Brig 11/26--American White Pelican, Black-throated Gray Warbler (Lousy Pictures Included)

For over a week a couple of nice birds have been seen at Brig, one of them which I'd never seen in New Jersey. I held off going down, knowing that Shari & I would be on Scott's trip today. I hoped both species would stay and, happily, both did, and even more happily, both were fairly stress-free. 

Black-throated Gray Warbler

When Shari & I arrived at 8:45 at the parking lot, a birder asked us if she was in the right place, because she couldn't find the group. I told her they were probably looking for the Black-throated Gray Warbler that had been hanging out on the Leeds Eco-trail for nigh over a week now. As we were parking the car, we saw the group coming up the road with satisfied looks on their faces. A lot of folks hadn't seen the bird yet, so a big part of the group turned around and walked onto the boardwalk where the bird was flitting from tree to groundsel to phragmites, active as warblers are wont to be. A western species that occasionally pops up on the East Coast, the last one in New Jersey occurred a few years ago while we were in Australia, so this was our first chance to see one in the state. The last one that we saw was out west, with Scott, in Idaho. I tried to take pictures, but the bird was hopping around as if the vegetation was on fire. Amazingly, one of my random shots got the bird in a corner of the frame. The yellow dot in front of the eye is a good field mark, reassuring you that you're not looking at a Black-and-white Warbler. 

This time of year, the impoundments of Brig are given over to much duckage (a word I learned from Scott) and while there was a good variety of ducks, there weren't huge flocks of them. Probably the two most interesting ducks were seen early on in the Gull Pond, both hens: a Common Goldeneye and a Greater Scaup. There were a few coots, a few swans, some Canada Geese, but surprisingly, no Brant, and the big flock of Snow Geese that some saw in the air I missed completely. 

The sky was "infinite blue" and the leaders spent a lot of time staring up into it, trying to find a Golden Eagle. There was apparently at least one good candidate, but as I said in Shari in the car, "Even if they find one, I'll never see it." When I stare into the sky looking for hawks, it is hard to separate them out from the floaters in my vitreous jelly. So, unless a bird is really low, like some of the Bald Eagles that flew right over us, or, even better, perched on a tree top, I don't spend a lot of effort trying to find those high in the sky raptors. 

American White Pelican lumps

The other species I was hoping we'd get today was the flock of American White Pelicans that have been there for almost two weeks. I've seen white pelicans at Brig before, but only single birds. The usual count for the current flock is 8, though today I was only able to count six "big white lumps" in the eastern pool. At least when we saw them again, on the north dike, one of the birds was stretching out and we got the full profile with huge yellow pouch. American White Pelicans are laughably large. How large? I remember in Florida seeing both Brown Pelicans and White Pelicans resting on a sandbar. By comparison the Brown Pelicans looked like Mourning Doves next to the white ones. 

There was not much going on in terms of land birds today which seems to be the theme of the autumn, though a walk through the fields around the Visitor's Center while my companions were talking about hockey and soccer did produce some of the more common tweety birds. For the trip I had 49 species which is a little light for this time of year. But two year birds this late in the year has to rate as a success. 

Canada Goose  50
Mute Swan  4
Tundra Swan  3
Wood Duck  4
Northern Shoveler  20
Gadwall  5
American Wigeon  50
Mallard  20
American Black Duck  10
Northern Pintail  40
Green-winged Teal  1
Ring-necked Duck  8
Greater Scaup  1
Bufflehead  1
Common Goldeneye  1     Gull pond. Hen
Ruddy Duck  5
Mourning Dove  1
American Coot  5
Black-bellied Plover  10
Dunlin  1000
Least Sandpiper  4     South dike. Small shorebirds running along mud
Long-billed Dowitcher  1
Greater Yellowlegs  7
Ring-billed Gull  30
Herring Gull  20
Double-crested Cormorant  1
American White Pelican  6     
Great Blue Heron  4
Great Egret  7
Black Vulture  5
Turkey Vulture  1
Northern Harrier  3
Bald Eagle  4
Red-tailed Hawk  2
Downy Woodpecker  1
Blue Jay  3
American Crow  5
Carolina Chickadee  1     Heard
Tufted Titmouse  2
Carolina Wren  1     Heard
Northern Mockingbird  1
American Robin  1     Heard
Dark-eyed Junco  1
Saltmarsh Sparrow  3     South dike
Savannah Sparrow  1
Song Sparrow  1     Heard
Yellow-rumped Warbler  1
Black-throated Gray Warbler  1     
Northern Cardinal  2

