November Wrap-up--A Lot of Ducks

American Black Ducks, Double Trouble SP

A fairly productive month, especially if you like ducks (and geese and swans) and I do. November is the month the Tundra Swans return to Whitesbog and Reeves Bogs, and the month that the sea ducks start to show up at Barnegat Light. A Thanksgiving Day trip to Brig got Shari & I a pretty hen Common Goldeneye as well as scads of Gadwalls and Northern Pintails. Aside from the Eurasian Wigeon at Lake of the Lilies (or "Lillies" as they insist on spelling it on their big wooden sign), none of the ducks were particularly rare. I kept hoping that I'd spot a Tufted Duck among the flocks of Ring-necked Ducks at Whitesbog or Lake Carasaljo, but of course, I didn't.

Tundra Swans, Union Pond, Whitesbog

It was also a good month for Wilson's Snipe, that somewhat elusive non-shorebird shorebird. A couple of days after I found a pair at Lake of the Lilies, I was walking past the back impoundments at Bunker Hill Bogs in Jackson when I flushed another pair. Their habit of diving into the reeds precluded any photos. 

But the best sighting of the month in terms of sheer fun came early in the month at Reeves Bogs. I was walking with my informant along Bear Hole (named so because in the good ole days they hunted bears there) with his dog Gunny, who, being a dog, was sniffing all the phragmites and brush grass and stuck his nose deeper into the reeds, flushing an American Bittern which flew up and over the reservoir, giving us great looks as it headed to a spot inaccessible to snuffling canines. 

For the month 113 species in Atlantic, Burlington and Ocean counties. 

Species    First Sighting
Brant    Cedar Bonnet Island
Canada Goose    Cranberry Bogs
Mute Swan    Lake Carasaljo
Tundra Swan    Reeves Bogs
Wood Duck    Cranberry Bogs
Northern Shoveler    Brig
Gadwall    Lake Carasaljo
Eurasian Wigeon    Lake of the Lilies
American Wigeon    Lake Carasaljo
Mallard    Cranberry Bogs
American Black Duck    Double Trouble SP
Northern Pintail    Whitesbog
Green-winged Teal    Cranberry Bogs
Ring-necked Duck    Whitesbog
Common Eider    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Harlequin Duck    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
White-winged Scoter    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Black Scoter    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Bufflehead    Lake Carasaljo
Common Goldeneye    Brig
Hooded Merganser    Lake Carasaljo
Red-breasted Merganser    Ocean County Parks Offices
Ruddy Duck    Lake Carasaljo
Wild Turkey    Crestwood Village
Rock Pigeon    Colliers Mills WMA
Mourning Dove    Cranberry Bogs
American Coot    Lake of the Lilies
American Oystercatcher    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Black-bellied Plover    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Killdeer    Whitesbog
Marbled Godwit    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Wilson's Snipe    Lake of the Lilies
Lesser Yellowlegs    Colliers Mills WMA
Greater Yellowlegs    Colliers Mills WMA
Ruddy Turnstone    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Dunlin    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Purple Sandpiper    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Pectoral Sandpiper    Whitesbog
Bonaparte's Gull    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Laughing Gull    Lake Carasaljo
Ring-billed Gull    Lake Carasaljo
American Herring Gull    Lake of the Lilies
Great Black-backed Gull    Lake of the Lilies
Pied-billed Grebe    Lake Carasaljo
Horned Grebe    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Red-throated Loon    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Common Loon    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Northern Gannet    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Double-crested Cormorant    Lake Carasaljo
American Bittern    Reeves Bogs
Great Egret    Brig
Great Blue Heron    Whitesbog
Black Vulture    35 Sunset Rd
Turkey Vulture    Crestwood Village
Osprey    Cattus Island County Park
Sharp-shinned Hawk    Cranberry Bogs
Cooper's Hawk    Reeves Bogs
Northern Harrier    Whitesbog
Bald Eagle    Double Trouble SP
Red-tailed Hawk    Colliers Mills WMA
Belted Kingfisher    Cranberry Bogs
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker    Colliers Mills WMA
Red-headed Woodpecker    Colliers Mills WMA
Red-bellied Woodpecker    Cranberry Bogs
Downy Woodpecker    Cranberry Bogs
Hairy Woodpecker    Whitesbog
Pileated Woodpecker    Colliers Mills WMA
Northern Flicker    Cranberry Bogs
Merlin    Whitesbog
Eastern Phoebe    Reeves Bogs
Blue-headed Vireo    Cedar Bonnet Island
Blue Jay    Cranberry Bogs
American Crow    Cranberry Bogs
Fish Crow    Double Trouble SP
Common Raven    Double Trouble SP
Carolina Chickadee    Cranberry Bogs
Tufted Titmouse    Cranberry Bogs
Tree Swallow    Reeves Bogs
Ruby-crowned Kinglet    Bunker Hill Bogs
Golden-crowned Kinglet    Cranberry Bogs
White-breasted Nuthatch    35 Sunset Rd
Red-breasted Nuthatch    Cranberry Bogs
Brown Creeper    Lake Carasaljo
Winter Wren    Double Trouble SP
Carolina Wren    35 Sunset Rd
European Starling    Whitesbog
Gray Catbird    Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Mockingbird    Whitesbog
Eastern Bluebird    Cranberry Bogs
Hermit Thrush    Cranberry Bogs
American Robin    Cranberry Bogs
Cedar Waxwing    35 Sunset Rd
House Sparrow    Lake Carasaljo
House Finch    Cranberry Bogs
Purple Finch    Whitesbog
American Goldfinch    Cranberry Bogs
Snow Bunting    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Chipping Sparrow    Reeves Bogs
Field Sparrow    Whitesbog
Fox Sparrow    Colliers Mills WMA
Dark-eyed Junco    Cranberry Bogs
White-throated Sparrow    35 Sunset Rd
Vesper Sparrow    Double Trouble SP
Savannah Sparrow    Reeves Bogs
Song Sparrow    Cranberry Bogs
Swamp Sparrow    Cranberry Bogs
Eastern Meadowlark    Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Baltimore Oriole    Double Trouble SP
Red-winged Blackbird    Cranberry Bogs
Rusty Blackbird    Whitesbog
Pine Warbler    Whitesbog
Yellow-rumped Warbler    Cranberry Bogs
Northern Cardinal    35 Sunset Rd

