Whitesbog 3/11--Tree Swallows

Whitesbog: Tundra Swans

After a trip to the Manchester Dump (11 Turkey Vultures overhead and sitting on piles of landfill), I decided to take my vigorous walk down the road at Whitesbog. It's getting late in the season for Tundra Swans; a guy I spoke to there said they might be gone by the end of this week. There were plenty today, 94 by my count and more flying in. We usually think of arrivals, not departures, as a herald of a new season. So it was a happy sight to see five Tree Swallows snatching bugs over one of the bogs. I'm not certain what kind of flying insects they were snagging, but there were plenty of the thin black bugs attaching themselves to my windshield and swirling around my face as I walked the dikes between the bogs. Whitesbog isn't exactly Capistrano, but the signal is the same.

22 species (+1 other taxa)Canada Goose  100
Tundra Swan  94
Wood Duck  2
Gadwall  1
Mallard  15
Ring-necked Duck  12
Bufflehead  2    On bog very far in back, probably in Ocean County
Turkey Vulture  7
Killdeer  1
Belted Kingfisher  1
Northern Flicker  1    Heard
Blue Jay  1
American Crow  1    Heard
Fish Crow  1
crow sp.  5
Tree Swallow  5
Carolina Chickadee  1    Heard
Field Sparrow  2
Song Sparrow  4
Northern Cardinal  2    Near store
Red-winged Blackbird  2
Common Grackle  2
Brown-headed Cowbird  1    Atop water tower

Monmouth County 3/10--Bonaparte's Gull, Long-eared Owl

We started off the day at Seven President's Park in Long Branch. Black-headed Gulls were reported there yesterday. That would have been a good bird to see, though not as good as I thought since I had forgotten that the gull is already on my life list a couple of times. Yesterday the gulls were in with a flock of Bonaparte's Gulls, always fun to see and they were FOY for us. Aside from the four gulls species there was nothing in the ocean or the beach. The day was overcast and chilly instead of the sunny, warm day predicted. I was happy enough with Bonaparte's, so we cut our losses and decided to go inland.

As soon as we left the shore area the sun came out and the temperature warmed considerably. Now I have to become discrete. We were somewhere in Monmouth County, in an area we thought might have a Long-eared Owl or two, but we didn't know exactly where.  There has been much controversy on Jerseybirds aobut the ethics of reporting owl roosts or even letting other birders know where they are since roosting owls are easily disturbed and stressed and some people become, let's say, over enthusiastic when they see owls.

So we were thrashing around when a couple of other birders came along. One of them asked if we'd had any luck and we said no, did he have any idea where the owls were.  "Are you good people?" he asked.

"I'm Shari Zirlin," my wife replied. Magic words. Shari Zirlin: Finder of Lapwings. Hearing that, the birder waved us on into an opening of  a small stand of trees (notice that I'm not saying what kind of trees) and after a moment or two pointed out one Long-eared Owl, standing stock still, staring fiercely, it seemed, down on us.  Awesome orange eyes, a tan/orange facial disk and of course, the feathery tufts that give it its name. We looked at it for only a couple of minutes than got out of there, not wishing to bother it anymore.

It is ironic that during the on-line discussion there was an undercurrent of elitism and clubbiness in the missives of people who were arguing that owl sightings should be hidden--one even referred to the masses. But since we got lucky a couple of months ago, now we were in the club. And a half-hour later, when a young woman with a camera asked us as we were eating lunch at a picnic table if we knew where the owls were, we played dumb. "Oh no, couldn't tell you even if I knew where it was." She wasn't in the club. Do I feel bad about this? No, not really. I know we viewed the bird in as unobtrusive a manner as possible. I don't know if she would and I don't want to take responsibility for her. How about if she had recently found a rare bird? Well, then, that would be a different story. Would it?

In any case, I have hidden the sighting in eBird, even though they discourage that, so a rare bird alert in my name was not sent out. And I haven't told you where the bird is, even though it probably wouldn't take a lot of investigation to figure it out. And we didn't take any pictures--but only because Shari didn't take her camera along and I wasn't about to run back to the car and possibly reveal the location to any birders happening along.

This is only the 2nd time we've seen this species of the owl. The first time was  few years ago in Pelham Bay Park on Super Bowl Sunday. And this was a much better look and very, very cool to see. The month is turning out to be very good for rarities.

34 species for day in Monmouth County.