The Year in Birds

Yellow-headed Blackbird, Island Beach SP

Unlike `16, `17, and `18, when I added hundreds of life birds to my list with trips to Trinidad, South Africa, Mexico, and Australia, this year I only added 5. My lone major foray beyond the east coast was this summer when we went to Utah and Idaho and netted 3 lifers there. In New Jersey, I added two lifers, which is unusual in itself since the rarities that usually show up in the state are birds I've already seen elsewhere that I chase for my Jersey list.

But as I get older, I'm less and less impressed by my life list (or anyone else's) since all you need to get a huge list is time, some money and the willingness to travel to distance places for an extended length of time; I am deficient in the last. If I'm not willing to haul my butt up to Bergen County to see Monk Parakeets, now that the Carteret population has vanished, what are the chances of me going to Indonesia or Sri Lanka?

This year I finished with 295 species in New Jersey. If I hadn't been so feckless about running down to Cape May when all the rarities were showing up I would probably have hit the magic number of 300. As it was, out of all those rarities, only LeCONTE'S SPARROW showed itself to me and while it was a life bird, it wasn't the most satisfactory birding experience. There's an article in the current Birdwatching Magazine by Pete Dunne wherein he claims you cannot have a bad birding experience in Cape May. I clear my throat. You can if the birds you hope to see (Wood Stork, Mountain Bluebird) are found dead on successive trips, which is what happened when I waited too long to go down there for both species.

So I guess the goal for next year is to get 300 NJ species, but if I'm at 299 in December I'm still not driving up to Bergen County for some misplaced parakeets.

FLAMMULATED OWL, Utah

Wilson's Plover, Sea Bright

The highlight of the year for me was seeing the FLAMMULATED OWL in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah. Of the quintet of lifers this year, that bird was by far the one that was best seen and photographed. When I think of the other neat birds I saw this year, proximity seem to play a large part in the pleasure I took in finding them. The Black-bellied Whistling Ducks on Cedar Run Dock Road were a few miles from where I happened to be that day. The Wilson's Plover in Sea Bright happened to show up when I was at Sandy Hook. I was at Sandy Hook when the Bell's Vireo was discovered less than a thousand feet from where our group was. Whitesbog had an American Avocet and while we were admiring that bird, a Black Tern showed up. That's magic. Walking a rut up and down a path at Palmyra looking for a Pacific-slope Flycatcher is not magic--it verges on work--at least it isn't magic while you're walking back and forth losing hope. Then the bird appears, seemingly out of nowhere: magic.

For the year I finished with 354 species. There were big misses: American Bittern comes to mind first but I don't want to dwell on the negative any more than I already have. In NJ I finished just out of the top 20 for species listed and in my home county of Ocean I tied for the #3 slot. It was a spectacular year in for rarities in Ocean County; I added 12 to my county life list including some really exciting ones like Pacific Loon, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Townsend's Solitaire and Yellow-headed Blackbird. It's going to be hard to beat that next year. It was also good to get some supposedly easier birds finally onto the county list like Philadelphia Vireo and Iceland Gull ( which had been a nemesis bird so a big thanks to Jason for that one!).

The important question to ask myself is: Did I have fun? On the whole, yes, especially considering how lousy the year has been outside of birding. I enjoyed birding with my buddies, I enjoyed the time Shari and I spent together, I enjoyed my solo walks through Whitesbog, Colliers Mills, Assunpink, and I enjoyed running into friends while I was birding alone.Mostly, it was fun to find birds. That's always the measure: is this going to pass the fun test? Maybe some day I'll be able to convince myself that a trip all the way up to Bergen County will be fun. I do like Monk Parakeets after all.

Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Cedar Run Dock Road

Species                        First Sighting

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck   Cedar Run Dock Rd.

Snow Goose   Brig

Ross's Goose   Cream Ridge

Greater White-fronted Goose   Conines Millpond

Brant   Sandy Hook

Barnacle Goose   Conines Millpond

Cackling Goose   Lake Takanassee

Canada Goose   Seven Presidents Park

Mute Swan   Lake Takanassee

Trumpeter Swan   Stone Tavern Lake

Tundra Swan   Whitesbog

Muscovy Duck   Fletcher Lake

Wood Duck   Little Silver Lake

Blue-winged Teal   Manahawkin WMA

Northern Shoveler   Monmouth Beach

Gadwall   Lake Takanassee

Eurasian Wigeon   Shark River

American Wigeon   Lake Takanassee

Mallard   Lake Takanassee

American Black Duck   Lake of the Lilies

Northern Pintail   Brig

Green-winged Teal   Allenhurst

Canvasback   Mathis Veteran's Memorial Park

Redhead   Lake of the Lilies

Ring-necked Duck   Mathis Veteran's Memorial Park

Greater Scaup   Bayview Ave Park

Lesser Scaup   Assunpink WMA

King Eider   Sandy Hook

Common Eider   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Harlequin Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Surf Scoter   Sandy Hook

White-winged Scoter   Sandy Hook

Black Scoter   Sandy Hook

Long-tailed Duck   Sandy Hook

Bufflehead   Sandy Hook

Common Goldeneye   LBI Bayside

Hooded Merganser   Lake Takanassee

Common Merganser   Conines Millpond

Red-breasted Merganser   Sandy Hook

Ruddy Duck   Lake Takanassee

California Quail   Gilgal Sculpture Garden,

Ring-necked Pheasant   New Egypt

GRAY PARTRIDGE   Mud Lake WMA

Wild Turkey   New Egypt

Pied-billed Grebe   Lake Takanassee

Horned Grebe   Sandy Hook

Red-necked Grebe   Sandy Hook

Eared Grebe   Mud Lake WMA

Western Grebe   Lee Kay Ponds

Clark's Grebe   Lee Kay Ponds

Rock Pigeon   Little Silver Lake

Eurasian Collared-Dove   Gilgal Sculpture Garden,

Mourning Dove   Seven Presidents Park

Yellow-billed Cuckoo   Cedar Bonnet Island

Black-billed Cuckoo   Sandy Hook

Common Nighthawk   Island Beach SP

Chuck-will's-widow   Island Beach SP

Eastern Whip-poor-will   35 Sunset Rd

Chimney Swift   Brig

White-throated Swift   Shoshone Falls Park

Ruby-throated Hummingbird   Cloverdale Farm

Black-chinned Hummingbird   Red Butte Arboretum

Broad-tailed Hummingbird   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Clapper Rail   Island Beach SP

Virginia Rail   Bear River MBR

Sora   Bear River MBR

Common Gallinule   Brig

American Coot   Lake Takanassee

Sandhill Crane   Pemberton Twp MUA Fields

Black-necked Stilt   Lee Kay Ponds

American Avocet   Sandy Hook

American Oystercatcher   Brigantine Island

Black-bellied Plover   Great Bay Blvd

American Golden-Plover   BC Fairgrounds

Snowy Plover   Bear River MBR

Wilson's Plover   Sea Bright

Semipalmated Plover   Forsythe-Barnegat

Piping Plover   Island Beach SP

Killdeer   Lakewood Wawa

Upland Sandpiper   Seven Presidents Park

Whimbrel   Brig

Long-billed Curlew   Antelope Island SP

Hudsonian Godwit   Bombay Hook

Marbled Godwit   American Falls Reservoir

Ruddy Turnstone   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Red Knot   Great Bay Blvd