Jackson Liberty HS 2/19--Horned Lark

The best place for an impressive display of Horned Larks is in Jackson, on the soccer fields of Liberty High School.  But, since wandering school grounds with binoculars is, let us say, frowned upon by law enforcement, the only times to go there are on weekends. I was fretting a bit Sunday night, when another weekend had passed without me getting there to put the larks on the list. You tell yourself that eventually you'll get there but "eventually" has a stale date on it. Then, the little 💡 went on--"Tomorrow is Presidents' Day--no school!" At 8:30 this morning, I parked my car in the empty lot and walked across the road to the empty soccer fields, turned to my right and found a flock of 85 Horned Larks feeding on the brown grass. They blend in so perfectly with the turf and are so skittish about being approached, that I have never gotten a very good photo of the larks there. But I took a lot of distant shots of the flock to put on my eBird list, since 85 explodes the filter for a count. 

I watched the larks for 20 minutes feed and fly around (they tend to get up, fly off, and then return to where they started), and then headed over to Bunker Hill Bogs, about 5 minutes away. It is about a mile and half walk from the parking lot to Butterfly Road, through yet another former cranberry operation. The back bogs, I was hoping, would produce Wood Duck, which I still "needed" for the county. If not, Butterfly Bogs, across the street from the exit of Bunker Hill Bogs, might have them. But my first walk through didn't yield any woodies (a lot of stiff water) and Butterfly Bogs was even stiffer. However, on my return trip I flushed a drake and hen Wood Duck from the edge of the bog just before the metal bridge. And for you pickup truck drivers keeping score, I did see an eagle. In the two spots I totaled 32 species in about 3 hours of walking:

Species                First Sighting
Canada Goose   Jackson Liberty HS
Wood Duck   Bunker Hill Bogs
Mallard   Jackson Liberty HS
Ring-necked Duck   Bunker Hill Bogs
Hooded Merganser   Bunker Hill Bogs
Rock Pigeon   Jackson Liberty HS
Mourning Dove   Bunker Hill Bogs
Killdeer   Jackson Liberty HS
Herring Gull   Jackson Liberty HS
Black Vulture   Bunker Hill Bogs
Bald Eagle   Bunker Hill Bogs
Belted Kingfisher   Bunker Hill Bogs
Red-bellied Woodpecker   Jackson Liberty HS
Northern Flicker   Bunker Hill Bogs
Blue Jay   Jackson Liberty HS
American Crow   Jackson Liberty HS
Common Raven   Bunker Hill Bogs
Carolina Chickadee   Bunker Hill Bogs
Tufted Titmouse   Bunker Hill Bogs
Horned Lark   Jackson Liberty HS
White-breasted Nuthatch   Bunker Hill Bogs
Brown Creeper   Bunker Hill Bogs
Winter Wren   Bunker Hill Bogs
European Starling   Jackson Liberty HS
Eastern Bluebird   Jackson Liberty HS
American Robin   Bunker Hill Bogs
Dark-eyed Junco   Jackson Liberty HS
White-throated Sparrow   Bunker Hill Bogs
Song Sparrow   Jackson Liberty HS
Red-winged Blackbird   Bunker Hill Bogs
Yellow-rumped Warbler   Bunker Hill Bogs
Northern Cardinal   Jackson Liberty HS

You Can Observe a Lot Just by Watching

 Also spracht Yogi Berra. 

Looking for a place to bird out of the wind this morning, I took a long walk along the trails of Bunker Hill Bogs in Jackson. The wind was hardly noticeable in the woods there, as were the birds, except for a few busy pockets. Afterwards, I decided to go over to Jackson Liberty HS, since it was a Saturday and I wouldn't be viewed as a creep with binoculars--at least by students and faculty. I wanted to see if the Horned Larks were still on the soccer fields--it's always been amusing to me to find such big numbers of larks in such a random spot. 

I parked in one of the lots and saw behind me, near the football field, a flock of Canada Geese, maybe 175, certainly not unusual. The larks, alas, were not on the field, but at least a dozen Killdeer were, and a big flock of Ring-billed Gulls plopped themselves down for a while. Going back to the car I looked at the geese again and contemplated whether I wanted to go "all the way over there" (maybe 100 yards) to look for an unlikely Cackling Goose. I figured I ought to, even though the wind was gusting around 30 mph, and I knew from past experience that as soon as the flock caught sight of me it would start walking away. 

When I got about halfway there, I put up my binoculars and said aloud, "It's still here!" There, at the end of the line of geese, was a Greater White-fronted Goose, which was all the rarity rage back at the end of January, but which hadn't been reported in over a month.

