Cedar Bonnet Island 9/30--Last Day Best Day--Peregrine Falcon, Bobolink, Mourning Warbler, Cape May Warbler, Yellow-throated Warbler

Bobolink

 On the last day of the month, I went to Cedar Bonnet Island and had my best day birding in a long time. I haven't had 5 year birds in one day since we were in Mexico. I met a couple of birders I know, as I will inevitably to there, and they started rattling off all the warblers they'd seen in the half hour they were there before I arrived. Out of them all, I was only interested in one and while they said there were quite a few Cape May Warblers, I was able to find one of them pointed it out to me atop a tall cedar. You only need one and I had managed to miss this warbler during the spring, so now was my rebound chance. 

Cape May Warbler

We two then walked out to the big field in the middle of the island. While I had seen a half dozen Bobolinks ("plink!) fly over, I really wanted to get decent looks and that field, in the fall, is an attractor. It didn't take long to find a few. Getting decent pictures, as they flew around and dove down into the brush took longer. 

She had to go to work so we split up as I looked into the marsh. When I got back to the entrance alley there were a couple of more birders I knew and while we caught up, the activity really picked up. There were a couple of Yellow-billed Cuckoos skulking around in the trees, and between 3 and 6 (depending on who was counting) Scarlet Tanagers, along with a very late Blue Grosbeak (call only). Then, what I assumed was going to be the bird of the day was spotted--a Yellow-throated Warbler giving good looks and posing briefly for those with better cameras than mine. Above us a flock of Common Ravens flew over. I counted 6. Which is a lot for around here, but that was only a small part of the flock, since another guy had 18 flying over the field. But, as one birder pointed out, not all those birds were ravens. There was a Peregrine Falcon flying against the grain of their flight. Then another showed up and they briefly locked claws, as eagles will sometimes do. When someone mentioned that the bird flu had had a devastating effect on the Peregrine Falcon population, I had the explanation of why it had taken me 9 months to finally see a couple. 

The Yellow-throated Warbler was not the bird of the day. The spot we had been standing in was not exactly random. The day before a Mourning Warbler had been seen in the understory there and there was an undercurrent of hope that it had stayed overnight. It had, because while everyone else was picking out the Scarlet Tanagers, the warbler popped up briefly, right in front of me on a bare branch--I saw all the field marks--eye ring, beak, olive back, yellow breast, a big warbler. While the guy next to me saw half the field marks he wasn't too concerned since he'd seen it yesterday. For me, though, it was not only a year bird, but a county bird, bringing my Ocean County total up to 333. And only the 8th one I've seen, ever, and only my third in New Jersey, and the last one I saw was 10 years ago at Sandy Hook. A damn difficult bird.

That capped off the day and month for me, and while I still had walking to do, nothing at Manahawkin WMA came close to matching what I'd seen on Cedar Bonnet. 

For September, 132 species with 12 year birds.

