July Wrap-up--Bombay Hook Saves the Month

Double-crested Cormorants, Lighthouse Center

What was threatening to be an incredibly dull month with only one new year bird on the list (a very poorly seen but clearly heard Eastern Meadowlark at the local airport) was rescued by a trip to Bombay Hook the last two days of the month. We were meeting our friends from Minnesota there who had never visited the NWR (in fact, had never been in Delaware despite being adventurous world travelers), and it was there, the glary impoundments that three year birds jumped onto the list: Pectoral Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper, & Stilt Sandpiper. All relatively difficult birds to find and identify, but all three were fairly close in on the mud. 

The two most amusing birds of the month were also there. On the first day, Shari & I made a quick go round of the impoundments and as we were returning on the far side of Bear Swamp Pool we saw two huge birds fly across the road. At first, seeing only black with white patches, I mistook them for Black Vultures, but Shari, of course, quickly set me straight as to their actual identity--Pileated Woodpeckers. We watched them fly from tree to tree in the dense woods, but they weren't about to pose for any pictures.  

The next day, as we were going around with Lon & Peg, we stopped to scope Shearness Pool which instead of all the sandpipers in the previous pool (Raymond) was full of boring Canada Geese, Mallards, and Mute Swans. But sharp-eyed Peg, using only bins, asked "What's the big black bird at the back by the shore?" I scoped the bird was surprised to find a Black Swan. Obviously, this is not a countable bird in the U.S. but as the four of us had made a trip to Australia together, where we saw huge numbers of these birds (or should I say "events"), it seemed an appropriate candidate for weirdest sighting of the day. 

Of course, American Avocets were present in large numbers in Raymond Pool, some in bright rufous breeding plumage, some already fading to black and white. Year bird for Shari 

Tricolored Heron, immature White Ibis, Snowy Egret, Lighthouse Center

As to the rest of the month for me, it was spent mostly in the abandoned cranberry bogs without much to show for it. I did finally go to a new hot spot in the county--the Lighthouse Center for blah blah blah which is located in Waretown. I liked it there and can see that it might be productive, but the main trail is only 3/8 of a mile long down to the bay so it isn't a place for me to get my walks in. I don't know if it is
open in the winter, but it looked like a good place to scope for bay ducks. Almost the first bird I saw there was an immature Bald Eagle sitting in the middle of the trail. It must have been a first year bird because it didn't seem to understand that I was a human approaching it until I got within 20 feet of it. I was a bit trepidatious about it actually playing possum in order to attack me, but it eventually figured out that both of us shouldn't be on the trail. 

Bald Eagle (imm)

For the month 129 species, about typical, for me, for July.

 Counties birded:

New Jersey: Burlington, Ocean

Delaware: Kent

Species    First Sighting
Brant    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Canada Goose    Meadowedge Park
Mute Swan    Holly Lake
Wood Duck    Cranberry Bogs
Mallard    Cloverdale Farm
American Black Duck    Manahawkin WMA
Common Eider    Island Beach SP
Surf Scoter    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Black Scoter    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Wild Turkey    35 Sunset Rd
Mourning Dove    Cloverdale Farm
Yellow-billed Cuckoo    Whitesbog
Common Nighthawk    Cranberry Bogs
Eastern Whip-poor-will    35 Sunset Rd
Chimney Swift    Robert J. Miller Air Park
Ruby-throated Hummingbird    Cloverdale Farm
Clapper Rail    Waretown
American Avocet    Bombay Hook
American Oystercatcher    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Black-bellied Plover    Bombay Hook
Killdeer    Whitesbog
Semipalmated Plover    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Piping Plover    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Short-billed Dowitcher    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Spotted Sandpiper    Colliers Mills WMA
Solitary Sandpiper    Whitesbog
Lesser Yellowlegs    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Willet    Waretown
Greater Yellowlegs    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Stilt Sandpiper    Bombay Hook
Sanderling    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
White-rumped Sandpiper    Bombay Hook
Least Sandpiper    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Pectoral Sandpiper    Bombay Hook
Semipalmated Sandpiper    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Bonaparte's Gull    Bombay Hook
Laughing Gull    Cloverdale Farm
American Herring Gull    Barnegat Municipal Dock
Great Black-backed Gull    Barnegat Municipal Dock
Black Skimmer    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Least Tern    Edwin B. Forsythe NWR--Barnegat
Gull-billed Tern    Whitesbog
Caspian Tern    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Forster's Tern    Barnegat Municipal Dock
Common Tern    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Common Loon    Island Beach SP
Double-crested Cormorant    Barnegat Municipal Dock
White Ibis    Waretown
Glossy Ibis    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Yellow-crowned Night Heron    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Black-crowned Night Heron    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Little Blue Heron    Waretown
Tricolored Heron    Joe Torg Nature Preserve
Snowy Egret    Forsythe--Barnegat
Green Heron    Cloverdale Farm
Great Egret    Cloverdale Farm
Great Blue Heron    Cloverdale Farm
Brown Pelican    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Black Vulture    School House Road Crestwood Village I
Turkey Vulture    Cloverdale Farm
Osprey    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Bald Eagle    Whitesbog
Red-tailed Hawk    Colliers Mills WMA
Belted Kingfisher    Horicon Lake
Red-headed Woodpecker    Cloverdale Farm
Red-bellied Woodpecker    Cloverdale Farm
Downy Woodpecker    Colliers Mills WMA
Hairy Woodpecker    Whitesbog
Pileated Woodpecker    Bombay Hook
Northern Flicker    Cloverdale Farm
Eastern Wood-Pewee    Cloverdale Farm
Acadian Flycatcher    Cedar Bridge Tavern County Park
Willow Flycatcher    Manahawkin WMA
Eastern Phoebe    Cloverdale Farm
Great Crested Flycatcher    Cloverdale Farm
Eastern Kingbird    Cloverdale Farm
White-eyed Vireo    Whitesbog
Red-eyed Vireo    Horicon Lake
Blue Jay    35 Sunset Rd
American Crow    Cloverdale Farm
Fish Crow    35 Sunset Rd
Carolina Chickadee    Cloverdale Farm
Tufted Titmouse    Cloverdale Farm
Horned Lark    Robert J. Miller Air Park
Tree Swallow    Cloverdale Farm
Purple Martin    Whitesbog
Northern Rough-winged Swallow    Stafford Forge WMA
Barn Swallow    Barnegat Municipal Dock
White-breasted Nuthatch    Cloverdale Farm
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher    Cloverdale Farm
Northern House Wren    Cloverdale Farm
Marsh Wren    Meadowedge Park
Carolina Wren    Whitesbog
European Starling    Cloverdale Farm
Gray Catbird    35 Sunset Rd
Brown Thrasher    Whitesbog
Northern Mockingbird    Meadowedge Park
Eastern Bluebird    Cloverdale Farm
Veery    Double Trouble SP
Wood Thrush    Whitesbog
American Robin    Cloverdale Farm
Cedar Waxwing    Cranberry Bogs
House Sparrow    Waretown
House Finch    Cloverdale Farm
American Goldfinch    35 Sunset Rd
Chipping Sparrow    Cloverdale Farm
Field Sparrow    Stafford Forge WMA
Seaside Sparrow    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Saltmarsh Sparrow    Cattus Island County Park
Song Sparrow    Cloverdale Farm
Swamp Sparrow    Whitesbog
Eastern Towhee    Whitesbog
Eastern Meadowlark    Robert J. Miller Air Park
Orchard Oriole    Stafford Forge WMA
Red-winged Blackbird    Cloverdale Farm
Brown-headed Cowbird    Cloverdale Farm
Common Grackle    Meadowedge Park
Boat-tailed Grackle    Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Ovenbird    Whitesbog
Black-and-white Warbler    Whitesbog
Common Yellowthroat    Meadowedge Park
Hooded Warbler    Colliers Mills WMA
Yellow Warbler    Cattus Island County Park
Pine Warbler    Cloverdale Farm
Prairie Warbler    Whitesbog
Scarlet Tanager    Cedar Bridge Tavern County Park
Northern Cardinal    Cloverdale Farm
Blue Grosbeak    Cloverdale Farm
Indigo Bunting    Colliers Mills WMA