Why? Because everyone who wanted to see it saw it and the bird entered rarity limbo, passing its time with the goose flock, going unnoticed unless by high school students who might give it half a thought if they saw it. I guess this is why the really great birders stop and observe every goose, gull, duck and sparrow flock, putting into practice Berra's Dictum. Because

Ya never know

                    --Anonymous

June Wrap-up: COVID Curtailed Edition

Yellow Warbler, Boundary Creek

 A month that started out just ducky, with a Garganey on its first day, lost a lot of its momentum when, after more than two years, COVID finally made its way into the Zirlin household. And it came in just as I always suspected it would: Shari caught it in New York (as best as we can figure) and infected me. Ironically, she was in New York to visit the last doctor she has there. We're quadrupled vaccinated, so the symptoms were mild yet lingering and annoying, like having a cold you can never shake. And while I tried to get out in the field as soon as I could, there was a stretch of days where I had no energy. Unfortunately, for me, that stretch included the days that Roseate Terns were showing up in numbers on Island Beach but there was just no way I could drag myself out there to chase them. 

I spent a lot of time at my favorite cranberry bogs, Whitesbog and Jumping Brook, both before, during, and after (hopefully, I'm in the after stage), and they produced Least Bittern, Common Nighthawk, and Black-billed Cuckoo, all new for the year.  While I was sitting in the house, bored, I got to thinking about how many cranberry bogs I traipse around and, as you can do in eBird, built a "patch list" of all of them to see what my total number of birds was. Impressive at 212 species. And since I like lists, they are:

Bunker Hills Bogs

Budd's Bogs

Cloverdale Farm

Cranberry Bogs on Dover Road

Double Trouble SP

Franklin Parker Preserve

Jumping Brook Preserve

Reeves Bogs and of course

Whitesbog.

I can't guess the total acreage but that's a lot of ground to have covered. 

Only 9 new species for the month, but 138 species in total which is pretty good for a doldrums month.

Counties birded: Atlantic, Burlington, Monmouth, Ocean

Species                First Sighting
Canada Goose  National Guard Training Ctr
Mute Swan  Sylvan Lake
Wood Duck  Whitesbog
Garganey  National Guard Training Ctr
Mallard  National Guard Training Ctr
American Black Duck  Whitesbog
Wild Turkey  35 Sunset Rd
Rock Pigeon  Shark River Inlet
Mourning Dove  35 Sunset Rd
Yellow-billed Cuckoo  35 Sunset Rd
Black-billed Cuckoo  Whitesbog
Common Nighthawk  Whitesbog
Eastern Whip-poor-will  35 Sunset Rd
Chimney Swift  Jumping Brook Preserve
Ruby-throated Hummingbird  35 Sunset Rd
Clapper Rail  Great Bay Blvd
Sora  Brig
Black-necked Stilt  Manahawkin WMA
American Avocet  Barnegat Lighthouse SP
American Oystercatcher  Island Beach SP
Black-bellied Plover  Island Beach SP
Semipalmated Plover  Island Beach SP
Piping Plover  Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Killdeer  National Guard Training Ctr
Ruddy Turnstone  Island Beach SP
Ruff  Brig
Sanderling  Island Beach SP
Least Sandpiper  Jumping Brook Preserve
White-rumped Sandpiper  Brig
Semipalmated Sandpiper  Island Beach SP
Short-billed Dowitcher  Island Beach SP
Spotted Sandpiper  Island Beach SP
Greater Yellowlegs  National Guard Training Ctr
Willet  Great Bay Blvd
Lesser Yellowlegs  National Guard Training Ctr
Laughing Gull  Island Beach SP
Ring-billed Gull   Belmar
Herring Gull  Island Beach SP
Great Black-backed Gull  Island Beach SP
Least Tern  Great Bay Blvd
Gull-billed Tern  Brig
Common Tern  Island Beach SP
Forster's Tern  Island Beach SP
Royal Tern  Island Beach SP
Black Skimmer  Great Bay Blvd
Double-crested Cormorant  Island Beach SP
Brown Pelican  Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Least Bittern  Jumping Brook Preserve
Great Blue Heron  Cranberry Bogs
Great Egret  Cranberry Bogs
Snowy Egret  Great Bay Blvd
Little Blue Heron  Cranberry Bogs
Tricolored Heron  Island Beach SP
Green Heron  Whitesbog
Black-crowned Night-Heron  Great Bay Blvd
White Ibis  Great Bay Blvd
Glossy Ibis  Island Beach SP
Black Vulture  Rt. 70 Pemberton Twp
Turkey Vulture  Cranberry Bogs
Osprey  Island Beach SP
Cooper's Hawk  Reeves Bogs
Bald Eagle  Brig
Red-tailed Hawk  Cranberry Bogs
Belted Kingfisher  Island Beach SP
Red-headed Woodpecker  South Park Rd
Red-bellied Woodpecker  Burrs Mill Brook
Downy Woodpecker  35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker  Evert Trail
Northern Flicker  Cranberry Bogs
Peregrine Falcon  Cedar Bonnet Island
Eastern Wood-Pewee  Island Beach SP
Acadian Flycatcher  Double Trouble SP
Willow Flycatcher  Island Beach SP
Eastern Phoebe  Whitesbog
Great Crested Flycatcher  35 Sunset Rd
Eastern Kingbird  Island Beach SP
White-eyed Vireo  Island Beach SP
Yellow-throated Vireo  Reeves Bogs
Warbling Vireo  Colliers Mills WMA
Red-eyed Vireo  Jumping Brook Preserve
Blue Jay  35 Sunset Rd
American Crow  35 Sunset Rd
Fish Crow  Shark River Inlet
Carolina Chickadee  35 Sunset Rd
Tufted Titmouse  35 Sunset Rd
Northern Rough-winged Swallow  Wesley Lake
Purple Martin  Laurel Run Park
Tree Swallow  Island Beach SP
Bank Swallow  Burrs Mill Brook
Barn Swallow  Island Beach SP
Cliff Swallow  Wesley Lake
White-breasted Nuthatch  Burrs Mill Brook
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  Whitesbog
House Wren  35 Sunset Rd
Marsh Wren  Great Bay Blvd
Carolina Wren  Island Beach SP
European Starling  Island Beach SP
Gray Catbird  Island Beach SP
Brown Thrasher  Island Beach SP
Northern Mockingbird  Island Beach SP
Eastern Bluebird  Cranberry Bogs
Veery  Colliers Mills WMA
Wood Thrush  Jumping Brook Preserve
American Robin  Island Beach SP
Cedar Waxwing  Whitesbog
House Sparrow  Island Beach SP
House Finch  35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch  35 Sunset Rd
Grasshopper Sparrow  Laurel Run Park
Chipping Sparrow  35 Sunset Rd
Field Sparrow  Whitesbog
Seaside Sparrow  Great Bay Blvd
Saltmarsh Sparrow  Brig
Savannah Sparrow  Jumping Brook Preserve
Song Sparrow  35 Sunset Rd
Swamp Sparrow  Whitesbog
Eastern Towhee  Island Beach SP
Yellow-breasted Chat  Brig
Orchard Oriole  Jumping Brook Preserve
Baltimore Oriole  Burrs Mill Brook
Red-winged Blackbird  Island Beach SP
Brown-headed Cowbird  Whitesbog
Common Grackle  National Guard Training Ctr
Boat-tailed Grackle  Island Beach SP
Ovenbird  Whitesbog
Worm-eating Warbler  Evert Trail
Louisiana Waterthrush  Evert Trail
Black-and-white Warbler  Whitesbog
Prothonotary Warbler  Evert Trail
Common Yellowthroat  Island Beach SP
Hooded Warbler  Colliers Mills WMA
American Redstart  Island Beach SP
Yellow Warbler  Island Beach SP
Pine Warbler  35 Sunset Rd
Prairie Warbler  Whitesbog
Northern Cardinal  Island Beach SP
Blue Grosbeak  Laurel Run Park
Indigo Bunting  Colliers Mills WMA

