March 2018--10 Year Birds, One Life Bird

Northern Cardinal, Manasquan River WMA

Sure, Shari & I got a life bird (GYRFALCON) at Brig this month and how often does that happen anymore in New Jersey; sure, I added 10 year birds for the month; sure, I came across a number of rarities (Rough-legged Hawk, Sandhill Crane, Orange-crowned Warbler just as a for instance); but given my mordant thoughts of late, let's concentrate instead on the negative, the misses.

Missed the Black-headed Gull in Ocean County...again.
Missed the California Gull
Couldn't find the Barn Owls in deepest Salem County.
Missed the Townsend's Solitaire at Manahawkin...oh wait...see the entry above.

Anyway, the tally was 131 species for the month, one more than the previous month.

Counties birded: Atlantic, Burlington, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, Salem.

Species       First Sighting

Snow Goose   New Egypt

Brant   Point Pleasant Beach

Canada Goose   Jackson Memorial HS

Mute Swan   deCamp Wildlife Trail

Trumpeter Swan   Assunpink WMA

Tundra Swan   Colliers Mills WMA

Wood Duck   Reeves Bogs

Blue-winged Teal   Manahawkin WMA

Northern Shoveler   Brig

Gadwall   Butterfly Bogs

Eurasian Wigeon   MacLearie Park

American Wigeon   Imlaystown Lake

Mallard   Crestwood Village

American Black Duck   Butterfly Bogs

Northern Pintail   Prospertown Lake

Green-winged Teal   Forsythe-Barnegat

Canvasback   Little Silver Lake

Redhead   Assunpink WMA

Ring-necked Duck   Butterfly Bogs

Greater Scaup   Point Pleasant Beach

Lesser Scaup   Little Silver Lake

Common Eider   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Harlequin Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Surf Scoter   Point Pleasant Beach

White-winged Scoter   Point Pleasant Beach

Black Scoter   Manasquan Inlet

Long-tailed Duck   Point Pleasant Beach

Bufflehead   Butterfly Bogs

Common Goldeneye   Bayview Marina

Hooded Merganser   Butterfly Bogs

Common Merganser   Prospertown Lake

Red-breasted Merganser   Point Pleasant Beach

Ruddy Duck   Lake of the Lilies

Ring-necked Pheasant   Colliers Mills WMA

Wild Turkey   New Egypt

Pied-billed Grebe   Assunpink WMA

Horned Grebe   Oceanic Bridge

Red-necked Grebe   Marshall's Pond

Rock Pigeon   Jackson Liberty HS

Mourning Dove   35 Sunset Rd

American Coot   Lake of the Lilies

Sandhill Crane   New Egypt

American Oystercatcher   Sandy Hook

Piping Plover   Island Beach SP

Killdeer   Lakewood Wawa

Ruddy Turnstone   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Dunlin   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Purple Sandpiper   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

American Woodcock   Sandy Hook

Wilson's Snipe   Mannington Marsh

Greater Yellowlegs   Brig

Laughing Gull   Point Pleasant Beach

Ring-billed Gull   Jackson Liberty HS

Herring Gull   Crestwood Village

Iceland Gull   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Lesser Black-backed Gull   Sylvan Lake

Great Black-backed Gull   Point Pleasant Beach

Red-throated Loon   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Common Loon   Point Pleasant Beach

Northern Gannet   Manasquan Inlet

Great Cormorant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Double-crested Cormorant   Point Pleasant Beach