Counties Birded: Burlington, Monmouth, Ocean

Species                First Sighting
Canada Goose    Whitesbog
Mute Swan    Wrangle Brook
Wood Duck    Whitesbog
Blue-winged Teal    Island Beach SP
Mallard    Whitesbog
American Black Duck    Whitesbog
Green-winged Teal    Island Beach SP
Wild Turkey    Schoolhouse Rd
Rock Pigeon    Waretown
Mourning Dove    Whitesbog
Yellow-billed Cuckoo    Cedar Bonnet Island
Eastern Whip-poor-will    35 Sunset Rd
Ruby-throated Hummingbird    35 Sunset Rd
American Oystercatcher    Island Beach SP
Black-bellied Plover    Island Beach SP
American Golden-Plover    Reed Sod Farm
Killdeer    Reed Sod Farm
Semipalmated Plover    Island Beach SP
Hudsonian Whimbrel    Island Beach SP
Marbled Godwit    Island Beach SP
Short-billed Dowitcher    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Spotted Sandpiper    Whitesbog
Solitary Sandpiper    Colliers Mills WMA
Greater Yellowlegs    Whitesbog
Ruddy Turnstone    Island Beach SP
Buff-breasted Sandpiper    Reed Sod Farm
Sanderling    Island Beach SP
Least Sandpiper    Colliers Mills WMA
Pectoral Sandpiper    Reed Sod Farm
Laughing Gull    Island Beach SP
Ring-billed Gull    Lake Carasaljo
American Herring Gull    Island Beach SP
Great Black-backed Gull    Island Beach SP
Lesser Black-backed Gull    Island Beach SP
Black Skimmer    Island Beach SP
Caspian Tern    Island Beach SP
Forster's Tern    Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Common Tern    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Royal Tern    Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Pied-billed Grebe    Whitesbog
Double-crested Cormorant    Island Beach SP
White Ibis    Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Glossy Ibis    Island Beach SP
Black-crowned Night Heron    Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Little Blue Heron    Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Tricolored Heron    Island Beach SP
Snowy Egret    Waretown
Green Heron    Whitesbog
Great Egret    Whitesbog
Great Blue Heron    Whitesbog
Brown Pelican    Island Beach SP
Black Vulture    Rt 9 Waretown
Turkey Vulture    Crestwood Village
Osprey    Island Beach SP
Cooper's Hawk    Cranberry Bogs--Dover Rd
Northern Harrier    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Bald Eagle    Whitesbog
Red-shouldered Hawk    Whitesbog
Red-tailed Hawk    Allentown
Belted Kingfisher    Island Beach SP
Red-headed Woodpecker    Colliers Mills WMA
Red-bellied Woodpecker    Whitesbog
Downy Woodpecker    35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker    Whitesbog
Northern Flicker    Whitesbog
American Kestrel    Colliers Mills WMA
Merlin    Island Beach SP
Peregrine Falcon    Cedar Bonnet Island
Eastern Wood-Pewee    Whitesbog
Least Flycatcher    Colliers Mills WMA
Eastern Phoebe    Whitesbog
Great Crested Flycatcher    Whitesbog
White-eyed Vireo    Whitesbog
Yellow-throated Vireo    Meadowview Lane
Blue-headed Vireo    Cedar Bonnet Island
Philadelphia Vireo    Island Beach SP
Eastern Warbling Vireo    Lake Carasaljo
Red-eyed Vireo    Union Transportation Trail
Blue Jay    35 Sunset Rd
American Crow    35 Sunset Rd
Fish Crow    Reed Sod Farm
Common Raven    35 Sunset Rd
Carolina Chickadee    Whitesbog
Tufted Titmouse    Whitesbog
Horned Lark    Reed Sod Farm
Tree Swallow    Whitesbog
Barn Swallow    Whitesbog
White-breasted Nuthatch    Whitesbog
Red-breasted Nuthatch    Island Beach SP
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher    Whitesbog
Northern House Wren    Whitesbog
Marsh Wren    Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Carolina Wren    35 Sunset Rd
European Starling    Whitesbog
Gray Catbird    Whitesbog
Brown Thrasher    Island Beach SP
Northern Mockingbird    Reed Sod Farm
Eastern Bluebird    Colliers Mills WMA
Veery    Union Transportation Trail
American Robin    Colliers Mills WMA
Cedar Waxwing    Island Beach SP
House Sparrow    35 Sunset Rd
House Finch    35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch    Whitesbog
Chipping Sparrow    Whitesbog
Lark Sparrow    Island Beach SP
Saltmarsh Sparrow    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Savannah Sparrow    Cedar Bonnet Island
Song Sparrow    Whitesbog
Swamp Sparrow    Whitesbog
Eastern Towhee    Whitesbog
Bobolink    Cedar Bonnet Island
Baltimore Oriole    Colliers Mills WMA
Red-winged Blackbird    Union Transportation Trail
Common Grackle    Lake Carasaljo
Boat-tailed Grackle    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Northern Waterthrush    Island Beach SP
Mourning Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Common Yellowthroat    Whitesbog
American Redstart    Whitesbog
Cape May Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Parula    Island Beach SP
Northern Yellow Warbler    Island Beach SP
Palm Warbler    Island Beach SP
Pine Warbler    Whitesbog
Yellow-throated Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Prairie Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Scarlet Tanager    Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Cardinal    Whitesbog
Rose-breasted Grosbeak    Island Beach SP
Blue Grosbeak    Cedar Bonnet Island
Dickcissel    Island Beach SP

May Wrap-up--Migration in Fits

Black-necked Stilt, Manahawkin WMA

May never quite felt like May this year. Cold mornings, wrong winds, rain, and the usual complaints from birders about migration. I don’t know if migration was good or bad this year—seeing reports of 1 million birds over Ocean County would lead me to believe “good” but I’ve been doing this close to fifty years and I still haven’t heard anyone say, “What a great migration.” It’s always too something: too cold, too windy, too rainy. Meanwhile the real reasons for fewer birds — habitat loss, pesticides, building lights, wind turbines — are too depressing to contemplate

Still, the list grew. It always does. Sandy Hook and Island Beach carried most of the weight. Inland, Colliers Mills was its usual reliable mix of sand, gunfire, and birds, with the occasional surprise —Grasshopper Sparrow, Veery, Worm‑eating Warbler. Manahawkin WMA produced the flycatchers and and yet another Black-necked Stilt! The Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve had the expected warblers and vireos, and remains one of the few places in the area where you can stand on a trail deep in the preserve and not hear any noise from civilization save the occasional airplane.

Shari & I went on our annual date: dinner then down to Collinstown Road for Chuck-will’s-widow. Warblers came in fits and starts: Magnolia, Bay‑breasted, Blackpoll, Chestnut‑sided, Northern Parula on the good days; not much of anything on the others.

By the end of the month the list stretched from Brant to Indigo Bunting, a respectable range for a month that never quite got going. Nothing dramatic, but still May, and still worth being out.

June, with migration over, tends to be a dull month or so they say. I say, go out and see what’s around.

For the month, 168 species in Ocean and Burlington Counties.