Baby Barn Swallows, Boundary Creek

October Review--Sparse

Royal Tern, Double-crested Cormorant, Cattle Egret, Herring Gull, IBSP Marina

A lot of birding this month, but not much new, though, compared to the pandemic constrained birding of 2020, I've already surpassed my numbers for the year overall and for Ocean County. We started the month with the last two days of our Delaware vacation (although what I'm taking a vacation from is mysterious), and it was there that we picked up two year birds, an Hudsonian Godwit at Bombay Hook and a Brown-headed Nuthatch at Cape Henlopen SP which we visited for the first time. 

After that my trips consisted of a combination of my usual haunts (Whitesbog, Reeves Bogs, Brig, Great Bay Blvd) and spots more lightly birded such as FREC, Bunker Hill Bogs, Bamber Lake & Horicon Lake, where I hoped something unusual would go overlooked had I not birded there that day. Nope. I only was able to find two new year birds the rest of the month: a Gray-cheeked Thrush way in the back at Reeves Bogs and a very brief look at a Clay-colored Sparrow at Island Beach on one of Scott's NJA trips. 

Rusty Blackbird, Reeves Bogs

The month was not without its rewards though. At Great Bay Blvd I was able to add American Golden-Plover to my county year list, giving me, as Scott pointed out, all three pluvialis species that showed up in the county this year (Black-bellied, American Golden and Pacific Golden) in one place. At Reeves Bogs last week I came upon and was able to photograph a very nice example of a Rusty Blackbird; not rare, but sought after as they are rapidly diminishing. There is one stretch of trail there that runs along a maple swamp where they are fairly reliable in the right season and last week the main satisfaction I had was hearing it first and then tracking down the bird. 

But probably the most interesting bird of the month I saw today. I went to Island Beach today to walk the southern end of the park to the jetty and then the back of the inlet, hoping for some interesting seabirds (say a jaeger) or shorebirds (say a Red Knot) or gulls (say an Iceland). Nope. Had I stopped at Reed's Road there was the very slight off chance that I might have seen the White-winged Dove that flew over Scott's head, but I didn't stop there. When I was just about back to the car returning from the inlet, I got a text from Steve that there was a Cattle Egret at the IBSP Marina--8 miles away. That seemed like an unusual place for one to be and while it wouldn't be a year county bird, it would certainly be an interesting addition to my Island Beach list. Then I got a follow up text that there were five Cattle Egrets. That's just down right weird. But, after I got there (if you don't strictly follow the speed limits you can do it in 11 minutes) there they were, standing on one of the docks with the gulls, cormorants, and Royal Terns. Later, I took a short walk up the alley that runs between the houses and the park boundary and when I was coming back I thought I saw a white plastic bag flying around in the farmer's market field. The white fluttering turned out to be one of the Cattle Egrets and then, when I got out into the open, all five of them took off, circled the field a few times and disappeared. They were later found about a half mile north of there. A satisfying end to the month in which I listed 146 species. 

