Birds & Words
and any happy combinations that may result, plus various maunderings that occasionally pop to mind.
Monday, May 4, 2026
Whiting Home Not Listed on Zillow
Thursday, April 30, 2026
April Wrap-up--Tropics Edition
| Plain Chachalaca, Puerto Morelos |
And, while I have limited experience, I suppose it isn't much different in other parts of the country. I remember years ago going to Magee Marsh in Ohio, one of the premier migration hot spots, and had no sooner stepped out of the car, saw a year bird, only to have a disgruntled birder next to me mumble that that was about as good as I could expect, because migration stunk that year. I was amazed. I didn't even have my right foot out of the car and already I was listening to complaints!
I added bird #180 for the month this morning on a long walk around Double Trouble SP--an Orchard Oriole back in the Sweetwater bogs where they can be reliably found every year.
| White-fronted Amazon, Puerto Morelos |
For the month it was 180 species.
Brant Waretown
Canada Goose Colliers Mills WMA
Mute Swan Waretown
Wood Duck Colliers Mills WMA
Mallard Colliers Mills WMA
American Black Duck Double Trouble SP
Green-winged Teal Eno’s Pond
Ring-necked Duck Colliers Mills WMA
Bufflehead Waretown
Red-breasted Merganser Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Plain Chachalaca Puerto Morelos
Wild Turkey 35 Sunset Rd
Rock Pigeon South Toms River
RED-BILLED PIGEON Puerto Morelos
Eurasian Collared-Dove Puerto Morelos
Ruddy Ground Dove Puerto Morelos
White-tipped Dove Yaax Che
White-winged Dove Parque Cancun
Mourning Dove Colliers Mills WMA
Common Squirrel-Cuckoo Yaax Che
Eastern Whip-poor-will 35 Sunset Rd
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 35 Sunset Rd
Clapper Rail Great Bay Bvld. WMA
American Oystercatcher Island Beach SP
Black-bellied Plover Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
Killdeer Colliers Mills WMA
Semipalmated Plover Playa Puerto Morelos
Short-billed Dowitcher Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Wilson's Snipe Whitesbog
Spotted Sandpiper Playa Bonita
Solitary Sandpiper Whitesbog
Lesser Yellowlegs Forsythe--Barnegat
Willet Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Greater Yellowlegs Eno’s Pond
Ruddy Turnstone Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
Sanderling Playa Puerto Morelos
Dunlin Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Least Sandpiper Playa Bonita
Laughing Gull Wawa Rt 70 & CR 530
Ring-billed Gull Colliers Mills WMA
American Herring Gull Eno’s Pond
Great Black-backed Gull Island Beach SP
Black Skimmer Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Gull-billed Tern Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Forster's Tern Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
Sandwich Tern Playa Puerto Morelos
Royal Tern Playa Puerto Morelos
AMERICAN FLAMINGO Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
Horned Grebe Colliers Mills WMA
Common Loon Whitesbog
Magnificent Frigatebird Playa Puerto Morelos
Anhinga Playa Puerto Morelos
Double-crested Cormorant Whitesbog
Neotropic Cormorant Rio Lagartos
White Ibis Waretown
Glossy Ibis Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Roseate Spoonbill Puerto Morelos
BARE-THROATED TIGER-HERON Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
BOAT-BILLED HERON Playa Bonita
Yellow-crowned Night Heron Playa Bonita
Black-crowned Night Heron Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Little Blue Heron Waretown
Tricolored Heron Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Reddish Egret Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Snowy Egret Eno’s Pond
Green Heron Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Western Cattle-Egret Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
Great Egret Waretown
Great Blue Heron Colliers Mills WMA
American White Pelican Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
Brown Pelican Playa Puerto Morelos
Black Vulture Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Turkey Vulture Colliers Mills WMA
LESSER YELLOW-HEADED VULTURE Playa Puerto Morelos
Osprey Eno’s Pond
Sharp-shinned Hawk Cranberry Bogs
Cooper's Hawk 35 Sunset Rd
Common Black Hawk Cenote Kambulnah
ROADSIDE HAWK Parque Cancun
Red-shouldered Hawk Whitesbog
Red-tailed Hawk Cranberry Bogs
Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl Casa Carolina
