Towhee  Crestwood Community Gardens
Eastern Meadowlark  Colliers Mills WMA
Red-winged Blackbird  Colliers Mills WMA
Brown-headed Cowbird  Colliers Mills WMA
Rusty Blackbird  Budd’s Bogs
Common Grackle  Lake of the Lilies
Boat-tailed Grackle  Great Bay Blvd
Louisiana Waterthrush  Budd’s Bogs
Pine Warbler  Stafford Forge WMA
Yellow-rumped Warbler  35 Sunset Rd
Northern Cardinal  35 Sunset Rd

Snow Goose, Brick Reservoir