November Wrap-up--A Few New Year Birds

I have always said that November & February are my least favorite months--cold, dreary, gray. I still feel that way about February, but what with climate change, November doesn't seem so bad anymore. Rarely this month did I have to wear a heavy coat and I went gloveless most of the time.  But climate change means that the ducks don't have to move south and that, coupled with the mysterious dearth of land birds, has meant that finding a place with a lot of species has been a chore. I went to all my regular spots this month and some less frequently visited spots and then some places I only hit once or twice a year. Nowhere, with the exception of Brig, had much of interest. Whitesbog, where we yearn in the summer for the bogs to be drawn down, has not been able to attract the usual Tundra Swan flock because, ironically, the bogs remain drawn down, with only Union Pond back to its winter level. 

I would have to say that the bird that gave me the biggest boot this month was one in our backyard. One afternoon, when I glanced up at the feeders, I saw a fairly big bird with a yellow breast and wing bars and no, it wasn't the much prayed-for Evening Grosbeak. It flew away fairly quickly. I thought maybe it was a weird House Finch--I think I remember reading that sometimes they can have an orange cast instead of red. I told Shari and she said, "Sounds like a Baltimore Oriole." 

Baltimore Oriole at our feeder

In our 11 years here, we have had one oriole, once. This area just doesn't attract them--too many pines I suppose. And while I know they are attracted to jelly feeders, we don't have one and I have never seen one at a seed feeder. Nevertheless, when the bird reappeared, Shari was correct, it was a Baltimore Oriole, either a female or a first year male, I'm not really certain, but it was a treat to see on an overcast November 24th. 

For the month I had 119 species, which, checking eBird, is slightly down from the previous two years. Three year birds--the Barred Owl early in the month and the two birds at Brig recently recounted. I made a trip up to Assunpink on Sunday to see the Trumpeter Swans that have returned for the 10th year running. Talk about site loyalty!

Counties birded: Atlantic, Burlington, Monmouth, Ocean

Species            Location
Snow Goose  Double Trouble SP
Brant  Hideaway Cove
Canada Goose  Colliers Mills WMA
Mute Swan  Island Beach SP
Trumpeter Swan  Assunpink WMA
Tundra Swan  Whitesbog
Wood Duck  Whitesbog
Northern Shoveler  Manasquan Reservoir IBA
Gadwall  Holly Lake
American Wigeon  Holly Lake
Mallard  Golden Drive
American Black Duck  Cattus Island County Park
Northern Pintail  Brig
Green-winged Teal  Whitesbog
Redhead  Island Beach SP
Ring-necked Duck  Whitesbog
Greater Scaup  Brig
Lesser Scaup  Brick Township Reservior
Surf Scoter  Island Beach SP
White-winged Scoter  Island Beach SP
Black Scoter  Island Beach SP
Long-tailed Duck  Island Beach SP
Bufflehead  Cattus Island County Park
Common Goldeneye  Brig
Hooded Merganser  Lake Barnegat
Red-breasted Merganser  Island Beach SP
Ruddy Duck  Cattus Island County Park
Pied-billed Grebe  Reeves Bogs
Rock Pigeon  New Egypt
Mourning Dove  35 Sunset Rd
American Coot  Manasquan Reservoir IBA
American Oystercatcher  Great Bay Blvd
Black-bellied Plover  Island Beach SP
Killdeer  Whitesbog
Sanderling  Island Beach SP
Dunlin  Brig
Purple Sandpiper  Island Beach SP
Least Sandpiper  Brig
Long-billed Dowitcher  Brig
Wilson's Snipe  Cranberry Bogs
Greater Yellowlegs  Whitesbog
Lesser Yellowlegs  Whitesbog
Bonaparte's Gull  Island Beach SP
Laughing Gull  Cattus Island County Park
Ring-billed Gull  Manasquan Reservoir IBA
Herring Gull  35 Sunset Rd
Lesser Black-backed Gull  Island Beach SP
Great Black-backed Gull  Island Beach SP
Royal Tern  Island Beach SP
Red-throated Loon  Island Beach SP
Common Loon  Island Beach SP
Northern Gannet  Island Beach SP
Double-crested Cormorant  Tilton Point
American White Pelican  Brig
Brown Pelican  Island Beach SP
Great Blue Heron  Whitesbog
Great Egret  Island Beach SP
Snowy Egret  Waretown
Black Vulture  35 Sunset Rd
Turkey Vulture  Whitesbog
Northern Harrier  Island Beach SP
Sharp-shinned Hawk  Island Beach SP
Cooper's Hawk  Colliers Mills WMA
Bald Eagle  35 Sunset Rd
Red-shouldered Hawk  Whitesbog
Red-tailed Hawk  New Egypt
Barred Owl  Jumping Brook Preserve
Belted Kingfisher  Whitesbog
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  Jumping Brook Preserve
Red-bellied Woodpecker  Whitesbog
Downy Woodpecker  Whitesbog
Hairy Woodpecker  Whitesbog
Northern Flicker  Whitesbog
American Kestrel  Pointville Rd
Peregrine Falcon  Island Beach SP
Eastern Phoebe  Jumping Brook Preserve
Blue Jay  35 Sunset Rd
American Crow  35 Sunset Rd
Fish Crow  Waretown
Common Raven  Whitesbog
Carolina Chickadee  35 Sunset Rd
Tufted Titmouse  35 Sunset Rd
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  Whitesbog
Golden-crowned Kinglet  Whitesbog
Red-breasted Nuthatch  35 Sunset Rd
White-breasted Nuthatch  35 Sunset Rd
Brown Creeper  Whitesbog
Winter Wren  Whitesbog
Carolina Wren  35 Sunset Rd
European Starling  Colliers Mills WMA
Gray Catbird  Cattus Island County Park
Northern Mockingbird  Colliers Mills WMA
Eastern Bluebird  Colliers Mills WMA
Hermit Thrush  Whitesbog
American Robin  Whitesbog
House Sparrow  Tilton Point
House Finch  35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch  35 Sunset Rd
Snow Bunting  Island Beach SP
Chipping Sparrow  Double Trouble SP
Field Sparrow  Jumping Brook Preserve
Fox Sparrow  35 Sunset Rd
Dark-eyed Junco  35 Sunset Rd
White-throated Sparrow  35 Sunset Rd
Saltmarsh Sparrow  Brig
Savannah Sparrow  Colliers Mills WMA
Song Sparrow  Whitesbog
Swamp Sparrow  Whitesbog
Eastern Towhee  Whitesbog
Eastern Meadowlark  Colliers Mills WMA
Baltimore Oriole  35 Sunset Rd
Red-winged Blackbird  Tilton Point
Rusty Blackbird  Jumping Brook Preserve
Common Grackle  Golden Drive
Boat-tailed Grackle  Great Bay Blvd
Common Yellowthroat  Whitesbog
Yellow-rumped Warbler  Whitesbog
Black-throated Gray Warbler  Brig
Northern Cardinal  35 Sunset Rd