Black-headed Trogon Yaax Che
Belted Kingfisher Colliers Mills WMA
American Pygmy Kingfisher Cenote Kambulnah
Red-headed Woodpecker Colliers Mills WMA
Yucatan Woodpecker Puerto Morelos
Golden-fronted Woodpecker Puerto Morelos
Red-bellied Woodpecker Colliers Mills WMA
Downy Woodpecker 35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker Whitesbog
Northern Flicker Colliers Mills WMA
American Kestrel Robert J. Miller Air Park
Merlin Great Bay Bvld. WMA
White-fronted Amazon Casa Carolina
Olive-throated Parakeet Cenote Kambulnah
GRAY-COLLARED BECARD Parque Cancun
Eastern Phoebe Colliers Mills WMA
Dusky-capped Flycatcher Puerto Morelos
Great Crested Flycatcher Manasquan River WMA
Brown-crested Flycatcher Puerto Morelos
Great Kiskadee Casa Carolina
Social Flycatcher Puerto Morelos
Tropical Kingbird Puerto Morelos
Couch's Kingbird Puerto Morelos
Eastern Kingbird Colliers Mills WMA
Rufous-browed Peppershrike Parque Cancun
Lesser Greenlet Yaax Che
White-eyed Vireo Yaax Che
Mangrove Vireo Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Blue-headed Vireo Island Beach SP
Red-eyed Vireo Sooy Pl Road
Green Jay Playa Bonita
YUCATAN JAY Puerto Morelos
Blue Jay 35 Sunset Rd
American Crow Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Fish Crow 35 Sunset Rd
Common Raven Island Beach SP
Carolina Chickadee 35 Sunset Rd
Tufted Titmouse 35 Sunset Rd
Bank Swallow Hotel Rio Lagartos
Tree Swallow Whitesbog
Purple Martin Woodmansee Blvd
Gray-breasted Martin Aeropuerto Internacional de Cancun
Northern Rough-winged Swallow Double Trouble SP
Barn Swallow Puerto Morelos
Ruby-crowned Kinglet Reeves Bogs
Golden-crowned Kinglet Whitesbog
White-breasted Nuthatch 35 Sunset Rd
Red-breasted Nuthatch Island Beach SP
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Island Beach SP
Northern House Wren Manasquan River WMA
Carolina Wren Eno’s Pond
White-bellied Wren Yaax Che
European Starling 35 Sunset Rd
Gray Catbird Puerto Morelos
Brown Thrasher Colliers Mills WMA
Tropical Mockingbird Puerto Morelos
Northern Mockingbird Colliers Mills WMA
Eastern Bluebird 35 Sunset Rd
Hermit Thrush Eno’s Pond
Wood Thrush Manasquan River WMA
American Robin Colliers Mills WMA
House Finch 35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch 35 Sunset Rd
Chipping Sparrow Eno’s Pond
Field Sparrow Colliers Mills WMA
Dark-eyed Junco Colliers Mills WMA
White-throated Sparrow Colliers Mills WMA
Seaside Sparrow Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Song Sparrow 35 Sunset Rd
Swamp Sparrow Colliers Mills WMA
Eastern Towhee Colliers Mills WMA
Orchard Oriole Double Trouble SP
Hooded Oriole Puerto Morelos
Yellow-tailed Oriole Parque Cancun
Orange Oriole Parque Cancun
Altamira Oriole Parque Cancun
Red-winged Blackbird Colliers Mills WMA
Bronzed Cowbird Puerto Morelos
Brown-headed Cowbird Colliers Mills WMA
Melodious Blackbird Puerto Morelos
Common Grackle Whitesbog
Boat-tailed Grackle Island Beach SP--Reed's Road
Great-tailed Grackle Puerto Morelos
Ovenbird Double Trouble SP
Worm-eating Warbler Manahawkin WMA
Northern Waterthrush Puerto Morelos
Blue-winged Warbler Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
Black-and-white Warbler Puerto Morelos
Prothonotary Warbler Yaax Che
Common Yellowthroat Puerto Morelos
Hooded Warbler Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve
American Redstart Playa Bonita
Northern Parula Manahawkin WMA
Magnolia Warbler Puerto Morelos
Northern Yellow Warbler Parque Cancun
MANGROVE YELLOW WARBLER Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Palm Warbler Whitesbog
Pine Warbler Colliers Mills WMA
Yellow-rumped Warbler Island Beach SP
Prairie Warbler Colliers Mills WMA
Northern Cardinal Colliers Mills WMA
Black-headed Saltator Parque Cancun
Wednesday, April 29, 2026
Whitesbog 4/29--Solitary Sandpiper
| Solitary Sandpiper |
The bird flew off the mudflat it was sharing with the Killdeer to one about 10 feet away and with it a little flock of Least Sandpipers swooped in. We "had" Least Sandpiper in Mexico earlier this month, but these were Jersey Least Sandpipers. So, had I followed my inclination and just turned right, I'd have missed both those species. And what persuaded me besides a Constanza-like contrariness? The fact that I wanted to take a longer walk than usual today and going left probably added about three-quarters of a mile to my hike.
