Eno's Pond 5/2--Red-eyed Vireo

Red-eyed Vireo
You can see what I'm up against when the trees leaf out

I had a couple of errands in Forked River (two syllables in "Forked," for anyone outside of Ocean County) so I thought I'd look at the creek at Eno's Pond for any shorebirds that might have arrived. However, I'd timed the tide wrong, there was practicaly no mud and the only shorebird I saw was a single Greater Yellowlegs.

While walking in the woods I heard a vireo song which is often transcribed as "Here I am, where are you." My first reaction was Red-eyed Vireo. Great, year bird. But then I remembered that Pete had pointed out that Blue-headed Vireo sounds similar. I looked up both songs on my phone--Red-eyed Vireo song is similar to Blue-headed Vireo, only faster and less musical, whatever "musical" means. This song didn't seem very fast and I've seen Blue-headed Vireos for a couple of weeks, so I listed it as that. One of the many frustrations of ear-birding--unless you're an absolute expert, you can never be sure and I've seen two experts argue. I certainly wasn't going to list a year bird based on what I was hearing.

I was on the way out of the park, walking along a little boardwalk, when I heard the song again, though this time loud and close. Miraculously, pishing worked, and the bird popped from one tree to another. And it was a Red-eyed Vireo!  I pointed the camera in the direction of the bird and, miracle again, got something on the memory card.

As Red-eyed vs Blue-headed songs: I've listened to both a number of times and really doubt I could decide in the field.
23 species
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 3
Snowy Egret 2
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Laughing Gull 1
Herring Gull 5
Forster's Tern 3
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 1
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1 Heard
Red-eyed Vireo 2
Carolina Chickadee 3
Tufted Titmouse 2 Heard
White-breasted Nuthatch 2 Heard
Carolina Wren 1 Heard
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 6
Gray Catbird 5
Ovenbird 1 Heard
Pine Warbler 1 Heard
Prairie Warbler 1 Heard
Chipping Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 1
Red-winged Blackbird 1