Species    First Sighting
Brant    Sandy Hook
Canada Goose    Sandy Hook
Mute Swan    Manahawkin WMA
Wood Duck    Reeves Bogs
Mallard    Island Beach SP
American Black Duck    Sandy Hook
Green-winged Teal    Island Beach SP
Surf Scoter    Island Beach SP
White-winged Scoter    Island Beach SP
Black Scoter    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Bufflehead    Island Beach SP
Red-breasted Merganser    Sandy Hook
Wild Turkey    Crestwood Village
Rock Pigeon    South Toms River
Mourning Dove    Sandy Hook
Yellow-billed Cuckoo    Whitesbog
Black-billed Cuckoo    Cranberry Bogs
Chuck-will's-widow    Collinstown Road
Eastern Whip-poor-will    35 Sunset Rd
Chimney Swift    Sandy Hook
Ruby-throated Hummingbird    35 Sunset Rd
Clapper Rail    Island Beach SP
Black-necked Stilt    Double Trouble SP
American Oystercatcher    Sandy Hook
Black-bellied Plover    Sandy Hook
Killdeer    Island Beach SP
Semipalmated Plover    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Piping Plover    Island Beach SP
Hudsonian Whimbrel    Cedar Bonnet Island
Short-billed Dowitcher    Island Beach SP
Wilson's Phalarope    Forsythe-Barnegat
Spotted Sandpiper    Horicon Lake
Solitary Sandpiper    Cranberry Bogs
Lesser Yellowlegs    Sandy Hook
Willet    Island Beach SP
Greater Yellowlegs    Island Beach SP
Ruddy Turnstone    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Red Knot    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Stilt Sandpiper    Forsythe-Barnegat
Sanderling    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Dunlin    Island Beach SP
Purple Sandpiper    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Least Sandpiper    Island Beach SP
Semipalmated Sandpiper    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Laughing Gull    Sandy Hook
Ring-billed Gull    Horicon Lake
American Herring Gull    Sandy Hook
Great Black-backed Gull    Sandy Hook
Lesser Black-backed Gull    Sandy Hook
Black Skimmer    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Least Tern    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Gull-billed Tern    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Forster's Tern    Sandy Hook
Common Tern    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Royal Tern    Island Beach SP
Red-throated Loon    Island Beach SP
Common Loon    Sandy Hook
Northern Gannet    Island Beach SP
Double-crested Cormorant    Sandy Hook
White Ibis    Island Beach SP
Glossy Ibis    Island Beach SP
Yellow-crowned Night Heron    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Black-crowned Night Heron    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Little Blue Heron    Island Beach SP
Tricolored Heron    Island Beach SP
Snowy Egret    Sandy Hook
Green Heron    Cranberry Bogs
Great Egret    Sandy Hook
Great Blue Heron    Sandy Hook
Black Vulture    Sandy Hook
Turkey Vulture    Sandy Hook
Osprey    Sandy Hook
Sharp-shinned Hawk    Sandy Hook
Cooper's Hawk    Sandy Hook
Northern Harrier    Sandy Hook
Bald Eagle    Sandy Hook
Red-tailed Hawk    Sandy Hook
Red-headed Woodpecker    Colliers Mills WMA
Red-bellied Woodpecker    Sandy Hook
Downy Woodpecker    35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker    35 Sunset Rd
Northern Flicker    Sandy Hook
Merlin    Sandy Hook
Eastern Wood-Pewee    Colliers Mills WMA
Acadian Flycatcher    Manahawkin WMA
Willow Flycatcher    Manahawkin WMA
Eastern Phoebe    Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
Great Crested Flycatcher    Reeves Bogs
Eastern Kingbird    Sandy Hook
White-eyed Vireo    Island Beach SP
Yellow-throated Vireo    Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
Blue-headed Vireo    Island Beach SP
Eastern Warbling Vireo    Colliers Mills WMA
Red-eyed Vireo    Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
Blue Jay    Sandy Hook
American Crow    Colliers Mills WMA
Fish Crow    35 Sunset Rd
Common Raven    Sandy Hook
Carolina Chickadee    Island Beach SP
Tufted Titmouse    Reeves Bogs
Bank Swallow    Sandy Hook
Tree Swallow    Sandy Hook
Purple Martin    Cranberry Bogs
Northern Rough-winged Swallow    Sandy Hook
Barn Swallow    Sandy Hook
Cliff Swallow    Cedar Bridge Tavern County Park
Ruby-crowned Kinglet    Sandy Hook
White-breasted Nuthatch    Whiting WMA
Red-breasted Nuthatch    Island Beach SP
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher    Reeves Bogs
Northern House Wren    Sandy Hook
Marsh Wren    Cattus Island County Park
Carolina Wren    Horicon Lake
European Starling    Sandy Hook
Gray Catbird    Sandy Hook
Brown Thrasher    Sandy Hook
Northern Mockingbird    Sandy Hook
Eastern Bluebird    35 Sunset Rd
Veery    Colliers Mills WMA
Wood Thrush    Colliers Mills WMA
American Robin    Sandy Hook
Cedar Waxwing    Cedar Bonnet Island
House Sparrow    35 Sunset Rd
House Finch    35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch    Sandy Hook
Grasshopper Sparrow    Colliers Mills WMA
Chipping Sparrow    35 Sunset Rd
Field Sparrow    Whiting WMA
White-throated Sparrow    Sandy Hook
Seaside Sparrow    Sandy Hook
Saltmarsh Sparrow    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Savannah Sparrow    Sandy Hook
Song Sparrow    35 Sunset Rd
Swamp Sparrow    Reeves Bogs
Eastern Towhee    Sandy Hook
Orchard Oriole    Manahawkin WMA
Baltimore Oriole    Colliers Mills WMA
Red-winged Blackbird    Sandy Hook
Brown-headed Cowbird    35 Sunset Rd
Common Grackle    Sandy Hook
Boat-tailed Grackle    Sandy Hook
Ovenbird    Sandy Hook
Worm-eating Warbler    Colliers Mills WMA
Northern Waterthrush    Cedar Bonnet Island
Blue-winged Warbler    Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
Black-and-white Warbler    Reeves Bogs
Prothonotary Warbler    Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
Nashville Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Common Yellowthroat    Sandy Hook
Hooded Warbler    Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
American Redstart    Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
Northern Parula    Island Beach SP
Magnolia Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Bay-breasted Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Yellow Warbler    Sandy Hook
Chestnut-sided Warbler    Island Beach SP
Blackpoll Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Black-throated Blue Warbler    Island Beach SP
Pine Warbler    35 Sunset Rd
Yellow-rumped Warbler    Reeves Bogs
Prairie Warbler    Reeves Bogs
Black-throated Green Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Summer Tanager    Manasquan River WMA
Scarlet Tanager    Island Beach SP
Northern Cardinal    35 Sunset Rd
Rose-breasted Grosbeak    35 Sunset Rd
Blue Grosbeak    Colliers Mills WMA
Indigo Bunting    Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Cedar Bonnet Island | Manahawkin WMA 5/10--Hudsonian Whimbrel, Acadian Flycatcher, Nashville Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler

