January Wrap-up

Greater White-Fronted Goose

It's winter in New Jersey; it's supposed to be cold. But I don't remember a stretch a sub-freezing weather lasting this long--over a week--where the mid-20's might be the high for the day. And with no temperatures above 32 that leaves the 9 or so inches of ice-covered snow still on the ground. Which really cuts down on the places one can bird, since paths through woods or fields don't usually get ploughed. I went to Whitesbog this week to check out what was accessible, since it is part of my territory for the Pinelands Winter Bird Count which was scheduled for tomorrow. Happily, that got postponed, since only a very small portion of Whitesbog was clear enough to walk. The conditions around here are so bad that I can't even get to our feeders because the backyard is like an ice rink and as much as I love birds, I'm not going to break a leg for them. 

So, with those lousy conditions at the end of the month, how did I do? 105 species. Exactly the same as last January, which was, according to Jersey Central Power & Light, actually 2 degrees colder on average than this month. It was a good month for the rare geese--Cackling Goose, Ross's Goose, and the Greater White-fronted Geese Mike & I found on the CBC. I got the immature Trumpeter Swan on the year and county list before it disappeared from Stafford Forge. The early herons at the Lighthouse Center were the last new birds I listed for the month before the deep freeze set in. 

But, you know me: Always the optimist, always the one looking for the positive aspect of any situation and here's the good news about the relentlessly bitter weather: It will keep the tick population down this summer because even now the inner fluids of those little bastards are freezing beneath the snow and they are exploding from the internal pressure. Thus, the happy consequence of this weather: Death.

Species              First Sighting
Ross's Goose   Maris Stella
Greater White-fronted Goose   Ocean Acres Park
Brant   Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Cackling Goose   Marshall's Pond
Canada Goose   Sandy Hook
Mute Swan   Holly Lake
Trumpeter Swan   Stafford Forge WMA
Tundra Swan   Bamber Lake
Northern Shoveler   Marshall's Pond
Gadwall   Marshall's Pond
American Wigeon   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Mallard   Sandy Hook
American Black Duck   Sandy Hook
Green-winged Teal   Ocean Acres Pond
Ring-necked Duck   Stanley H. 'Tip' Seaman County Park
Greater Scaup   Sandy Hook
Lesser Scaup   Lake Carasaljo
Harlequin Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Surf Scoter   Sandy Hook
White-winged Scoter   Sandy Hook
Black Scoter   Sandy Hook
Long-tailed Duck   Sandy Hook
Bufflehead   Sandy Hook
Common Goldeneye   Sandy Hook
Hooded Merganser   Bridge to Nowhere
Common Merganser   Lake Carasaljo
Red-breasted Merganser   Sandy Hook
Ruddy Duck   Cattus Island County Park
Rock Pigeon   Wawa South Toms River
Mourning Dove   35 Sunset Rd
Black-bellied Plover   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Killdeer   Ocean Acres Park
Greater Yellowlegs   Eno’s Pond
Sanderling   Sandy Hook
Dunlin   Holgate
Purple Sandpiper   Seven Presidents Park
Razorbill   Island Beach SP
Ring-billed Gull   35 Sunset Rd
American Herring Gull   Sandy Hook
Great Black-backed Gull   Sandy Hook
Pied-billed Grebe   Lake Carasaljo
Red-throated Loon   Island Beach SP
Common Loon   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Great Cormorant   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Double-crested Cormorant   Sandy Hook
Little Blue Heron   Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Tricolored Heron   Lighthouse Center for Natural Resource Education
Great Egret   West Creek Dock Rd.
Great Blue Heron   Holly Lake
Black Vulture   Manahawkin
Turkey Vulture   Stafford Township
Sharp-shinned Hawk   Stafford Township
Cooper's Hawk   Great Bay Bvld. WMA
Northern Harrier   Bridge to Nowhere
Bald Eagle   Stanley H. 'Tip' Seaman County Park
Red-shouldered Hawk   Butterfly Bogs WMA
Red-tailed Hawk   Colliers Mills WMA
Eastern Screech-Owl   Beach Ave
Great Horned Owl   Beach Ave
Belted Kingfisher   Manahawkin WMA
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Stanley H. 'Tip' Seaman County Park
Red-headed Woodpecker   Colliers Mills WMA
Red-bellied Woodpecker   Sandy Hook
Downy Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd
Hairy Woodpecker   Beach Ave
Northern Flicker   Beach Ave
Merlin   Cranberry Bogs
Blue Jay   35 Sunset Rd
American Crow   35 Sunset Rd
Fish Crow   Mud City
Common Raven   Stanley H. 'Tip' Seaman County Park
Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd
Black-capped Chickadee   Sandy Hook
Tufted Titmouse   35 Sunset Rd
Horned Lark   Sandy Hook
Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Manahawkin WMA
Golden-crowned Kinglet   Manahawkin WMA
White-breasted Nuthatch   35 Sunset Rd
Red-breasted Nuthatch   35 Sunset Rd
Brown Creeper   Colliers Mills WMA
Carolina Wren   35 Sunset Rd
European Starling   Stanley H. 'Tip' Seaman County Park
Northern Mockingbird   Sandy Hook
Eastern Bluebird   35 Sunset Rd
Hermit Thrush   Stanley H. 'Tip' Seaman County Park
American Robin   35 Sunset Rd
House Sparrow   Holly Lake
House Finch   35 Sunset Rd
Red Crossbill   Whitesbog
American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd
Lapland Longspur   Sandy Hook
Snow Bunting   Sandy Hook
Chipping Sparrow   Colliers Mills WMA
Dark-eyed Junco   35 Sunset Rd
White-throated Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd
Savannah Sparrow   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Song Sparrow   Stanley H. 'Tip' Seaman County Park
Swamp Sparrow   Beach Ave
Red-winged Blackbird   Manahawkin WMA
Brown-headed Cowbird   Little Egg Harbor Twp
Rusty Blackbird   Manahawkin WMA
Common Grackle   Cattus Island County Park
Boat-tailed Grackle   West Creek Dock Rd.
Yellow-rumped Warbler   35 Sunset Rd
Northern Cardinal   35 Sunset Rd