Counties birded:

Delaware: Kent, Sussex

New Jersey: Atlantic, Burlington, Monmouth, Ocean

Species               First Sighting
Snow Goose   Bombay Hook
Brant   Island Beach SP
Canada Goose   Dover
Mute Swan   Bombay Hook
Wood Duck   Reeves Bogs
Blue-winged Teal   Bombay Hook
Northern Shoveler   Bombay Hook
Gadwall   Bridge to Nowhere
American Wigeon   Bombay Hook
Mallard   Bombay Hook
American Black Duck   Bombay Hook
Northern Pintail   Bombay Hook
Green-winged Teal   Bombay Hook
Ring-necked Duck   Butterfly Bogs
Lesser Scaup   Holly Lake
Common Eider   Island Beach SP
Surf Scoter   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
White-winged Scoter   Manasquan Inlet
Black Scoter   Island Beach SP
Bufflehead   Bayview Ave Park
Hooded Merganser   Lake Shenandoah County Park
Red-breasted Merganser   Island Beach SP
Ruddy Duck   Lake of the Lilies
Wild Turkey   Bombay Hook
Pied-billed Grebe   Bombay Hook
Rock Pigeon   Milton
Mourning Dove   Cape Henlopen State Park
Yellow-billed Cuckoo   Island Beach SP
Chimney Swift   Whitesbog
Clapper Rail   Bombay Hook
Sora   Bombay Hook
American Coot   Lake of the Lilies
American Avocet   Bombay Hook
American Oystercatcher   Great Bay Blvd
Black-bellied Plover   Bombay Hook
American Golden-Plover   Great Bay Blvd
Semipalmated Plover   Whitehall Crossroads
Killdeer   Whitesbog
Hudsonian Godwit   Bombay Hook
Ruddy Turnstone   Great Bay Blvd
Sanderling   Island Beach SP
Dunlin   Bombay Hook
White-rumped Sandpiper   Great Bay Blvd
Semipalmated Sandpiper   Bombay Hook
Western Sandpiper   Brig
Short-billed Dowitcher   Bombay Hook
Long-billed Dowitcher   Brig
Greater Yellowlegs   Bombay Hook
Lesser Yellowlegs   Bombay Hook
Laughing Gull   Cape Henlopen State Park
Ring-billed Gull   Manahawkin Lake
Herring Gull   Cape Henlopen State Park
Lesser Black-backed Gull   Island Beach SP
Great Black-backed Gull   Cape Henlopen State Park
Caspian Tern   Bombay Hook
Forster's Tern   Prime Hook
Royal Tern   Cape Henlopen State Park
Common Loon   Cedar Bonnet Island
Northern Gannet   Island Beach SP
Double-crested Cormorant   Cape Henlopen State Park
Brown Pelican   Cape Henlopen State Park
Great Blue Heron   Prime Hook
Great Egret   Bombay Hook
Snowy Egret   Bombay Hook
Little Blue Heron   Cedar Bonnet Island
Tricolored Heron   Bombay Hook
Cattle Egret   IBSP Marina
Black-crowned Night-Heron   Island Beach SP
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron   Great Bay Blvd
Roseate Spoonbill   Bombay Hook
Black Vulture   Cape Henlopen State Park
Turkey Vulture   N Dupont Hwy, Dover
Osprey   Prime Hook
Northern Harrier   Bombay Hook
Sharp-shinned Hawk   Cape Henlopen State Park
Cooper's Hawk   Colliers Mills WMA
Bald Eagle   Bombay Hook
Red-tailed Hawk   Colliers Mills WMA
Belted Kingfisher   Whitesbog
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Cape Henlopen State Park
Red-bellied Woodpecker   Dover
Downy Woodpecker   Cape Henlopen State Park
Hairy Woodpecker   Reeves Bogs
Northern Flicker   Dover
American Kestrel   Colliers Mills WMA
Merlin   Reeves Bogs
Peregrine Falcon   Island Beach SP
Eastern Phoebe   Cape Henlopen State Park
Blue-headed Vireo   Island Beach SP
Red-eyed Vireo   Cape Henlopen State Park
Blue Jay   Dover
American Crow   Dover
Fish Crow   Point Pleasant
Common Raven   Whitesbog
Carolina Chickadee   Dover
Tufted Titmouse   Dover
Tree Swallow   Bombay Hook
Bank Swallow   Brig
Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Cape Henlopen State Park
Golden-crowned Kinglet   Cape Henlopen State Park
Red-breasted Nuthatch   Island Beach SP
White-breasted Nuthatch   Reeves Bogs
Brown-headed Nuthatch   Cape Henlopen State Park
Brown Creeper   South Park Rd
Winter Wren   Island Beach SP
Marsh Wren   Brig
Carolina Wren   Dover
European Starling   Dover
Gray Catbird   Cape Henlopen State Park
Brown Thrasher   Whitesbog
Northern Mockingbird   Dover
Eastern Bluebird   Cape Henlopen State Park
Gray-cheeked Thrush   Reeves Bogs
Hermit Thrush   Island Beach SP
American Robin   Cape Henlopen State Park
Cedar Waxwing   Island Beach SP
House Sparrow   Wawa Dover
House Finch   35 Sunset Rd
American Goldfinch   Bombay Hook
Chipping Sparrow   Cape Henlopen State Park
Clay-colored Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Field Sparrow   Colliers Mills WMA
Dark-eyed Junco   Island Beach SP
White-crowned Sparrow   Island Beach SP
White-throated Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Saltmarsh Sparrow   Great Bay Blvd
Savannah Sparrow   Bombay Hook
Song Sparrow   Reeves Bogs
Swamp Sparrow   Reeves Bogs
Eastern Towhee   Bombay Hook
Eastern Meadowlark   Great Bay Blvd
Red-winged Blackbird   Bombay Hook
Brown-headed Cowbird   Cedar Bonnet Island
Rusty Blackbird   Reeves Bogs
Common Grackle   Island Beach SP
Boat-tailed Grackle   Island Beach SP
Northern Waterthrush   Island Beach SP
Black-and-white Warbler   Cape Henlopen State Park
Common Yellowthroat   Reeves Bogs
American Redstart   Island Beach SP
Northern Parula   Island Beach SP
Blackpoll Warbler   Island Beach SP
Black-throated Blue Warbler   Island Beach SP
Palm Warbler   35 Sunset Rd
Pine Warbler   Cape Henlopen State Park
Yellow-rumped Warbler   Reeves Bogs
Northern Cardinal   Dover
Indigo Bunting   Colliers Mills WMA