Stilt Sandpiper   Great Bay Blvd

Sanderling   Manasquan Inlet

Dunlin   Manasquan Inlet

Purple Sandpiper   Manasquan Inlet

Baird's Sandpiper   Sandy Hook

Least Sandpiper   Manahawkin WMA

White-rumped Sandpiper   Great Bay Blvd

Buff-breasted Sandpiper   Whitesbog

Pectoral Sandpiper   Whitesbog

Semipalmated Sandpiper   Forsythe-Barnegat

Western Sandpiper   Brig

Short-billed Dowitcher   Great Bay Blvd

Long-billed Dowitcher   Market Lake WMA

American Woodcock   Crestwood Village

Wilson's Snipe   Mannington Marsh

Wilson's Phalarope   Brig

Red-necked Phalarope   Antelope Island SP

Spotted Sandpiper   Barnegat Municipal Dock

Solitary Sandpiper   Whitesbog

Greater Yellowlegs   Poplar St boat ramp

Willet   Barnegat Municipal Dock

Lesser Yellowlegs   Manahawkin WMA

Razorbill   Sandy Hook

Bonaparte's Gull   Cape May Ferry Terminal

Black-headed Gull   Manahawkin WMA

Little Gull   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Laughing Gull   Point Pleasant Beach

Franklin's Gull   Lee Kay Ponds

Ring-billed Gull   Lake Takanassee

California Gull   Salt Lake City

Herring Gull   Sandy Hook

Iceland Gull   Edison Boat Launch

Lesser Black-backed Gull   Lake Takanassee

Glaucous Gull   Manasquan Inlet

Great Black-backed Gull   Sandy Hook

Least Tern   Great Bay Blvd

Gull-billed Tern   Brig

Caspian Tern   Brig

Black Tern   Whitesbog

Common Tern   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Forster's Tern   Butler Beach

Royal Tern   Ocean Gate

Black Skimmer   Brig

Red-throated Loon   Monmouth Beach

Pacific Loon   Manasquan Inlet

Common Loon   Sandy Hook

Northern Gannet   Sandy Hook

Great Cormorant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Neotropic Cormorant   Lee Kay Ponds

Double-crested Cormorant   Point Pleasant Beach

American White Pelican   Lee Kay Ponds

Brown Pelican   Island Beach SP

Least Bittern   Brig

Great Blue Heron   Lake Takanassee

Great Egret   Great Bay Blvd

Snowy Egret   Manahawkin WMA

Little Blue Heron   Shelter Cove Park

Tricolored Heron   Manahawkin WMA

Cattle Egret   Brigham City

Green Heron   Tip Seaman CP

Black-crowned Night-Heron   Brig

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron   Ocean City Welcome Center

White Ibis   Ocean City Welcome Center

Glossy Ibis   Manahawkin WMA

White-faced Ibis   Brig

Black Vulture   Toms River

Turkey Vulture   35 Sunset Rd

Osprey   Great Bay Blvd

Golden Eagle  Malta

Mississippi Kite   Waretown

Northern Harrier   BC Fairgrounds

Sharp-shinned Hawk   18 Aberdeen Avenue

Cooper's Hawk   Lake Takanassee

Bald Eagle   Sandy Hook

Red-shouldered Hawk   Brig

Broad-winged Hawk   Michael Huber Preserve

Swainson's Hawk   Kennecott Reclamation Ponds

Red-tailed Hawk   Point Pleasant Beach

Rough-legged Hawk   Stafford Township

Ferruginous Hawk   Malta

Barn Owl   American Falls

FLAMMULATED OWL   Wasatch Mountain SP

Eastern Screech-Owl   Beach Ave

Great Horned Owl   Beach Ave

Snowy Owl   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Burrowing Owl   Howell