Ocean Acres Lake Park | Stafford Forge WMA 1/4--Greater White-fronted Goose, Trumpeter Swan

Greater White-fronted Geese, Ocean Acres Lake Park

The day started at 5 AM down on Beach Avenue in Manahawkin, where I met Mike to start our annual survey for the Barnegat Christmas Bird Count. Obviously, in winter, in the dark, the only birds one expects are owls. We had one Eastern Screech-Owl and one Great Horned Owl call from different parts of the woods along the road and after about 40 minutes we moved over to Stafford Avenue where we heard 3 more Screech Owls and another Great Horned.  We hope for other more exotic owls--we've had them in the past, but we were happy with these two species, especially the individuals that were calling loudly and seemed like they were just off the road. 

We moved down the road just before sunrise and parked at the Bridge to Nowhere. We were hoping for Short-eared Owls hunting the marsh, but we struck out, the second time in a couple of weeks where I've been unlucky in the morning. For some reason, they get reported at sundown. They should still be active before the sun comes up, but apparently they don't know that. We did get a Northern Harrier starting the day shift, as well a Bald Eagle and little flock of Great Blue Herons, but we didn't linger, since we have a fair amount of territory to cover. 

We parked my car in the Manahawkin WMA lot on Hilliard and took a walk in the woods and fields there--best birds were a Rusty Blackbird in with a flock of Red-winged Blackbirds, both kinglets and a Belted Kingfisher. 

After a Wawa coffee run, we looked around the fields near MATES, and had some Yellow-rumped Warblers and a Sharp-shinned Hawk. We also had our first huge flock of Canada Geese--about 400--on an athletic field. We scanned them for Cackling Geese, but there weren't any in there. Driving around the residential area nearby we didn't find much beyond the expected tweety birds. 

We hit our other spots--the bay from East Bay Avenue, a drive through Mud City and then we drove over to Manahawkin Lake where there was another huge flock of Canada Geese, but they were too far to pick out anything unusual. We did get about 20 Ring-necked Ducks there. 