Species     Count

Brant    300

Canada Goose    55

American Wigeon    4

American Black Duck    5

Mallard    6

Green-winged Teal    1

Ring-necked Duck    5

Lesser Scaup    1

Bufflehead    25

Hooded Merganser    5

Ruddy Duck    100

Great Blue Heron    1

Turkey Vulture    2

Red-tailed Hawk    1

Killdeer    1

Bonaparte's Gull    50

Ring-billed Gull    100

Herring Gull    10

Great Black-backed Gull    2

Mourning Dove    2

Long-eared Owl    1

Blue Jay    5

American Crow    2

Fish Crow    2

Carolina Chickadee    1

Red-breasted Nuthatch    1

Carolina Wren    2

American Robin    3

European Starling    4

Savannah Sparrow    1

Song Sparrow    1

Dark-eyed Junco    2

Red-winged Blackbird    2

House Sparrow    20

Princeton 3/9--White-winged Crossbill

We were up in Mercer County this morning buying dishes and figured as long as we're in the neighborhood, let's drive over to Princeton.  For the last month or so, in the sweetgum trees along Washington Road, which runs right through the campus, White-winged Crossbills, another of the finches that irrupted this year, have been sighted. I went with very little hope of actually finding them; someone had mentioned on line that by now the sweetgum balls had probably been exhausted. Still, I hadn't been in Princeton in about 40 years so we drove the 15 minutes or so, miraculously found a parking spot--a good omen prophesied Shari--and walked among the students peering up into the trees.

With no luck of course. However, using the find the birders, not the bird technique, Shari saw a woman down the block peering intently through binoculars. "Any luck?" we asked. "Yes, right there, by the curb," she said. So instead of straining our necks looking high in the treetops, we saw this female crossbill on the grassy strip between the sidewalk and the street:

Photos: Shari Zirlin

A moment later, slightly farther down the block, the male appeared.

Note the sweetgum balls in the foreground.

So right there the day was a success. After lunch on Nassau Street, we drove home by way of New Egypt. The Northern Lapwings are still there, though the cranes and Greater White-fronted Geese were not. Icterids were swirling around. In one tree I found our first four Brown-headed Cowbirds of the year. Considering we both have colds and don't feel so hot, it still came out a decent birding day.

New Egypt 3/7--Greater White-fronted Goose

New Egypt, NJ

Another bird I don't have to go Somerset County to find anymore!  Yesterday, around mid-afternoon, I noticed someone had listed Greater White-fronted Goose about an hour previous out in New Egypt in the same field that still hold "our" lapwings. It was raining with blustery winds. Still, I almost ran out there to see them until discretion (and Shari) dissuaded me. But this morning, we only had light flurries, so I hustled out there first thing. First, I looked for the Sandhill Cranes: Check. Then I looked for the Northern Lapwings--one...two...three: Check. Then, I walked down the the fence line toward the flock of Canada Geese, careful not to get close enough to spook them and have them move off. I counted as I went along and after goose # 45 found my first Greater White-fronted.  2 more came along as I slowly scanned the field. Two are in the photo above. Can't see them? Blow ups below, good enough for documentary purposes:

GWFG (right bird)

GWFG (bird drinking extreme left & second from right)

GWFG (extreme left & right)

Now I've seen 7 of the 8 New Jersey geese this year. I still need Ross', which would be a lifer.

This field has become an amazing place to look for birds. Today's quick list:
Greater White-fronted Goose  3     White on base of bill. White line along wing separating belly from upper body. Orange feet.
Black Vulture  4
Turkey Vulture  3
Sandhill Crane  2    In corn stubble field to right of cattle field. Large gray birds, red caps.
Northern Lapwing  3    Continuing birds, near mud puddle in cattle field. Grayish green backs in cloudy light.
Rock Pigeon  8
American Crow  2
Carolina Wren  1    Heard
European Starling  1
Northern Cardinal  1    Heard
Red-winged Blackbird  25

Contraption

I've been walking around Double Trouble this winter and every time I pass this truck I say to myself, "That's quite a contraption."

That's a good old American word that I like: contraption.

What this contraption does is sort and spit out cranberries. The cranberry harvest was back in October, before Superstorm Sandy closed down Double Trouble. I don't know why the Jeffrey's Branch Cranberry Co. hasn't retrieved its truck yet. Maybe the engine is water damaged. From the outside it is an admirable piece of machinery.

The conveyor belt is tilted into the bog where the cranberries are floating. They are pushed onto the belt and run up it to the sorting box where they are shaken through screens to separate the different sizes of berries then

They come out here!

Must be quite a sight to see what is essentially a cranberry cannon in operation.

Rube Goldberg would be proud.

