New Egypt 3/15--A 7 Sparrow Day

Savannah Sparrow, Emson Preserve

To get away from the relentlessly bad news and to get out of the house while I'm still allowed to, I decided to finally explore the entire trail at the newest set aside land in Ocean County, the Ephraim P. Emson Preserve, which is on the well-known American Kestrel hot spot, West Colliers Mills Road, in New Egypt. I've birded the long driveway and parts of the woods, but today I decided that this would be where I did the bulk of my birding instead of treating it as an auxiliary to Colliers Mills.

Savannah Sparrow in greenbriar

And it was a very happy experience. Spring is not the time of year that I usually think about sparrows, but the driveway which is about 2/10 of a mile long and lined with thickets the whole length, was teeming with sparrows, as well as other birds. The Song Sparrows were a given, of course, but immediately upon exiting the car I had Field Sparrow, then a small flock of Chipping Sparrows (eBird only allows me 5, but there were probably more), juncos, still hanging in there, a couple of White-throated Sparrows, and probably best of all, 3 very pretty hopping through the greenbriar and low brush.

Eastern Bluebird

Other birds of note at the preserve were Eastern Meadowlarks in the field adjacent to the preserve (meadowlarks have been a very easy bird in the county this year), a kestrel hunting over the field across the road, a few bluebirds around the birdhouses at the head of the driveway, and, in the woods, a Hairy Woodpecker. I keep hoping for a Pileated in there, but no luck as of yet.

I had 30 species in my time there and while I enjoyed the walk in the woods, and even found a small pond that looks promising, more than half the birds I saw were along or around the driveway. That is one productive stretch of gravel.

Canada Goose  4    Flyover

Mourning Dove  2

Killdeer  1

Black Vulture  1

Turkey Vulture  3

Bald Eagle  1    flying low over field to west of driveway

Red-bellied Woodpecker  3    Heard

Downy Woodpecker  1    forest

Hairy Woodpecker  1     deep in hardwood forest

American Kestrel  1    In field across the road

Blue Jay  2

American Crow  1    Heard

Fish Crow  2

Carolina Chickadee  3

Tufted Titmouse  2    Heard

White-breasted Nuthatch  2

Carolina Wren  2    Heard

European Starling  2

Eastern Bluebird  3   

American Robin  30

Chipping Sparrow  5

Field Sparrow  3

Dark-eyed Junco  20

White-throated Sparrow  2

Savannah Sparrow  3

Song Sparrow  5

Eastern Meadowlark  4    

Red-winged Blackbird  3    In trees along driveway with a mixed flock

Brown-headed Cowbird  2    In trees along driveway with a mixed flock

Northern Cardinal  3    Saw two along driveway, heard one in woods

But wait...that's only 6 kinds of sparrows. Yes, the seventh species of sparrow was found in the usual spot on Brymore Road in New Egypt across from the muddy pastures, a White-crowned Sparrow that seems to hang out with the White-throated Sparrows that fly out of the tangles along the fence line to pick seeds out of the black dirt. Today was a good day to spot the sparrow because the sun was not glaring into my eyes, nor was it too gloomy and overcast which is the long way of saying that the light was perfect. (I'm not counting the House Sparrows that inhabit the dead trees and weeds around Lone Silo Farm as a species of sparrow--technically, I think they're finch-weavers.) I only got about 15 species there because I didn't drive on Inman. I knew I had to put the car in the garage today and didn't want it smelling like manure which it would have if I had driven through the muck and mire of that road. As it was, the stench was almost overwhelming. 

Red-headed Woodpecker, Colliers Mills

Even though it was Sunday and I knew Colliers Mills would be a lot more crowded than I like it (meaning somebody else is there besides me) I went over there to finish my "steps" and to amuse myself by looking for the Red-headed Woodpecker in the fields north of the burnt fields off Success Road. It took me a little while shuffling through what's left of the leaf litter after the burn in the woods but one of the pair popped up eventually. Once you find one they seem to stay still, contemplating the branch they're on as if they're deciding whether pecking is worth the effort. It give me, with my less than optimal photographic equipment, half a chance to get a photo. 

And that was it for me. Once I found the woodpecker, I scooted out of there as the pickup trucks zoomed down Success, kicking up clouds of dust. 

Manahawkin WMA 3/14--Blue-winged Teal

Of all the problems caused by the coronavirus catastrophe, social distancing is no hardship for me. Been practicing it all my life. So, instead of going on either of the NJ Audubon field trips scheduled for today, I went birding solo.

I started off at the Manahawkin WMA. May as well go there while the trails are mowed, because once they grow over, it is tick heaven. A perfect combination: Corona with Lyme. I knew that a difficult duck for the county had been spotted there a few days ago, and sure enough, in the back impoundment, there were three Blue-winged Teal. They were the last of the ducks to fly out as I approached, leaving only the imperturbable Mute Swans and a single drake Mallard. Most of the ducks must have flown to the front impoundment, because in there I found lots of teal of the green-wing persuasion, black ducks, Hooded Mergansers, and a lingering pintail. But not Blue-winged Teal. Possibly they were hiding in the phragmites (the front impoundment is fresh water), because later in the day they were reported again.