Then it was up Rt 72 to Ocean Acres where we like to check out the retention pond just off the highway. About half the water was stiff, but among the big flock of Mallards we managed to add Green-winged Teal to our day list. Deeper in the community there is a big park with a lake but for the last few years it hasn't produced very much, and Mike suggested skipping it, but since it was still early we figured what the heck and drove over. Again, most of the water was frozen, but standing on the ice was our third big flock of Canada Geese. These were close enough to scan with a scope and while Mike was hoping for a Cackling, for some reason I got it into my head that finding something more exotic would be cool. Again, out of the 300 or so geese there, nothing looked like a candidate for the RBA. We did get a couple of Killdeer and had our first bluebirds of the day. We got in the car and were driving through the parking lot to turn around when we saw more geese feeding the in the grass. "Wait a minute, I said, one of those isn't a Canada Goose." Mike stopped and we looked and I said, "Greater White-Fronted Goose!" Mike, looking through the flock, said, "They're all white-fronted geese."

"No, there must be 15 of them." (It turned out to be 17 in the flock when we carefully counted.) Finding one GWFG is a noteworthy. Finding a flock of them is an event. Last year, Steve found about 24 GWFG at Shelter Cove, which I think is the record for the NJ. The Sixth Law of Birding is "You only need one." But 17 is pretty impressive. Since neither Mike nor I am on any social media or rare bird alerts we couldn't get the word out directly, but Mike texted one of our friends who runs the local RBA and she put out the message. Not that it mattered. No sooner did we get back in the car than the grass was empty of geese. Mike said they flew back into the lake, but we couldn't find them. Word reached me later in the day that someone had gone to look for them and they weren't there, so there, as in so much of birding was luck for us with that flock's life line briefly intersecting our life lines and adding a bird to the Barnegat CBC. 

Trumpeter Swan,
Stafford Forge WMA

We putzed around some more after lunch, but I was getting fatigued and we both had another rarity on our agenda--the continuing juvenile Trumpeter Swan at Stafford Forge.  So around 2 o'clock we wrapped our end of the CBC and drove down the parkway about 6 miles. I'd gone there yesterday--twice-- when the entire lake was frozen and dipped. I was especially outrage when I saw someone report the swan sleeping on the ice because I scoped that lump and it was either ice-caked vegetation or a dead swan. But later in the day the real swan reappeared--there must be hidden, inaccessible areas of the lake where it can hang out unseen--so I was determined to add it to my year list for the state and county. It took us all of about 2 minutes to find the bird this time--it was the only swan on the lake--in fact, aside from 3 Mallards, it was the only waterfowl there. We looked, we snapped some pictures, we headed home. 

For the day we had 53 species for our contribution to the 101st (!) Barnegat CBC, plus the Trumpeter Swan. 

Stafford Forge WMA 12/26--Trumpeter Swan

A few days ago, Trumpeter Swan popped up on my Rare Bird Alerts for Ocean County. With no photos attached and an unhelpful "This is a Trumpeter Swan" in the details box, my reaction was "Yeah, right."  The site, Stafford Forge WMA, often has Tundra Swans in the lake and since there has never been a Trumpeter Swan in Ocean (in fact, the only accepted records in NJ for Trumpeters that I know of were the birds at Assunpink that showed up for about 10 consecutive years, though not this year), I assumed it was a misidentification. It happens all the time. Last year someone swore he had 20 Trumpeters in Burlington County. They were Tundras. There have been reports of a Trumpeter at Whitesbog. I've gone to look--Tundra. 

But yesterday some pictures showed up on the alerts from birders I respect and the bird, an immature one, looked pretty good for Trumpeter. This morning, I drove down there and almost immediately found the bird in question, near 4 Mute Swans. Everything about the swan looked good for Trumpeter--a triangular, canvasback-like bill, a V at the base of the bill where it meets the head, pink at the base, black at the tip, a thick neck --save for the fact that it looked small. Trumpeter Swans are about the same size at Mute Swans. Tundra Swans are smaller. Compared to the Mute Swans this swan was, if anything, intermediate between them and a Tundra Swan. I was hoping that this wasn't an Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds situation, where everybody sees what they want to see. If I’d encountered this bird with no expectations, I probably would have assumed Tundra because it appeared on the smaller side. After checking references at home, I learned that Trumpeter cygnets don’t attain adult proportions until their second summer. Understanding that explained the apparent discrepancy, and I felt comfortable identifying it as a Trumpeter—a year bird and, even better, a life county bird.