Barred Owl   Eno’s Pond

Long-eared Owl   Assunpink WMA

Short-eared Owl   Pole Farm

Northern Saw-whet Owl   Pole Farm

Belted Kingfisher   Bayview Ave Park

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Cattus Island County Park

Red-naped Sapsucker   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Red-headed Woodpecker   Sandy Hook

Red-bellied Woodpecker   Marshall's Pond

Downy Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd

Hairy Woodpecker   Assunpink WMA

Pileated Woodpecker   Assunpink WMA

Northern Flicker   Cedar Bonnet Island

American Kestrel   Pemberton Twp MUA Fields

Merlin   Toms River

GYRFALCON   Brig

Peregrine Falcon   Sandy Hook

Olive-sided Flycatcher   Double Trouble State Park

Western Wood-Pewee   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Eastern Wood-Pewee   Cedar Bonnet Island

Acadian Flycatcher   Double Trouble State Park

Alder Flycatcher   Negri-Nepote Grasslands

Willow Flycatcher   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Hammond's Flycatcher   Diamondfield Jack Campground

Gray Flycatcher   Kinney Creek Trail

Dusky Flycatcher   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Pacific-slope Flycatcher   Palmyra Cove Nature Park

Cordilleran Flycatcher   Kinney Creek Trail

Eastern Phoebe   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Say's Phoebe   Antelope Island SP

Ash-throated Flycatcher   Sandy Hook

Great Crested Flycatcher   Manasquan River WMA

Western Kingbird   Salt Lake City

Eastern Kingbird   Great Bay Blvd

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher   Toms River High School East

White-eyed Vireo   Manahawkin WMA

Bell's Vireo   Sandy Hook

Yellow-throated Vireo   Baldpate Mt

Blue-headed Vireo   Double Trouble State Park

Plumbeous Vireo   Kinney Creek Trail

Philadelphia Vireo   Island Beach SP

Warbling Vireo   Island Beach SP

Red-eyed Vireo   Belleplain SF

Loggerhead Shrike   Malta

Steller's Jay   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Blue Jay   Lake of the Lilies

Black-billed Magpie   Malta

American Crow   35 Sunset Rd

Fish Crow   New Egypt

Common Raven   Cranberry Bogs

Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd

Black-capped Chickadee   Merrill Creek Reservoir

Mountain Chickadee   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Boreal Chickadee   Merrill Creek Reservoir

Juniper Titmouse   Kinney Creek Trail

Tufted Titmouse   Cattus Island County Park

Horned Lark   Jackson Liberty HS

Northern Rough-winged Swallow   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Purple Martin   Double Trouble State Park

Tree Swallow   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Violet-green Swallow   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Bank Swallow   Brig

Barn Swallow   Double Trouble State Park

Cliff Swallow   Wesley Lake

Bushtit   Kinney Creek Trail

Golden-crowned Kinglet   Cattus Island County Park

Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Assunpink WMA

Red-breasted Nuthatch   Cattus Island County Park

White-breasted Nuthatch   Cattus Island County Park

Brown Creeper   Colliers Mills WMA

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher   Manahawkin WMA

Rock Wren   Rock Creek Road

Canyon Wren   Rock Creek Road

House Wren   Forest Resource Education Center

Winter Wren   Union Transportation Trail

Marsh Wren   Brig

Carolina Wren   Sandy Hook

American Dipper   Big Cottonwood Canyon

European Starling   South Toms River

Gray Catbird   Assunpink WMA

Brown Thrasher   Manahawkin WMA

Sage Thrasher    Malta

Northern Mockingbird   Lake of the Lilies

Eastern Bluebird   Cloverdale Farm

Mountain Bluebird   Mink Creek Rd

Townsend's Solitaire   Manahawkin WMA

Veery   Double Trouble State Park

Swainson's Thrush   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Hermit Thrush   Taylor Ln