Bunker Hill Bogs 5/13--Prothonotary Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler

"Sweet Sweet Sweet," it was this morning in Bunker Hill Bogs, a site I haven't visited for quite some time. I went in from Butterfly Road, what I think of as the "back way" after first visiting FREC and Butterfly Bogs. I had just seen a striking Scarlet Tanager in a pine tree as I came out on to the abandoned bogs. I first heard it singing but didn't know what it was or where it was; then, with my head swiveling in all directions I saw the brilliant red against the green tree. A few more steps brought me to the edge of the bog where I usually find Wood Ducks. I had just been thinking that I hadn't seen a Yellow Warbler and would expect to when I heard a song. "Oh, there's one," I said to myself and immediately corrected myself when I realized the song wasn't a Yellow's "Sweet, Sweet, I'm so sweet," but the "Sweet sweet sweet" etc of the Prothonotary Warbler. I could see the bird flitting about in the thicket but it wouldn't come out to show any field marks. I was very confident in my i.d. since the bird and song on my phone app were identical, to the point where I wasn't sure when my phone was playing and when the real bird was singing.

I walked through the boggy area and into the forested area. I wasn't see that much until, as so often happens, I came to one spot where all the birds seemed to be congregating--Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Black-and-white Warblers, Yellow-rumped Warblers, and my first Black-throated Green Warbler of the year. Usually, I find this species in the "bowl" north of Reeds Road on IBSP, but I'm avoiding that narrow path right now--too popular--so I was happy to find the bird in another spot.

On the way back I was surprised by 4 Glossy Ibises flying out of the back bog. Never see them in this area of Ocean County.

FREC and Butterfly Bogs were also spots I hadn't visited in a long time. Both had enough birds to keep me occupied but nothing of note.

The day list for the 3 spots which are all within a mile of each other yet have very different habitats.
Number of Taxa: 45
15 Canada Goose 
1 Wood Duck 
2 Mallard 
1 Mourning Dove
1 Great Egret 
4 Glossy Ibis 
3 Turkey Vulture 
3 Red-bellied Woodpecker
2 Downy Woodpecker
1 Northern Flicker 
5 Great Crested Flycatcher 
6 White-eyed Vireo 
1 Warbling Vireo 
1 Red-eyed Vireo 
2 American Crow 
2 Fish Crow 
5 Carolina Chickadee 
1 Tufted Titmouse
35 Tree Swallow
2 White-breasted Nuthatch 
8 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 
3 House Wren 
2 Carolina Wren 
4 European Starling 
27 Gray Catbird
5 Eastern Bluebird 
3 Wood Thrush
10 American Robin 
2 House Finch 
2 American Goldfinch 
3 Chipping Sparrow 
1 Song Sparrow 
6 Eastern Towhee 
30 Red-winged Blackbird 
10 Common Grackle 
7 Ovenbird 
5 Black-and-white Warbler 
1 Prothonotary Warbler
12 Common Yellowthroat 
1 Northern Parula 
2 Pine Warbler -
3 Yellow-rumped Warbler 
1 Black-throated Green Warbler 
1 Scarlet Tanager 
5 Northern Cardinal 

BC Fairgrounds 8/21--American Golden-Plover

"Sod-farming" is not my favorite style of birding. It consists of standing on the side of busy roads in Monmouth and Mercer Counties, scanning clods of dirt on the various Reed Sod Farms scattered through those counties. Once in a blue moon you find a "grasspiper." Most times you see a lot of Killdeer and starlings, while big trucks sweep behind you and cars honk their horns because they can. There is little walking involved. You won't build up a big list. There is always a haze on the fields and sun glare in your eyes. What's not to like?

But I do it every year because...you just might get lucky. Yesterday's episode with Mike started out with us thinking we had, then became a disappointment, and was finally rescued on the grounds of a former sod farm.

If I'm going to sod farm, my favorite spot to do it is on Rt 526 Spur, using the parking lot of the Reed Recreation Area as my viewing spot and looking across the road to the farm. While there is often the blur of a speeding vehicle in your scope's eyepiece, you are at least not right in the line of traffic. That was our second stop of the morning, the first farm, across from the White Birch Farm, being a haven for starlings and nothing else.

Horned Lark
Photo: Mike Mandracchia

I'd seen a few birds moving int he torn up dirt, so we set up our scopes and they weren't the Least Sandpipers I thought they might be, but instead were "land birds." They were hard to see, since they kept disappearing behinds hunks of dirt and the lighting was terrible, but we could clearly see white bellies, wing bars, and a facial pattern that suggested a sparrow-like bird. There aren't a lot of birds that like that kind of barren habitat--larks, pipits, and longspurs are about the only ones. We knew they weren't pipits, they sure didn't look like larks to us, McCown's Longspur would be an astonishing rarity and they didn't look like that species either, so we defaulted to another somewhat less rare rarity--Lapland Longspur.