 

Bay-breasted Warbler

A couple of years ago, one of the maintenance men from our village knocked on the door and said that there was a complaint that I was using a chain saw to illegally cut down trees in our yard.  It seems a neighbor had seen me carrying broken branches from a storm out to the curb while at the same time she heard a leaf blower and surmised that I was up to no good. I just laughed at the absurd notion of me using a chain saw, invited the guy to look around while we commiserated about the busybodies in the neighborhood. The only idea more unlikely than me using power tools is me getting a good photograph of a warbler. Case in point to the left. 

I didn't check to see if it was a good migration day or not, I just went to Cedar Bonnet Island early this morning, despite the foggy conditions.  I rationalized that maybe the fog would knock the birds down into the little alleyway of trees that leads to the restoration area.  Naturally, I wasn't the only one with this idea, and I quickly ran into a pod of birders I know (and thankfully, like) who quickly filled me in on the really cool warblers I'd already missed. And would continue to miss until I connected with a Nashville Warbler, high up in a tree. And then two more Nashville Warblers. I have gone a few years without seeing Nashville and now I'd seen three in three minutes. (I wish that Nashville Warblers hybridized with Tennessee Warblers to give us Nashville Tennessee Warblers, but there don't seem to be any records of this hybrid.)

Next up was an exhausted Bay-breasted Warbler that just sat on a branch, the only reason I was able to get the low-quality photo I did.  Warbler flitting from branch to branch, obscured to leaves give me no chance. Then someone heard Blackpoll Warbler. Since Blackpoll is way out of my hearing range, I had to see this bird in order to count it. Fortunately, I was able to find it in the canopy, and then, for good measure, another one came by. Finally, after whiffing a couple of times on Black-throated Green Warbler, I was able to get eyes on one practically on top of our heads, then two more, a male and female, in the more traditional "way up there."  There was also an big influx of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks on the island--more than I've ever seen in one place. I counted 7 but I wouldn't be surprised if the count was twice that. 

That short alley is probably a tenth of mile long--I looked at the pedometer on my phone after being there much longer than I planned and saw that I had walked back and forth, craning my neck for over a mile. Having exhausted, I thought, the entertainment possibilities of that stretch, I walked with a couple of the guys around the larger part of the island. The new bird there, which I probably would have missed had I not been alerted by a sharper-eyed friend, was Hudsonian Whimbrel (it used to be just "Whimbrel" until it was split into a North American and European species), a trio flying over. It wasn't an ideal look, but whimbrel is a hard bird for Ocean County, so I'll take it. We also saw a red fox kit, very calmly sitting in the middle of the path. Unfortunately, it had an injured leg, so its adulthood prospects are low. 

Coming back to the alley we met up with the two guys who'd stayed behind. They were on a pair of Magnolia Warblers. I'd seen them in Mexico, but it was new for the state, new for the county. After 2 hours and 45 minutes, I decided to finish my walk on the mainland and drove over to Manahawkin WMA. Unlike the last time I was there, the impoundments were pretty busy with shorebirds, but nothing new, unlike this day last year when there were both a Black-necked Stilt and a continuing White-faced Ibis in the back impoundment. I walked up Stafford for about a mile and found a few passerines I hadn't had on Cedar Bonnet. Flycatcher were a topic of conversation while we were walking and we were reviewing the various calls of the birds that should be appearing soon--Fitz-bew, Fee-be-o, Quick-three-beers, and Pizza! And I heard Pizza! about halfway up the road, so my last year bird for the day turned out to be Acadian Flycatcher. Couldn't find it, of course. Have to go to Huber to get eyes on it, since they nest by the bridge. 