October Review--Barrier Island Edition

Fully half the species I saw this month were from Island Beach SP, and most of those were listed on the first day of the month on Scott's NJ Audubon trip. Throw in three trips to Cedar Bonnet Island, a couple of trips to Holgate on the south end of LBI and a trip to the north end at Barnegat Lighthouse SP and almost all my birds this month were from barrier islands. Of the 5 year birds this month, 3 of them came from that great trip on 10/1--the Lark Sparrow, the Dickcissel, and my first life bird since Oregon, the CORY'S SHEARWATER. 

The other two species I listed this month were Bobolink on Cedar Bonnet Island and Nelson's Sparrow down at the end of Great Bay Blvd where they're fairly reliable this time of year, albeit frustratingly elusive, running through the spartina like mice instead of flying around like any other self-respecting sparrow. 

There were, though, a few sightings this month that amused me for one reason or another (and amusement, when you boil it all down, is the point of all this folderol). 

In the middle of the month Shari & I had to spend a lost, rainy weekend in Dobbs Ferry, NY, for reasons too dull to go into here, where the highlight of the trip (aside from leaving) was crossing the Tappan Zee Bridge (aka The Mario S. Cuomo Bridge) on our way home and seeing a Bald Eagle fly over the Hudson. I was astonished to discover, upon looking at my eBird records, that it was a state lifer, the first Bald Eagle I'd ever seen in New York State. Upon reflection, I realized it wasn't all that amazing since when we lived in NY we rarely ventured outside the 5 boroughs and eagles, at least 12+ years ago, were not a humdrum sighting as they are here. It was also, my first Rockland County listing ever. As I said, we rarely left the city limits to do our birding back then. 

I hardly ever go into the Whiting WMA behind our house anymore because I pretty much know what I'm going to find back there. But last week I took a long walk around it and no surprise, found what I expected--Pine Warblers, chickadees, titmice, bluebirds, jays, woodpeckers, and so on. However, at the pond that is back there I saw four American Black Ducks. I've seen Wood Ducks back there, ring-necks, Hooded Mergansers, & Mallards, of course, but to my memory I'd never seen black ducks until last week. I checked when I got home, and I was right. They are the 100th species listed in that hot spot, of which I have seen 97. (I have to say that I am dubious about the Red-headed Woodpecker listing, but I can't disprove it and it isn't totally out of the question.) I also saw 6 Great Blue Herons fly out of the trees at the pond, so there may be a roost back there, but I'm not that motivated to traipse back again to find out. 

Eared Grebe
Manasquan Reservoir

I took a walk around the Manasquan Reservoir this month, and just to see if I could do it, looked for the Eared Grebe that was reported. Lots and lots of Ruddy Ducks in the SW corner and, true to the rule, just as I gave up, what should float into my scope view but the Eared Grebe. I managed a digiscope photo, but since it wasn't even a year bird (Oregon), it wasn't noteworthy enough for a full entry. It isn't exactly an accomplishment to find a bird that is supposed to be there. 

On Sunday, I found myself at Stafford Forge. I was hoping for ducks in the reservoir there, but my hopes were without feathers. Walking around the big field in the front, I saw a bird skulk off the path into the woods. Immediately I recognized it as a Chukar, and of course, knew I couldn't count it, but, if you want to be amused, there's the bird that will do it for you. I can't help but anthropomorphize and think that this survivor (obviously, they are released in the WMA) was giving me a baleful look over its shoulder, as if to say, "I got this far without being killed, are you going to give me grief too?" It is a pretty bird; I wish I'd seen one out west where they are countable.