We were pretty excited, but we didn't put out an alert (thanks be to caution) because while the birds looked convincing they weren't 100%. We ran up to the farm on Herbert Road where we ran into our friend Bob D and told him about our find. He turned around and drove down there. We were just pulling into the Mercer Corporate Park (nothing) when he called and said all he saw were Horned Larks. We drove back there as he was leaving, scoped the field again, and did indeed find one obvious Horned Lark. The birds we had been seeing weren't in sight.  Looking at the lark with its yellow breast and black collar only convinced us that our original ID was correct.

It wasn't until we got to the BC Fairgrounds that we got shot down. Mike had sent a picture to Scott who said, basically, nope, lark. What a let down! I get birds wrong all the time, but to be so far off makes me cringe. And it still doesn't really look like a lark to me--must be immature or a female.

I got the bad news from Mike while I was scanning the mowed field beyond the parking lot at the fairgrounds. Those fields use to be called the Mercer Sod Farm, so technically we were still sod farming. We'd come there because an American Golden-Plover had been reported. Now, this is not the place I want my golden-plover. I want it in Whitesbog. Mike is not so fussy.

I moving my scope west to east: Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer, Killdeer...I was up to 55 Killdeers when I finally hit "not a Killdeer" and found the plover. Mike quickly got on the bird. Too far out for photography. We spend a lot of time looking at this plover. Didn't want to get burned again. But it was a no doubter. There had been 3 Upland Sandpipers in the field for the last week or so but only one remained. Whether 2 had flown out and one straggler stayed, or 3 had flown out and this was a replacement is impossible to say. You only need one. Just for fun, Mike kept counting Killdeers. He ended up with 120. Sounds like a lot until you hear that someone else counted 192.

With that we gave up on sod farming and on the way home, stopped in at Bunker Hill Bogs, which, we happy to find, is now passable. It seems like for almost a year the trails were flooded, but we had no problems walking the length of the trail from the parking to Butterfly Road and back. We accumulated 31 species, including 5 species of warblers (yellowthroat, pine, redstart, Ovenbird, Black-and-White), which is not bad for mid-day, mid-summer.

September Wrap-up

Tricolor Heron, Spizzle Creek, Island Beach SP

Snowy Egret, Spizzle Creek, Island Beach SP

I got dem Why am I always in the wrong place? migration blues. Once again, migration was a frustrating season to me, so much so that I am formulating Zirlin Third Law of Birding which states that "Wherever you are, you should be someplace else."

So if I was at Higbee's Beach today, where I didn't see much, I should have been somewhere in Burlington County. If I was on Reed's Road on Tuesday, I should have been there on Wednesday. Or Monday, since I seem to be a day late. If I was at Assunpink this week, according to my informant, I should have been there last week. Or the week before that. Or the week before that, but certainly not the day I was there.

This is not to say I had a disappointing month. I found a lot of species (170) including 10 year birds, but it was work. Never did I have one of those magical days where the warblers are falling out and you don't know where to look first. I built the list in dribs and drabs and lots of walking.

Rarities weren't much of a problem this month--I finally got the Roseate Spoonbill I would have like to have had for Ocean County; on the other hand, I finally got Wood Stork for Ocean County. Plus a county Red-necked Phalarope.

Today, down in Cape May with Mike, we knew migration was winding down when we encountered our first Yellow-rumped Warblers in the state park. When they show up, you know you probably only have a few more days to scramble up any warblers you're missing for the year.  The shorebirds have all pretty much departed, judging from a run around Brig this afternoon. Soon it will be waterfowl, gulls, and raptors--and the winter finch report is not promising since there is a lot of food up in the boreal forest this year.

This month's list:
Counties birded: Atlantic, Bergen, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland, Monmouth, Ocean.

Species                First Sighting

Snow Goose   Brig

Canada Goose   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Mute Swan   Forsythe-Barnegat

Wood Duck   Colliers Mills WMA

Blue-winged Teal   Island Beach SP

Northern Shoveler   Brig

Gadwall   Brig

American Wigeon   Cape May Point SP

Mallard   Colliers Mills WMA

American Black Duck   Brig

Northern Pintail   Brig

Green-winged Teal   Brig

Hooded Merganser   Brig

Ruddy Duck   Cape May Point SP

Wild Turkey   County Hwy-539

Common Loon   Island Beach SP

Pied-billed Grebe   Brig

Wood Stork   Forsythe-Barnegat

Double-crested Cormorant   Forsythe-Barnegat

American White Pelican   Richard W. DeKorte Park

Brown Pelican   Island Beach SP

Great Blue Heron   Whitesbog

Great Egret   Whitesbog

Snowy Egret   Forsythe-Barnegat

Little Blue Heron   Island Beach SP

Tricolored Heron   Island Beach SP

Green Heron   Whitesbog

Black-crowned Night-Heron   Great Bay Blvd

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron   Island Beach SP

Glossy Ibis   Brig

Roseate Spoonbill   Heislerville WMA

Black Vulture   New Egypt

Turkey Vulture   W Colliers Mill Rd

Osprey   Island Beach SP

Northern Harrier   Sandy Hook

Sharp-shinned Hawk   Higbee Beach WMA

Cooper's Hawk   New Egypt

Bald Eagle   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Broad-winged Hawk   Cape May Point SP

Red-tailed Hawk   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Clapper Rail   Brig