For the two spots I had 67 species. For me, an excellent count. 

Canada Goose    Cedar Bonnet Island
Mute Swan    Manahawkin WMA
Mallard    Manahawkin WMA
Mourning Dove    Cedar Bonnet Island
Ruby-throated Hummingbird    Cedar Bonnet Island
Semipalmated Plover    Cedar Bonnet Island
Hudsonian Whimbrel    Cedar Bonnet Island
Short-billed Dowitcher    Cedar Bonnet Island
Lesser Yellowlegs    Manahawkin WMA
Willet    Cedar Bonnet Island
Greater Yellowlegs    Manahawkin WMA
Least Sandpiper    Cedar Bonnet Island
Semipalmated Sandpiper    Manahawkin WMA
Laughing Gull    Cedar Bonnet Island
American Herring Gull    Cedar Bonnet Island
Great Black-backed Gull    Cedar Bonnet Island
Forster's Tern    Cedar Bonnet Island
Common Loon    Cedar Bonnet Island
Glossy Ibis    Cedar Bonnet Island
Little Blue Heron    Manahawkin WMA
Tricolored Heron    Manahawkin WMA
Snowy Egret    Cedar Bonnet Island
Great Egret    Cedar Bonnet Island
Great Blue Heron    Manahawkin WMA
Osprey    Cedar Bonnet Island
Red-bellied Woodpecker    Manahawkin WMA
Northern Flicker    Manahawkin WMA
Acadian Flycatcher    Manahawkin WMA
Great Crested Flycatcher    Manahawkin WMA
White-eyed Vireo    Cedar Bonnet Island
Red-eyed Vireo    Manahawkin WMA
Blue Jay    Manahawkin WMA
American Crow    Cedar Bonnet Island
Carolina Chickadee    Manahawkin WMA
Tufted Titmouse    Manahawkin WMA
Tree Swallow    Manahawkin WMA
Barn Swallow    Cedar Bonnet Island
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher    Manahawkin WMA
Northern House Wren    Cedar Bonnet Island
Marsh Wren    Manahawkin WMA
Carolina Wren    Cedar Bonnet Island
Gray Catbird    Cedar Bonnet Island
Wood Thrush    Cedar Bonnet Island
American Robin    Cedar Bonnet Island
House Finch    Cedar Bonnet Island
American Goldfinch    Manahawkin WMA
Field Sparrow    Cedar Bonnet Island
Seaside Sparrow    Manahawkin WMA
Song Sparrow    Cedar Bonnet Island
Orchard Oriole    Manahawkin WMA
Red-winged Blackbird    Cedar Bonnet Island
Boat-tailed Grackle    Cedar Bonnet Island
Ovenbird    Manahawkin WMA
Black-and-white Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Nashville Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Common Yellowthroat    Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Parula    Cedar Bonnet Island
Magnolia Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Bay-breasted Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Yellow Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Blackpoll Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Pine Warbler    Manahawkin WMA
Prairie Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Black-throated Green Warbler    Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Cardinal    Cedar Bonnet Island
Rose-breasted Grosbeak    Cedar Bonnet Island
Indigo Bunting    Cedar Bonnet Island

Manahawkin WMA | Barnegat 4/28--Lesser Yellowlegs, Purple Martin, Northern Parula, Worm-eating Warbler

 I parked high up on Stafford Avenue this morning, on the northern edge of the Manahawkin WMA and walked down about a mile, ear birding for the most part. The most intriguing bird I heard was a Worm-eating Warbler.I'd seen that Worm-eating had been reported there the day before, but I was skeptical.  Manahawkin isn't a place I'd expect to find one, but the zinging call was pretty loud. Merlin is notorious for mixing up Pine Warbler (also there), Chipping Sparrow, and Worm-eating. Their calls are very similar, and Merlin is far from perfect. In order to convince myself that it wasn't a Chipping Sparrow I was hearing, I played back the so-called song of the Worm-eating. It got an immediate response, and that was good enough for me.

I also heard another warbler I wouldn't be looking for there--a Blue-winged Warbler was obvious with its "Buzz-kill" "song." This was a bonus bird for me since I'd spent yesterday morning circling the back field at the Manasquan River WMA looking unsuccessfully for one. Farther down the road I heard my FOY Northern Parula. Ovenbirds and Common Yellowthroats were background noise. Of all the warblers I heard along that stretch of road, the only one I saw was Black-and-white Warbler. 

After that I drove down to the marsh and parked by the trail that runs between the impoundments. The DEP had recently hired a contractor to rehabilitate the water control system, putting in new sluice gates and culverts and they did a wonderful job clearing the trail and widening it at the "T" so that mowers can now run down the full length of the berm. They're supposedly doing it so that it will be better habitat for shorebirds, but the water was high today and the only shorebirds I saw were 3 Greater Yellowlegs. But it's early.