Great Blue Heron   deCamp Wildlife Trail

Great Egret   Meadowedge Park

Snowy Egret   Manahawkin WMA

Tricolored Heron   Manahawkin WMA

Black Vulture   New Egypt

Turkey Vulture   Butterfly Bogs

Osprey   Great Bay Blvd

Northern Harrier   Assunpink WMA

Sharp-shinned Hawk   35 Sunset Rd

Cooper's Hawk   Assunpink WMA

Bald Eagle   Jackson

Red-shouldered Hawk   Meadowedge Park

Red-tailed Hawk   Jackson

Rough-legged Hawk   BC Fairgrounds

Long-eared Owl   Monmouth County

Belted Kingfisher   Barnegat Municipal Dock

Red-bellied Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd

Downy Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd

Hairy Woodpecker   Crestwood Village

Northern Flicker   Assunpink WMA

American Kestrel   Jacobstown Road

GYRFALCON   Brig

Peregrine Falcon   Cedar Bonnet Island

Eastern Phoebe   Brig

Blue Jay   35 Sunset Rd

American Crow   35 Sunset Rd

Fish Crow   Forest Resource Education Center

Common Raven   Colliers Mills WMA

Horned Lark   Jackson Liberty HS

Tree Swallow   Whitesbog

Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd

Tufted Titmouse   35 Sunset Rd

Red-breasted Nuthatch   35 Sunset Rd

White-breasted Nuthatch   35 Sunset Rd

Brown Creeper   Cloverdale Farm

Carolina Wren   35 Sunset Rd

Golden-crowned Kinglet   Cranberry Bogs-Dover Rd

Eastern Bluebird   Colliers Mills WMA

Hermit Thrush   Manasquan River WMA

American Robin   Crestwood Village

Gray Catbird   Assunpink WMA

Brown Thrasher   Manahawkin WMA

Northern Mockingbird   Lake of the Lilies

European Starling   35 Sunset Rd

Cedar Waxwing   Sandy Hook

House Finch   35 Sunset Rd

Pine Siskin   Cloverdale Farm

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd

Chipping Sparrow   Jackson Memorial HS

Field Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

American Tree Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

Fox Sparrow   Manasquan River WMA

Dark-eyed Junco   35 Sunset Rd

White-throated Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

Savannah Sparrow   Brig

Song Sparrow   Crestwood Village

Swamp Sparrow   Meadowedge Park

Eastern Towhee   Money Island Road area

Red-winged Blackbird   Lake Enno

Brown-headed Cowbird   Patriots County Park

Rusty Blackbird   Manahawkin WMA

Common Grackle   Butterfly Bogs

Boat-tailed Grackle   Great Bay Blvd

Orange-crowned Warbler   Mannington Marsh

Pine Warbler   Cloverdale Farm

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Sandy Hook

Northern Cardinal   35 Sunset Rd

House Sparrow   Lake of the Lilies

Killdeer, Whitesbog

Bunker Hill Bogs 11/30--Winter Wren & November's List

With time to kill before a doctor's appt (I'm fine), I took a walk in both Bunker Hill and Butterfly Bogs this morning. I was curious if any interesting ducks or other waterfowl had shown up--aside from Ring-necked Ducks in both places the answer was "no." It was a drab and dreary morning for most of the walk. 3 Killdeers in the back of Butterfly Bogs were noteworthy. But the significant find of the morning was in the back of Bunker Hill where a small flock of juncos and White-throated Sparrows were feeding on the trail, along with some Yellow-rumped Warblers flitting about in the bare branches. It was there, feeding beneath a bush, that I saw a tiny brown bird with a stubby tail. It quickly flew off, but I saw enough of it to know that I had, finally, my first Winter Wren of the year.

These wrens behave more like mice than birds, running around in the undergrowth and are, for me, devilishly hard to find. I'd pretty much given up on this species for the year, so I ended the month with 144 species and got the year count up to...(checking eBird)...354.

I had a fun month birding, a lot of it with Mike, as we covered a good swath of the state, and although I only added 5 year birds, one of them was a lifer and a couple of others were rarities so my list looks satisfactory to me.

I also made a couple of trips into NY, once to my beloved Prospect Park and once out to Point Lookout the day after Thanksgiving with our friends Rick & Caroline. Point Lookout yielded 3 month birds--Common Eider, Harlequin Duck, and Purple Sandpiper--the last two saving me the trouble of braving the Barnegat Light jetty for a while.

A few photos from Prospect Park:

American Black Duck

AmericanWigeon

Double-crested Cormorant

Northern Shoveler (with a real Brooklyn attitude)

The month's list: ALL CAPS=lifer, Bold Italics=Year bird, Underline=rarity
Counties Birded:
New Jersey: Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Mercer, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Somerset
New York: Kings, Nassau

Species     First Sighting

Snow Goose     Brig

Brant     Avalon Seawatch

Barnacle Goose     Etra Lake

Cackling Goose     Etra Lake

Canada Goose     Assunpink WMA

Mute Swan     Assunpink WMA

Tundra Swan     Brig

Wood Duck     Avalon Seawatch

Gadwall     Brig

Eurasian Wigeon     Brig

American Wigeon     Brig

American Black Duck     Brig

Mallard     Double Trouble State Park

Blue-winged Teal     Brig

Northern Shoveler     Brig

Northern Pintail     Brig

Green-winged Teal     Brig

Ring-necked Duck     Assunpink WMA

Lesser Scaup     Lily Lake

Common Eider     Point Lookout

Harlequin Duck     Point Lookout

Surf Scoter     Avalon Seawatch

White-winged Scoter     Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Black Scoter     Avalon Seawatch

Long-tailed Duck     Island Beach SP

Bufflehead     Brig

Hooded Merganser     Brig

Common Merganser     Sandy Hook

Red-breasted Merganser     Sandy Hook

Ruddy Duck     Assunpink WMA

Ring-necked Pheasant     GSP MM 48

Wild Turkey     Warren Grove

Red-throated Loon     Sandy Hook

Common Loon     Avalon 48th St Beach

Pied-billed Grebe     Assunpink WMA

Red-necked Grebe     Avalon Seawatch

Northern Gannet     Avalon Seawatch

Double-crested Cormorant     Avalon Seawatch

Great Cormorant     Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Great Blue Heron     Assunpink WMA