Sora   Brig

American Avocet   Brig

American Oystercatcher   Sandy Hook

Black-bellied Plover   Sandy Hook

American Golden-Plover   Whitesbog

Semipalmated Plover   Forsythe-Barnegat

Piping Plover   Sandy Hook

Killdeer   Colliers Mills WMA

Upland Sandpiper   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Whimbrel   Sandy Hook

Ruddy Turnstone   Island Beach SP

Red Knot   Island Beach SP

Stilt Sandpiper   Brig

Sanderling   Sandy Hook

Dunlin   Brig

Least Sandpiper   New Egypt

White-rumped Sandpiper   Brig

Buff-breasted Sandpiper   Sandy Hook

Pectoral Sandpiper   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Semipalmated Sandpiper   Forsythe-Barnegat

Western Sandpiper   Brig

Short-billed Dowitcher   Brig

Wilson's Snipe   Whitesbog

Red-necked Phalarope   New Egypt

Spotted Sandpiper   Island Beach SP

Solitary Sandpiper   New Egypt

Greater Yellowlegs   Whitesbog

Willet   Sandy Hook

Lesser Yellowlegs   New Egypt

Laughing Gull   Forsythe-Barnegat

Ring-billed Gull   Brig

Herring Gull   Forsythe-Barnegat

Great Black-backed Gull   Island Beach SP

Caspian Tern   Brig

Black Tern   Sandy Hook

Common Tern   Sandy Hook

Forster's Tern   Forsythe-Barnegat

Royal Tern   Island Beach SP

Black Skimmer   Forsythe-Barnegat

Rock Pigeon   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Mourning Dove   New Egypt

Yellow-billed Cuckoo   Sandy Hook

Common Nighthawk   Sandy Hook

Eastern Whip-poor-will   35 Sunset Rd

Chimney Swift   Whitesbog

Ruby-throated Hummingbird   35 Sunset Rd

Belted Kingfisher   Colliers Mills WMA

Red-bellied Woodpecker   Colliers Mills WMA

Downy Woodpecker   Union Transportation Trail

Hairy Woodpecker   Sandy Hook

Northern Flicker   Island Beach SP

American Kestrel   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Merlin   Whitesbog

Peregrine Falcon   Brig

Olive-sided Flycatcher   Richard W. DeKorte Park

Eastern Wood-Pewee   Colliers Mills WMA

Yellow-bellied Flycatcher   Sandy Hook

Eastern Phoebe   Union Transportation Trail

Great Crested Flycatcher   Whitesbog

Eastern Kingbird   Sandy Hook

White-eyed Vireo   Colliers Mills WMA

Philadelphia Vireo   Sandy Hook

Warbling Vireo   Bunker Hill Bogs

Red-eyed Vireo   Bunker Hill Bogs

Blue Jay   35 Sunset Rd

American Crow   New Egypt

Fish Crow   Colliers Mills WMA

Purple Martin   Whitesbog

Tree Swallow   Whitesbog

Barn Swallow   Colliers Mills WMA

Carolina Chickadee   Colliers Mills WMA

Black-capped Chickadee   Sandy Hook

Tufted Titmouse   35 Sunset Rd

White-breasted Nuthatch   Colliers Mills WMA

House Wren   Sandy Hook

Marsh Wren   Jake's Landing

Carolina Wren   Colliers Mills WMA

Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Sandy Hook

Eastern Bluebird   Colliers Mills WMA

American Robin   Union Transportation Trail

Gray Catbird   Colliers Mills WMA

Brown Thrasher   Island Beach SP

Northern Mockingbird   New Egypt

European Starling   Mercer Sod Farm IBA

Cedar Waxwing   Sandy Hook

Ovenbird   Sandy Hook

Northern Waterthrush   Sandy Hook

Blue-winged Warbler   Island Beach SP

Black-and-white Warbler   Island Beach SP

Nashville Warbler   IBSP--A11 path

Connecticut Warbler   Sandy Hook

Common Yellowthroat   Union Transportation Trail

American Redstart   Union Transportation Trail

Cape May Warbler   Sandy Hook

Northern Parula   Sandy Hook

Magnolia Warbler   Sandy Hook

Bay-breasted Warbler   Sandy Hook

Yellow Warbler   Brig

Chestnut-sided Warbler   Sandy Hook

Blackpoll Warbler   Sandy Hook

Black-throated Blue Warbler   Sandy Hook

Palm Warbler   Brig

Pine Warbler   Whitesbog

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Cape May Point SP

Prairie Warbler   Island Beach SP

Black-throated Green Warbler   Sandy Hook

Canada Warbler   Sandy Hook

Wilson's Warbler   Brig

Saltmarsh Sparrow   Brig

Seaside Sparrow   Brig

Chipping Sparrow   Colliers Mills WMA

Field Sparrow   Sandy Hook

White-throated Sparrow   Sandy Hook

Savannah Sparrow   Brig

Song Sparrow   Union Transportation Trail

Swamp Sparrow   Sandy Hook

Eastern Towhee   Colliers Mills WMA

Scarlet Tanager   Sandy Hook

Northern Cardinal   35 Sunset Rd

Blue Grosbeak   Manasquan River WMA

Indigo Bunting   Sandy Hook

Yellow-headed Blackbird   Brig

Bobolink   Whitesbog

Red-winged Blackbird   Union Transportation Trail

Brown-headed Cowbird   Union Transportation Trail

Boat-tailed Grackle   Brig

House Finch   35 Sunset Rd

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd

House Sparrow   New Egypt