Lesser Yellowlegs with Dunlin

Speaking of yellowlegs, after I made a quick stop at Woodmansee Blvd to check out the Purple Martin houses (a spot that we used to check when I did the World Series of Birding with Pete and Mike), I thought I'd look at the impoundment at Forsythe-Barnegat from the observation platform. Most of the time there's very little to see there, but today, as was the case last year, the shallow water was loaded with Lesser Yellowlegs. I estimated a filter-busting 100, but there were probably more. Unfortunately, they were not mixing with the Greater Yellowlegs that were there, so I didn't get any good comparison photos. There was also a big flock of Dunlin, most of them half-way into their alternate plumage. Again, Merlin came in handy, since recording the flock proved they were Lesser Yellowlegs. A lot of softer "do-do's" instead of the louder, more insistent "do-do-do" of the Greater. 

for the three spots this morning I had 50 species. The Manahawkin list is the one of interest.

44 species
Canada Goose  2
Mute Swan  5
Mallard  1
Mourning Dove  1
Willet  1
Greater Yellowlegs  3
Laughing Gull  2
American Herring Gull  3
Forster's Tern  6
Double-crested Cormorant  3
Glossy Ibis  15
Tricolored Heron  1
Snowy Egret  2
Great Egret  4
Red-bellied Woodpecker  2
Hairy Woodpecker  1     Heard Stafford
Northern Flicker  3
Great Crested Flycatcher  3
White-eyed Vireo  4
Red-eyed Vireo  1
Blue Jay  2
American Crow  1
Carolina Chickadee  3
Tufted Titmouse  2
Tree Swallow  12
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  3
Gray Catbird  4
Wood Thrush  5
American Robin  4
American Goldfinch  2
White-throated Sparrow  1
Seaside Sparrow  2
Song Sparrow  1
Red-winged Blackbird  40
Brown-headed Cowbird  3
Ovenbird  25
Worm-eating Warbler  1
Blue-winged Warbler  1     
Black-and-white Warbler  4
Common Yellowthroat  30
Northern Parula  1
Northern Yellow Warbler  3
Pine Warbler  2
Northern Cardinal  1

Horicon Lake 3/27--Laughing Gull

Laughing Gull

Over the last week I've been adding to the year list, but the birds haven't been in range of a camera. 

On Sunday I drove down to Manahawkin at sunset, walked into the fields and waited for a few minutes until I heard "peent!" Turned around, went home with American Woodcock on the list and feeling like that was about the silliest thing I've done all year. I used to be able to hear them (and sometime see them) about a mile from here in our local community garden, but the past couple of years they've been absent, so desperate measures were required.

Tuesday I was at Tuckerton and scoped an Osprey on a snag, too far off for my camera, not that I need to add to the catalog of billions of Osprey photos. Then yesterday, walking down Hawkin Road in Colliers Mills, I heard my first Eastern Towhee of the year. Heard it calling multiple times, but it had no interest in posing for pictures. 

This morning it was raining so I decided to do a couple of stupid errands. The first was to drive to the dump and deposit our recycling can in the Rigid Plastics dumpster, since it had cracked from being thrown around so much by the waste management company and then I drove to Lowe's to get a new one. At least I could get rid of the old one. In Brooklyn I used to say that the only thing you couldn't throw away was a garbage can. 

Bald Eagle female before romance

By the time I was finished it had stopped raining, so I went over to Horicon Lake just to see what was around. Geese and Mallards of course, but looking over my shoulder, I saw a Bald Eagle in a nearby tree. Eagles certainly aren't rare at Horicon, but when another eagle flew in and, ahem, copulated with the other, that was a first for me, but then, I don't get out much. 

Walking along the lake shore there were a few Buffleheads and about 20 Ring-necked Ducks (you can't really count diving ducks because at any one time about a third of them are under water), but the year bird that made me say, "Finally," was a Laughing Gull that flew in to take a dip and then flew off again after a minute.  I had been contemplating going over to the Wawa on the Lakehurst Circle (which I just found out is officially the Eisenhower Circle) to see if any laughers were in the parking lot. I'd already checked out Costco a couple of days before. For my little walk I had 20 species.

Canada Goose  25
Mallard  8
Mallard (Domestic type)  1
American Black Duck  2
Ring-necked Duck  20
Bufflehead  6
Laughing Gull  1
Turkey Vulture  2
Bald Eagle  2     
Northern Flicker  2
Eastern Phoebe  1
Blue Jay  2
Carolina Wren  1
American Robin  15
House Sparrow  5
Song Sparrow  1
Swamp Sparrow  1
Red-winged Blackbird  1
Common Grackle  1
Pine Warbler  1
Northern Cardinal  1

Bye-bye

February Wrap-up--Blizzard Edition

Tundra Swans walking on the ice of Union Pond, Whitesbog

The icy aftermath of the storm at the end of the January and the Blizzard of 2026 at the end of this month served to put a kibosh on a lot of my birding--I spent an inordinate amount of time staring out our windows at our feeders.  At least I was rewarded with our first backyard Orange-crowned Warbler.  