It was a good day there: 42 species in all, plus I had a long chat with my informant and made his dog very happy scratching him under the chin (the dog, not my informant).
Canada Goose 15
Wood Duck 6
Mallard 13
Mourning Dove 5
Killdeer 1
Solitary Sandpiper 1
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Least Sandpiper 8
Turkey Vulture 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 Heard village
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1
Great Crested Flycatcher 2
White-eyed Vireo 3
American Crow 2
Fish Crow 4
Common Raven 1 Croaking
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 1
Tree Swallow 3
Purple Martin 2
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 3
Northern House Wren 1
Carolina Wren 2
Gray Catbird 5
Brown Thrasher 2
American Robin 1
American Goldfinch 1
Chipping Sparrow 2
Song Sparrow 3
Swamp Sparrow 1
Eastern Towhee 3
Red-winged Blackbird 30
Common Grackle 8
Ovenbird 10
Black-and-white Warbler 5
Common Yellowthroat 20
Pine Warbler 3
Prairie Warbler 7
Northern Cardinal 1
Tuesday, April 28, 2026
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 |
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
Sunday, April 26, 2026
Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve | Sooy Place Road 4/26--Red-eyed Vireo, Blue-winged Warbler, Hooded Warbler
For no good reason I seem to reserve Sunday mornings for Burlco birding. This morning I decided to seek out the warbler specialties beyond Prairie Warbler at the Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve. The hotspot of this hotspot begins about a half mile in at the bridge that runs across a little creek. Here, if you wait for a while, a Prothonotary Warbler will always show up. Today I didn't have to wait--a Prothonotary jumped up onto the railing of the bridge just as I got to it, show itself nicely, then dove down beneath the bridge where it may have a nest. Good to add to Jersey list, but I already had one down at Yaax Che in Mexico last week.
| Hooded Warbler |
After you emerge from the alley, there is a little area just before the White trail intersects with the tick-infested Yellow trail that is often good for Blue-winged Warbler. They weren't present when I first went by, but on my return trip I heard the little buzzy song of one and was able to get eyes on it. There might have been two--you only need one. I walked about another mile and half along the white trail, past Gum Spring (where I saw a Merlin in a dead tree in the swamp, a patch bird for me), but the birding dies down pretty quickly there and it becomes more exercise than birding. But, aside from the Pine Warblers, I was able to get eyes on at least of each of the warblers I listed.