Great Egret     Brig

Snowy Egret     Brig

Black-crowned Night-Heron     Brig

Glossy Ibis     GSP MM 48

Black Vulture     The Beanery

Turkey Vulture     Assunpink WMA

Golden Eagle     Scherman-Hoffman

Northern Harrier     Brig

Sharp-shinned Hawk     Scherman-Hoffman

Cooper's Hawk     Colliers Mills WMA

Bald Eagle     Brig

Red-shouldered Hawk     Great Swamp NWR

Red-tailed Hawk     Colliers Mills WMA

KING RAIL     Brig

Clapper Rail     Great Bay Blvd

Virginia Rail     Brig

American Coot     Brig

American Oystercatcher     Avalon Seawatch

Black-bellied Plover     Avalon 48th St Beach Entrance

Semipalmated Plover     Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Killdeer     Double Trouble State Park

Greater Yellowlegs     Brig

Hudsonian Godwit     Brig

Ruddy Turnstone     Avalon 48th St Beach Entrance

Red Knot     Avalon 48th St Beach Entrance

Sanderling     Avalon 48th St Beach Entrance

Dunlin     Avalon Seawatch

Purple Sandpiper     Point Lookout

Least Sandpiper     Brig

White-rumped Sandpiper     Brig

Semipalmated Sandpiper     Brig

Western Sandpiper     Brig

Long-billed Dowitcher     Bayview Marina

Parasitic Jaeger     Avalon Seawatch

Laughing Gull     Avalon Seawatch

Ring-billed Gull     Assunpink WMA

Herring Gull     Avalon Seawatch

Lesser Black-backed Gull     Sunset Lake (Asbury Park)

Great Black-backed Gull     Avalon Seawatch

Forster's Tern     Avalon Seawatch

Royal Tern     Avalon Seawatch

Rock Pigeon     Avalon

Mourning Dove     35 Sunset Rd

Great Horned Owl     Brig

Belted Kingfisher     Assunpink WMA

Red-bellied Woodpecker     Assunpink WMA

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker     Colliers Mills WMA

Downy Woodpecker     Assunpink WMA

Hairy Woodpecker     Sandy Hook

Northern Flicker     Assunpink WMA

Peregrine Falcon     Brig

Eastern Phoebe     The Beanery

Western Kingbird     The Beanery

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher     Brig

Blue Jay     Assunpink WMA

American Crow     Assunpink WMA

Fish Crow     Bayview Marina

Tree Swallow     Assunpink WMA

Cave Swallow     The Beanery

Carolina Chickadee     35 Sunset Rd

Black-capped Chickadee     Great Swamp NWR

Tufted Titmouse     35 Sunset Rd

White-breasted Nuthatch     Assunpink WMA

Brown Creeper     Whitesbog Winter Wren  Bunker Hill Bogs

Carolina Wren     Assunpink WMA

Golden-crowned Kinglet     Double Trouble State Park

Ruby-crowned Kinglet     Assunpink WMA

Eastern Bluebird     Double Trouble State Park

Hermit Thrush     Whitesbog

American Robin     Assunpink WMA

Gray Catbird     Brig

Northern Mockingbird     Assunpink WMA

European Starling     Assunpink WMA

Cedar Waxwing     Assunpink WMA

Snow Bunting     Whitesbog

Orange-crowned Warbler     The Beanery

Palm Warbler     The Beanery

Yellow-rumped Warbler     Assunpink WMA

Seaside Sparrow     Brig

American Tree Sparrow     Double Trouble State Park

Chipping Sparrow     35 Sunset Rd

Field Sparrow     Great Swamp NWR

Dark-eyed Junco     35 Sunset Rd

White-crowned Sparrow     Sandy Hook

White-throated Sparrow     Assunpink WMA

Vesper Sparrow     Colliers Mills WMA

Savannah Sparrow     Double Trouble State Park

Song Sparrow     Assunpink WMA

Swamp Sparrow     Brig

Eastern Towhee     Brig

Northern Cardinal     35 Sunset Rd

Red-winged Blackbird     Colliers Mills WMA

Eastern Meadowlark     Brig

Rusty Blackbird     Brig

Common Grackle     Great Swamp NWR

Boat-tailed Grackle     Brig

Brown-headed Cowbird     Avalon

Baltimore Oriole     The Beanery

House Finch     Avalon Seawatch

Purple Finch     The Beanery

Pine Siskin     Whitesbog

American Goldfinch     Assunpink WMA

House Sparrow     Assunpink WMA