Chukar, Stafford Forge

And speaking of countable: eBird did its taxonomy revision this month. I knew I was going to "lose" one species when the Pacific-slope and Corderillan flycatchers were lumped together as Western Flycatcher, but I didn't realize that the Cattle Egrets I saw in Australia were now distinct from the Cattle Egrets I've seen everywhere else, or that the Intermediate Egret I saw in South Africa was now Yellow-billed Egret, whereas the ones I saw in Australia are now Plumed Egret, or that the Gull-billed Terns we saw in Australia are no longer Gull-billed Terns but are rather Australian Terns. That made for a net gain of 2 birds on my life list. 

For this month, barring any splits or lumps, I listed 139 species:

Species   First Sighting
Brant   Great Bay Blvd
Canada Goose   Island Beach SP
Mute Swan   Cedar Bonnet Island
Wood Duck   Reeves Bogs
American Wigeon   Manasquan Reservoir IBA
Mallard   Island Beach SP
American Black Duck   Cedar Bonnet Island
Green-winged Teal   Island Beach SP
Ring-necked Duck   Deer Head Lake
Lesser Scaup   Assunpink WMA
Black Scoter   Island Beach SP
Bufflehead   Bamber Lake
Hooded Merganser   Manasquan Reservoir IBA
Red-breasted Merganser   Island Beach SP
Ruddy Duck   Whitesbog
Wild Turkey   35 Sunset Rd
Pied-billed Grebe   Whitesbog
Eared Grebe   Manasquan Reservoir IBA
Rock Pigeon   South Toms River
Mourning Dove   South Toms River
Clapper Rail   Island Beach SP
American Coot   Manasquan Reservoir IBA
American Oystercatcher   Holgate
Black-bellied Plover   Great Bay Blvd
Killdeer   Double Trouble SP
Semipalmated Plover   Island Beach SP
Piping Plover   Holgate
Greater Yellowlegs   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Ruddy Turnstone   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Sanderling   Island Beach SP
Dunlin   Island Beach SP
White-rumped Sandpiper   Holgate
Least Sandpiper   Great Bay Blvd
Semipalmated Sandpiper   Holgate
Laughing Gull   Island Beach SP
Ring-billed Gull   Island Beach SP
Herring Gull   Island Beach SP
Great Black-backed Gull   Island Beach SP
Lesser Black-backed Gull   Island Beach SP
Caspian Tern   Holgate
Forster's Tern   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Common Tern   Island Beach SP
Royal Tern   Island Beach SP
Common Loon   Island Beach SP
CORY'S SHEARWATER   Island Beach SP
Northern Gannet   Island Beach SP
Double-crested Cormorant   Island Beach SP
Brown Pelican   Island Beach SP
Yellow-crowned Night Heron   Great Bay Blvd
Black-crowned Night Heron   Great Bay Blvd
Little Blue Heron   Island Beach SP
Tricolored Heron   Island Beach SP
Snowy Egret   Island Beach SP
Great Egret   Island Beach SP
Great Blue Heron   Island Beach SP
White Ibis   Island Beach SP
Black Vulture   Lake Takanassee
Turkey Vulture   Whitesbog
Osprey   Island Beach SP
Northern Harrier   Holgate
Sharp-shinned Hawk   Island Beach SP
Cooper's Hawk   Double Trouble SP
Bald Eagle   Tappan Zee Bridge
Red-shouldered Hawk   Whitesbog
Red-tailed Hawk   Wawa Lakehurst
Belted Kingfisher   Island Beach SP
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Cranberry Bogs
Red-bellied Woodpecker   Colliers Mills WMA
Downy Woodpecker   Island Beach SP
Hairy Woodpecker   Horicon Lake
Northern Flicker   Island Beach SP
Merlin   Island Beach SP
Peregrine Falcon   Island Beach SP
Eastern Wood-Pewee   Island Beach SP
Eastern Phoebe   Island Beach SP
White-eyed Vireo   Colliers Mills WMA
Blue-headed Vireo   Island Beach SP
Red-eyed Vireo   Island Beach SP
Blue Jay   35 Sunset Rd
American Crow   Horicon Lake
Fish Crow   Whitesbog
Common Raven   Double Trouble SP
Carolina Chickadee   Island Beach SP
Tufted Titmouse   Colliers Mills WMA
Horned Lark   Holgate
Tree Swallow   Island Beach SP
Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Island Beach SP
Golden-crowned Kinglet   Island Beach SP
White-breasted Nuthatch   Colliers Mills WMA
Red-breasted Nuthatch   Cedar Bonnet Island
Brown Creeper   Island Beach SP
House Wren   Island Beach SP
Winter Wren   Reeves Bogs
Marsh Wren   Cattus Island County Park
Carolina Wren   35 Sunset Rd
European Starling   South Toms River
Gray Catbird   Island Beach SP
Brown Thrasher   Island Beach SP
Northern Mockingbird   Island Beach SP
Eastern Bluebird   Colliers Mills WMA
Hermit Thrush   Island Beach SP
American Robin   Island Beach SP
Cedar Waxwing   Island Beach SP
House Sparrow   Island Beach SP
House Finch   Colliers Mills WMA
Pine Siskin   Double Trouble SP
American Goldfinch   Island Beach SP
Chipping Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Clay-colored Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Field Sparrow   Double Trouble SP
Lark Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Dark-eyed Junco   Island Beach SP
White-crowned Sparrow   Island Beach SP
White-throated Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Nelson's Sparrow   Great Bay Blvd
Savannah Sparrow   Whitesbog
Song Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Lincoln's Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Swamp Sparrow   Island Beach SP
Eastern Towhee   Colliers Mills WMA
Bobolink   Cedar Bonnet Island
Red-winged Blackbird   Island Beach SP
Common Grackle   Meadowedge Park
Boat-tailed Grackle   Island Beach SP
Black-and-white Warbler   Barnegat Lighthouse SP
Common Yellowthroat   Island Beach SP
American Redstart   Island Beach SP
Cape May Warbler   Island Beach SP
Magnolia Warbler   Island Beach SP
Bay-breasted Warbler   Island Beach SP
Black-throated Blue Warbler   Island Beach SP
Palm Warbler   Island Beach SP
Pine Warbler   Island Beach SP
Yellow-rumped Warbler   35 Sunset Rd
Wilson's Warbler   Island Beach SP
Northern Cardinal   Island Beach SP
Rose-breasted Grosbeak   Island Beach SP
Indigo Bunting   Island Beach SP
Dickcissel   Island Beach SP