Manasquan Reservoir 3/2--Common Redpoll

Today, Shari & I acted out an O Henry-like scene. We were at the feeders of the Manasquan Reservoir's Environmental Center, waiting for a rare bird to show up. After about a half hour, much of which was spent in pleasant conversation with another birder, Shari decided to go back to the car to get her apple--the fruit, not the computer. Sure enough, almost as soon as he disappeared around the curving path, the bird we were seeking--a Common Redpoll--showed up on the feeder the guy we'd been talking to said it preferred. I was elated. Common Redpolls are one of the finch species that have been having an "irruption year" in New Jersey and it's the only I've seen so far. The only other time we've seen them was on a very cold trip to our friends' home in the Berkshires. It's a beautiful little bird, with a red cap (hence the name) a surprisingly delicate beak for a finch, and on this one, just a hint of pink on the breast. I wish Shari had been there with her camera to take a photo.

But she wasn't there and the longer the redpoll stayed on the feeder the more frustrated I got that she wasn't there to see it. Meanwhile, on the other side of the building, Shari was looking at a bird on the ground near a little pool in front of the entrance. I woman passing by asked how she was doing. "I'm about to be deceased," she replied, "because my husband is going to kill me when he find out I'm looking at a Common Redpoll." So she thought I'd be angry because I hadn't seen the bird and I was angry because she wasn't seeing the bird. Only when she came back to where I was standing--just as the bird had flown off, of course--and we blurted out our stories simultaneously at the same time did the scene have a happy ending.

Other notable birds today were a Common Loon seen from Chestnut Point and a Bald Eagle near a nest. Rumor had it that the egg in the nest was due to hatch today--we didn't stick around to watch it on their nest cam.

Thirty species seen from various vantage points, not including a few gulls that were too far off to confidently identify:

Comments:    Environmental Center, Chestnut Pt, Visitor's Center, Bear Swamp trail.
Canada Goose  50
Mute Swan  1
Gadwall  25
American Black Duck  1
Mallard  4
Ring-necked Duck  5
Lesser Scaup  200
Bufflehead  25
Common Merganser  5
Ruddy Duck  20
Common Loon  1
Pied-billed Grebe  1
Great Blue Heron  1
Turkey Vulture  3
Bald Eagle  1
American Coot  30
Hairy Woodpecker  1
Blue Jay  1    Heard
American Crow  1    Heard
Fish Crow  25
Carolina Chickadee  10
Tufted Titmouse  10
White-breasted Nuthatch  3
European Starling  3
Dark-eyed Junco  4
Red-winged Blackbird  10
Common Grackle  2
House Finch  1
Common Redpoll  1    
American Goldfinch  4

Whiting Woodcocks 3/1

Just as one of my email correspondents said, the Crestwood Community Gardens, a rather shabby agglomeration of muddy plots evoking either the Great Depression or World War II victory gardens, is a hot spot of American Woodcock activity. Shari & I drove over there at dusk (it's about 5 minutes from here) and waited. It's amazing how long it takes to get dark when you want it to get dark. Just as the sky was becoming a deep gray-blue we heard our first "peent."  They started to come rapid fire for about a half hour and while we didn't see any aerial displays, we did hear the whirling of woodcock wings to the southeast. If you haven't experienced the sound of woodcocks in the spring, I'd recommend finding a muddy, marshy area near an open field and hanging around there until just after dark. Even if you don't see the woodcocks in flight--and there's a good chance you will--their calls are otherworldly.

I started March off with a trip down to Great Bay Blvd. I'm always amused by the name when I turn on to the road. Boulevard of Broken Asphalt. Not many boulevards pass through marshes.

Fish factory ruins from Great Bay Blvd.

 Not many boulevards, I believe, incorporate wooden bridges.

A favorite spot for gulls to drop clam shells

While I didn't find anything new for the year, I did find a couple of interesting birds like American Oystercatcher (always a happy find) and Savannah Sparrow. The sparrow I used for Bird A Day. Including the feeder birds from the backyard I started March off with 28 species:

Species   Count     Location

Brant   65     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Canada Goose   2     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

American Black Duck   10     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Bufflehead   1     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Red-breasted Merganser   13     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Common Loon   7     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Great Blue Heron   1     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Turkey Vulture   1     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

American Oystercatcher   7     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

American Woodcock   2     Crestwood Community Gardens

Herring Gull   20     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Great Black-backed Gull   4     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Mourning Dove   3     35 Sunset Rd

Hairy Woodpecker   1     35 Sunset Rd

Carolina Chickadee   5     35 Sunset Rd

Tufted Titmouse   2     35 Sunset Rd

White-breasted Nuthatch   2     35 Sunset Rd

Carolina Wren   1     Crestwood Community Gardens

European Starling   20     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Yellow-rumped Warbler   2     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Savannah Sparrow   2     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Song Sparrow   1     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

White-throated Sparrow   1     35 Sunset Rd

Dark-eyed Junco   11     35 Sunset Rd

Red-winged Blackbird   25     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Common Grackle   2     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Boat-tailed Grackle   100     Great Bay Bvld. WMA

American Goldfinch   2     35 Sunset Rd