23 species
Mourning Dove 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 3
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1
Merlin 1
White-eyed Vireo 4
Blue Jay 3
Carolina Chickadee 4
Tufted Titmouse 4
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 5
Field Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 1
Eastern Towhee 10
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
Ovenbird 10
Blue-winged Warbler 1
Black-and-white Warbler 3
Prothonotary Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 5
Hooded Warbler 6
Pine Warbler 3
Prairie Warbler 5
Northern Cardinal 1
When I was done at Huber, I drove about 3/4 of a mile down Sooy Place Road to where it crosses Burr's Mill Brook. The brook is very wide at this juncture, more a swamp than a stream with many dead trees and stumps sticking up out of the water. It was here that I heard my FOY Red-eyed Vireo, high in the canopy behind me where the brook is still a brook, and it was also here that I managed to get a very good look another Prothonotary Warbler and even get a photograph that is one step up from a doc shot. While I was standing on the bridge, a local came along and asked me, as they always do, if I had seen anything good. He was walking a heavyset, muscular dog. I asked him what kind it was and he told me it was Caen Corso--it looked like it would be very happy to bite off my kneecap, but he swore the dog was extremely friendly while also telling me that the Romans bred them as war dogs, it weighed 175 pounds, and that its jaw was twice a powerful as a pit bull's, equivalent to the chomping power of a lion. I took his word for the friendliness of the dog and inched my way back to the car. Prothonotary Warbler
Friday, April 24, 2026
Great Bay Blvd 4/24--Clapper Rail, Short-billed Dowitcher, Seaside Sparrow
| Short-billed Dowitchers |
So, not only have I been looking for new year birds, but I've also been trying to find warblers and sandpipers that I already have on my year list from Mexico. It just adds to the game.
| Black Skimmers |
Stopping at the mitigation bulwark (what the bulwark is mitigating I've never discovered) I heard a thin buzzing that wasn't tinnitus. It took me a few moments to realize I was hearing a couple of Seaside Sparrows across the channel. The same thing happened down the road when I stopped to look at some salt pans--this time it was "kek kek kek kek" in the background--Clapper Rail of course.
The only year bird that I actually saw came later down the road at the boat launch. A sandbar had a huge number of shorebirds feeding on it. They were predominantly Dunlin, with a few Black-bellied Plovers thrown in. But also feeding among them were a few Short-billed Dowitchers, doing their typical sewing machine motions, probing the mud for goodies. Again, as you can see above, the light was bad and the birds distant.
For the morning, 37 species.
Brant 91
Canada Goose 6
American Black Duck 1
Green-winged Teal 15 Tuckerton Cove
Mourning Dove 7
Clapper Rail 3
American Oystercatcher 1
Black-bellied Plover 14
Short-billed Dowitcher 5
Willet 20
Greater Yellowlegs 25
Dunlin 180
Laughing Gull 4
American Herring Gull 50
Great Black-backed Gull 4
Black Skimmer 4
Forster's Tern 25
Common Loon 1
Double-crested Cormorant 12
Glossy Ibis 7
Black-crowned Night Heron 3
Tricolored Heron 1
Snowy Egret 12
Great Egret 8
Osprey 2
Merlin 1
Tree Swallow 2
Barn Swallow 15
European Starling 1
American Goldfinch 1
Seaside Sparrow 4
Song Sparrow 4
Red-winged Blackbird 100
Boat-tailed Grackle 75
Common Yellowthroat 5
Northern Yellow Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 1
Thursday, April 23, 2026
Yucatan 4/9-4/20--Trip List and Index
| AMERICAN FLAMINGOS, Rio Lagartos |
I knew I was missing a good chunk of migration in New Jersey, but a lot of the warblers were still down there, and, amusingly, it took a trip to Mexico before I was able to add Gray Catbird to my list. For the 11+ days we were there I tallied 92 species, 65 of which were year birds and 9 of which were lifers.
Plain Chachalaca Puerto Morelos
RED-BILLED PIGEON Puerto Morelos
Semipalmated Plover Playa Puerto Morelos
Sanderling Playa Puerto Morelos
Least Sandpiper Playa Bonita
American Herring Gull Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Black Skimmer Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Neotropic Cormorant Rio Lagartos
Roseate Spoonbill Puerto Morelos
Tricolored Heron Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Reddish Egret Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Green Heron Cooperativa Pescadores de Rio Lagartos
Great Blue Heron Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
American White Pelican Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos
Turkey Vulture Carretera Rio Lagartos-Cancun-Tulum
LESSER YELLOW-HEADED VULTURE Playa Puerto Morelos
Common Black Hawk Cenote Kambulnah
American Pygmy Kingfisher Cenote Kambulnah
Black-headed Saltator Parque Cancun