I did manage to get around in the two weeks between the ice melting and the blizzard. Some year birds weren't recounted here because they eluded photography.  Two of the birds this month were "hard," (for me at least) --a Purple Finch that I heard at the Manahawkin WMA and a Glaucous Gull at Island Beach, whose presence I was alert to by Steve the previous day. I made the long trek out to the north jetty not really expecting to find the bird when a large white-winged light-gray mantled gull flew in from Barnegat Light, came in low over my head, then made a U-turn back to the south. In almost every other county of New Jersey, Glaucous Gull is considered rare but not in Ocean, inexplicably.  Believe it--they're rare. I also, on my trek along the south end of IBSP came across my first Lesser Black-backed Gull. I was about to photograph it when it was flushed by the only other person I saw walking on the beach that day--typical. 

The final year bird of the month was a rarity, but only because of time of year--a Blue-winged Teal at Lake of the Lilies that I spotted the day before the blizzard hit. I was about to give up on finding it when a birding group came along and one of the leaders got it in his scope--on the far shore weaving in and out of the phragmites. Not the greatest looks, but the facial crescent was clearly seen. That was a beautifully warm winter day--it was hard to imagine that a gigantic snowstorm was on its way. But just because you can't imagine doesn't mean it won't happen. 30 inches of snow and we weren't plowed out until late Tuesday night. Fortunately, for the birds, I had filled up our feeders the day before--fortunately for me too because otherwise I'd have been looking at a blank expanse of snow for most of the week. 

Backyard birding: Mourning Dove

Eastern Bluebird

103 species for the month, which was actually quite a bit better than last year when I couldn't even break the century mark.

Species           First Sighting
Snow Goose   Manasquan Inlet
Brant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Canada Goose   35 Sunset Rd
Mute Swan   Manahawkin Lake
Tundra Swan   Bamber Lake
Wood Duck   Pemberton Lake WMA
Blue-winged Teal   Lake of the Lilies
American Wigeon   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Mallard   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
American Black Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Northern Pintail   Pemberton Lake WMA
Canvasback   Lake of the Lilies
Redhead   Holly Lake
Ring-necked Duck   Holly Lake
Greater Scaup   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Lesser Scaup   Lake of the Lilies
Common Eider   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Harlequin Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Surf Scoter   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
White-winged Scoter   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Black Scoter   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Long-tailed Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Bufflehead   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Common Goldeneye   Sloop & Potter Creek Marshes
Hooded Merganser   Bay Pkwy
Common Merganser   Holly Lake
Red-breasted Merganser   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Ruddy Duck   Lake of the Lilies
Rock Pigeon   New Egypt
Mourning Dove   35 Sunset Rd
American Coot   Lake of the Lilies
American Oystercatcher   Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Black-bellied Plover   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Greater Yellowlegs   Manahawkin WMA
Ruddy Turnstone   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Sanderling   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Dunlin   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Purple Sandpiper   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Razorbill   Manasquan Inlet
Ring-billed Gull   Jakes Branch County Park
American Herring Gull   Jakes Branch County Park
Great Black-backed Gull   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Glaucous Gull   Island Beach SP
Lesser Black-backed Gull   Island Beach SP
Horned Grebe   Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Red-necked Grebe   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Red-throated Loon   Manasquan Inlet
Common Loon   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Great Cormorant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Double-crested Cormorant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Great Blue Heron   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Black Vulture   Whiting
Turkey Vulture   235 Brynmore Rd, New Egypt
Sharp-shinned Hawk   New Egypt
Northern Harrier   West Creek Dock Rd.
Bald Eagle   New Egypt
Red-shouldered Hawk   West Creek Dock Rd.
Red-tailed Hawk   BC Fairgrounds
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   35 Sunset Rd
Red-headed Woodpecker   Colliers Mills WMA
Red-bellied Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd
Downy Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd
Northern Flicker   Whitesbog
American Kestrel   BC Fairgrounds
Merlin   Double Trouble SP
Blue Jay   35 Sunset Rd
American Crow   New Egypt
Fish Crow   Sands Point Park
Common Raven   New Egypt
Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd
Tufted Titmouse   35 Sunset Rd
Horned Lark   New Egypt
Golden-crowned Kinglet   Lake Carasaljo
White-breasted Nuthatch   35 Sunset Rd
Brown Creeper   Colliers Mills WMA
Carolina Wren   New Egypt
European Starling   35 Sunset Rd
Northern Mockingbird   New Egypt
Eastern Bluebird   35 Sunset Rd
Hermit Thrush   Whitesbog
American Robin   35 Sunset Rd
House Sparrow   New Egypt
House Finch   35 Sunset Rd
Purple Finch   Manahawkin WMA
American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd
Snow Bunting   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Chipping Sparrow   Whitesbog
Field Sparrow   Whitesbog
American Tree Sparrow   Shelter Cove Park
Fox Sparrow   Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Dark-eyed Junco   35 Sunset Rd
White-crowned Sparrow   Pinelands Alliance Headquarters
White-throated Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd
Savannah Sparrow   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Song Sparrow   New Egypt
Red-winged Blackbird   Lake of the Lilies
Brown-headed Cowbird   New Egypt
Common Grackle   Whitesbog
Boat-tailed Grackle   Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Orange-crowned Warbler   35 Sunset Rd
Yellow-rumped Warbler   35 Sunset Rd
Northern Cardinal   35 Sunset Rd

Lighthouse Center 1/23--Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron

Little Blue Heron

 I had never been to the Lighthouse Center in the winter, but since I was in the neighborhood this morning, I swung by there. I know from the Barnegat CBC that it can be a productive spot and with the two over-wintering rarities that I found there, it turned out to be so. 