Wood Thrush   Belleplain SF

American Robin   Marshall's Pond

Cedar Waxwing   Taylor Ln

House Sparrow   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

American Pipit   Whitesbog

House Finch   Cattus Island County Park

Purple Finch   Great Bay Blvd

Cassin's Finch   Big Cottonwood Canyon

CASSIA CROSSBILL   Thompson Flat Campground

Pine Siskin   Cloverdale Farm

Lesser Goldfinch   Red Butte Arboretum

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd

Snow Bunting   Sandy Hook

Grasshopper Sparrow   Colliers Mills WMA

Chipping Sparrow   Manasquan River WMA

Clay-colored Sparrow   Sandy Hook

Field Sparrow   New Egypt

Brewer's Sparrow   Curlew National Grassland

Lark Sparrow   Kinney Creek Trail

American Tree Sparrow   Shelter Cove Park

Fox Sparrow   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Dark-eyed Junco   Whitesbog

White-crowned Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

White-throated Sparrow   Jackson

Vesper Sparrow   Mud Lake WMA

LECONTE'S SPARROW   The Beanery

Seaside Sparrow   Great Bay Blvd

Nelson's Sparrow   Sandy Hook

Saltmarsh Sparrow   Brig

Savannah Sparrow   Cedar Bonnet Island

Henslow's Sparrow   Negri-Nepote Grasslands

Song Sparrow   Cattus Island County Park

Lincoln's Sparrow   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Swamp Sparrow   Manahawkin WMA

Spotted Towhee   Kinney Creek Trail

Eastern Towhee   Money Island Road area

Yellow-breasted Chat   Brig

Yellow-headed Blackbird   Lee Kay Ponds

Bobolink   Cedar Bonnet Island

Western Meadowlark   Twin Falls

Eastern Meadowlark   Pole Farm

Orchard Oriole   Brig

Bullock's Oriole   Twin Falls

Baltimore Oriole   New Egypt

Red-winged Blackbird   Cattus Island County Park

Brown-headed Cowbird   New Egypt

Rusty Blackbird   Oros Wildlife Preserve

Brewer's Blackbird   Liberty Park

Common Grackle   New Egypt

Boat-tailed Grackle   Lake of the Lilies

Great-tailed Grackle   Salt Lake City

Ovenbird   Manahawkin WMA

Worm-eating Warbler   Belleplain SF

Louisiana Waterthrush   Belleplain SF

Northern Waterthrush   Oros Wildlife Preserve

Blue-winged Warbler   Manasquan River WMA

Black-and-white Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Prothonotary Warbler   Belleplain SF

Orange-crowned Warbler   Great Bay Blvd

Nashville Warbler   Island Beach SP

MacGillivray's Warbler   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Common Yellowthroat   Manahawkin WMA

Hooded Warbler   Belleplain SF

American Redstart   Island Beach SP

Cape May Warbler   Great Bay Blvd

Cerulean Warbler   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Northern Parula   Central Park

Magnolia Warbler   Island Beach SP

Bay-breasted Warbler   Sandy Hook

Blackburnian Warbler   Island Beach SP

Yellow Warbler   Manahawkin WMA

Chestnut-sided Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Blackpoll Warbler   Cloverdale Farm

Black-throated Blue Warbler   William Warren County Park

Palm Warbler   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Pine Warbler   Cloverdale Farm

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Cedar Bonnet Island

Yellow-throated Warbler   Belleplain SF

Prairie Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Black-throated Gray Warbler   Kinney Creek Trail

Townsend's Warbler   Trenton Sewage Ponds

Black-throated Green Warbler   Manasquan River WMA

Wilson's Warbler   Double Trouble State Park

Summer Tanager   Cedar Bonnet Island

Scarlet Tanager   Sandy Hook

Western Tanager   Big Cottonwood Canyon

Northern Cardinal   Assunpink WMA

Rose-breasted Grosbeak   Island Beach SP

Black-headed Grosbeak   Red Butte Arboretum

Blue Grosbeak   Great Bay Blvd

Lazuli Bunting   Red Butte Arboretum

Indigo Bunting   Great Bay Blvd

Dickcissel   Laurel Run Park Dickcissel, Laurel Run Park