Whitesbog (Ocean County) 2/20--Sandhill Cranes

Sandhill Cranes on Upper Reservoir with Tundra Swans

I finally tracked them down. And on the "right" side of the line. And in the last spot I'd expect to find them. "They," of course, are the Sandhill Cranes that I initially saw on February 7th flying out of Ditch Meadow on the Burlco side of Whitesbog, and again in flight on February 14th. On Monday I searched for them in Ditch Meadow without luck and looked for them in what I thought would be the most likely site on the Ocean County side in the grasslands of Otter Pond--if that sounds oxymoronic, it is--Otter Pond was drained of most of its water around 8 years ago when the Upper Reservoir breached and something like 17 million gallons of water tore through the old bogs and ponds that border Fort Dix. In fact, it was on the ice of the Upper Reservoir where I unexpectedly found them today, standing among a small flock of Tundra Swans. 

As has been usual of late, Whitesbog was pretty quiet today with all the water frozen. A lone Tundra Swan on the ice around the dog leg calling pathetically for company was the most interesting bird I saw until the cranes. I had walked back to the Antrim Bogs, where a few days ago I had seen swans, geese, and ducks in some open water, but they also were frozen. So, since I've never seen cranes standing on ice, I had given up on them when I was counting the swans on the Upper Reservoir which means the Second Law of birding had been invoked and of course, there they were at the left-hand side of the flock. Happily, that means I don't have to go searching for them in the smelly pastures of New Egypt this spring, where they used to be easy to find and now, not so much.