Stafford Forge WMA 3/9--Red Crossbill

I birded Great Bay Blvd with Mike this morning and still had energy left over, so I stopped at Stafford Forge WMA, which is on my way home. I figured to get some walking in. The lake had a variety of waterfowl, and the grassy areas had robins and sparrows, but then, after that, the walk back into the woods was quiet. And for once, quiet was to my advantage.

I usually walk to a road that takes me to a backwater area. Just where I make the turn is a sandy area surrounded by pines. I heard one "jeep" from there and decided to take a look before heading for the water. Then the "jeep" repeated rapidly to "jip, jip, jip," and I had a funny feeling I knew what they were, even though I may go years without hearing them. I held up my phone with the Cornell's Merlin app open and bingo! I was hearing Red Crossbill over head.

Good. 

Then I heard more. Looking up, I saw a small flock fly over me, all calling "Jip, jip, jip." 

Better. 

And unlike most every time I've had crossbills fly over me, these stopped. I could see them in a dead tree directly ahead of me.   

Best.

And, amazingly, they just sat quietly in that tree, for what seemed like a very long time, but was, judging from the time stamps on my photos, about 6 minutes. I guess for an elusive bird like crossbills, that is a very long time. Long enough for me, with my ultra-slow-focusing camera, to get some decent shots of boths males and the yellowish females. My count was 7 crossbills in that tree. 

Bestest. 

And then, my camera battery died. And then, when I looked up again, they were gone. 

I made two recordings of their calls, only one of which I was able to upload to eBird. The other one, which is actually better quality, unfortunately caught me exclaiming an expletive in wonderment at my luck to run into these birds, all because I still needed exercise for the day. 

Male & female