Tricolored Herons are turning up more frequently in winter and in more places in the county than in previous years. It used to be that you'd be able to find one on LBI in the marshes off Bayview Avenue, but this year there are confirmed reports from Island Beach SP, Manahawkin, and the Lighthouse Center as well as LBI. Today, the tide was very low, so I was able to walk around a point and up a little creek that empties into the bay. About 100 yards into the marsh, I saw four Great Egrets and with them, two Tricolored Herons. Great Egrets do hang around in small numbers, but four, to eBird is apparently not a small number. I tried to very surreptitiously creep up a little closer, getting behind a stand of phragmites while I dug my camera out of my bag, but I wasn't sneaky enough since all six birds flew off. As I stood on the bank of the creek cursing, I saw one more white heron way out in the marsh. I took a couple of shots of what I though was one of the egrets since I already had my camera out. However, when I looked at the bird blown up in the viewfinder, I saw that it had a gray/blue beak and realized that it was an immature Little Blue Heron hunkered down in the reeds. It's a crappy shot, but it's all I got. 

I walked around some and then returned to the creek, hoping that the birds would have returned. I looked out in the marsh where I had previously seen them and they weren't there. But much closer, standing in the creek, was one of the Tricoloreds, which promptly flew away as soon as I reached for my camera. More cursing. 

In a few months, these two herons won't be rare. It hasn't been an especially warm winter, but the marshes freeze at a little lower temperature than the freshwater ponds, so there has been food for them to find. With the oncoming storm and absolutely frigid temperatures for the next few days, it will be interesting to see if they stick around. 

27 species
Brant  40
Canada Goose  7
Mute Swan  8
American Black Duck  7
Greater Scaup  20
Long-tailed Duck  2
Bufflehead  50
Red-breasted Merganser  8
Mourning Dove  3
Killdeer  4
American Herring Gull  5
Common Loon  1
Little Blue Heron  1     
Tricolored Heron  2     
Great Egret  4     
Great Blue Heron  1
Northern Harrier  1
Belted Kingfisher  1
Northern Flicker  1
Blue Jay  1
American Crow  1
Tufted Titmouse  1
American Robin  50
House Finch  1
Song Sparrow  1
Red-winged Blackbird  2
Yellow-rumped Warbler  3

Whitesbog 1/5--Red Crossbill

After bustling around Manahawkin yesterday, I just wanted a quiet walk today so I drove over to Whitesbog, even though I knew all the water would be frozen and that I couldn't expect to see or hear much. Since I didn't see any Tundra Swans on Union Pond's ice, I decided to walk the Ocean County side. Sometimes the swans stand on the ice of the Upper Reservoir. I walked up there via the Antrim Bogs, which were pretty quiet except for what my informant there likes to refer to as the "tweety birds:" Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch. I was surprised at how many Hairy Woodpeckers I was hearing. Usually, I get one, maybe two. Today I had five scattered all over the place. 

The breach between bogs

There were no swans on the Upper Reservoir, nor eagles, or any other raptors that I look for there. On my way back I was undecided if I wanted to go to the dogleg, knowing that I'd just have to backtrack. At one time, a few years ago, the road would have led me back to my car, but because the beavers were constantly clogging up a culvert that ran beneath the road, connecting one of the reservoirs to an old flooded blueberry field, the Whitesbog owner sent over some heavy machinery and just made a breach in the road so the water could flow freely. My informant built a rudimentary bridge for us, and after that got a little sketchy, the guys at Whitesbog put in a more solid wooden bridge. But erosion of the banks last year collapsed that bridge. I know they want to fix it, but it isn't a priority. I rationalized walking over there on the one in a hundred chance that they had repaired the bridge. They hadn't.

I was standing at the edge, looking at the ice, thinking about how much habitat the beavers have changed since I've been walking Whitesbog, when I heard a call that I at first took for another Hairy Woodpecker, but it didn't sound quite right. Fumbling with my gloves, I opened up Merlin. 

Now, I don't believe in a lot of what Merlin hears, especially when there are a lot of birds singing and calling in the area. The app hears 10 times more Golden-crowned Kinglets than I do, though, to give it it's due, I've also been alerted to birds like Cedar Waxwings and Blackpoll Warblers that I can't hear, but that I find when I'm aware they're around. I find it is most reliable when there is only one bird calling or singing. Today, that bird that I heard, and that Merlin also heard, was a Red Crossbill. It was calling from across the water on the other side of the old blueberry field where there are lots of pine trees. To get over there, which was probably about 500 feet away, I would have to backtrack completely, a walk of over a mile. 

Red Crossbills are notoriously flighty (pun intended) always on the move, looking for the next pinecone. I've come across them in some seemingly odd places like the Cranberry Bogs on Dover Road and at Stafford Forge. But, if there is a big stand of pine trees and it's winter, it's worth stopping a moment to listen. And it's always worth going the extra (half) mile to maximize your chances of listing something cool.