Bye-bye

I was hoping for more, as spring birds seem to be trickling in, but everything else was what you'd expect to see. I drove down to Tuckerton, thinking perhaps a yellowthroat or Osprey would be there but not yet. However, I was happy to find one Great Egret, since it was a county bird. It's risible--in a couple of months there could literally be 100 Great Egrets along the 4 miles of marsh that Great Bay Blvd transits, but today, I got my first one for Ocean County and it seemed like an event. This one, of course, was not cooperative even though I thought I was stealthily approaching it for a photo. I should have just tried a shot through the phrags from a distance instead of my clumsy stalking.

Again, everything else along the boulevard was what you would expect to find though Red-throated Loon and 5 Greater Yellowlegs were not obvious but the result of scanning. Last week there were hundreds of scaup and Brant in the bays. Today I found no scaup and a paltry 5 Brant. One Bald Eagle was on the nest at the end of the road. Again, an expected bird.

I don't know how long the frivolity of birding will be allowed, but until we're all shut in, watching our feeders, I'm going to get out and get 'em while I can.

Wash your hands, sneeze into your elbow, stay healthy.

Shelter Cove 3/11--Wilson's Snipe

That slightly darker spot in the grass? Wilson's Snipe

Talk about cryptic! Shelter Cove is usually a good place to find Wilson's Snipe, along with American Tree Sparrow, though up until today I've had no luck with either species. After seeing that Steve had seen one yesterday, I went over there early this morning, put on my rubber boots, and sloshed around the marshy area around the little grove of trees. Neither species appeared. I thought about going to the other side, nearer the road, but from where I stood, ankle deep in cold water, it didn't look too promising

I texted Steve and told him I was looking for "his" snipe. By the time he responded (I did say I was there early) I was just pulling into the parking lot of Cattus Island, about a mile away. He told me the bird was along the fence line--where I didn't check. Normally, I wouldn't have turned around and gone back but this time I did. I parked and walked along the road the length of the fence and saw nothing. Coming back, as it often happens, I spotted the snipe out of the corner of my eye, hunkered down in the grass, facing away from me. The "racing stripes" on its back and its coloration of brown and tan made its camouflage perfect. I took three pictures, the first one inadvertently while the camera was turning on. That is the only one where I captured evidence of its existence. In the other two I could see the bird in the viewfinder and when I pulled down the camera the bird had waddled into into the higher grass and reeds. I went inside the fence and looked around. I considered walking through the grass to flush it (and any friends it might have in there) but then thought, "Just leave the bird alone." So I returned to Cattus Island where I ran into Steve as I was leaving. He hadn't been able to refind the snipe and I see from later reports, no one else did either.

Island Beach SP 3/2--Thick-billed Murre

Mike and I inadvertently started a birding contretemps today and it just reaffirmed to me why I disdain social media and avoid most of its manifestations. We started the day at the extreme north end of Island Beach SP, accessing the beach on Two Bit Road. It was cold and windier than we expected and at first it didn't look like the ocean held much of interest. Mike found a few gannets which at least made it worth making a list. A Common Loon. A few Black Scoters were flying around or sitting on the water.  Then Mike called out "Razorbills" and then almost immediately retracted it. "I think they're murres." Bobbing around in the ocean about a third of the way to the horizon were 4 (or 5) alcids. I looked in his scope and agreed that they weren't Razorbills because the bills were all wrong--Razorbills are aptly named.

One of the birds separated from the group and I was able to study that one in my scope--it had a sharp pointed bill, dark head, light flanks. The group was lost and found in the swells and photography was out of the question.  We couldn't remember the differing field marks that distinguish Common Murre from Thick-billed Murre, so we just called it "murre" until we got back to the car and consulted Sibley's. There we saw that the bill wasn't long enough for Common and the head didn't have enough white on it either. A pretty good rare bird and an immediate dilemma.

Once we listed it on eBird (which I do immediately) it would hit the rare bird alerts, usually within the hour. If we also listed it on the local rare bird alert that we all subscribe to, we'd probably have 20 birders flocking to the beach. Except the birds were far out, drifting, and there were no "sea marks" like a buoy or tower, as at Barnegat Light, to give some sense of location. By the time anyone got there, who knows where the birds would be? And we weren't interested in hanging around and tracking them down the beach, or being the ones to say, "OOH, you just missed them."  So we just let it go with the eBird alert, though we did tell Steve when we ran into him later on Reed's Road.

We both figured the sighting would be met with dubiety but we know what we saw. And I'm not concerned with confirmation because I don't confuse confirmation with validation. But I'm not happy that this is both a state and county bird (#300 no less) for me--I'd prefer, frankly, a better-looking bird and one that I could photograph

Had I seen a alert would I run to Island Beach? No, because I'd figure my chance of seeing the birds was nil. Others, apparently don't feel that way, because, though it took a little while, we got some unpleasant blowblack on the alert app. I explained our reasoning which didn't seem to placate the complaints.

I have found some rare birds and I report them on the alerts and eBird, but they're always birds that have a chance of being refound. I hate getting rare bird alerts like "Rare X just flew over the parkway" or "Rare X flying over fields," or "Rare X seen from my boat," because, since I can't do anything with this information, it feels like the reporter is just boasting (or rubbing it in). These birds felt the same way to us.

eBird, unfortunately, is a kind of social media platform--I find it creepy that people can tell where I've been all day. I could hide my findings, I suppose, and just use it as a private database, but that seems petulant. I keep the rare bird alerts on my phone to a minimum and stay off the public side unless I have something pertinent and important to add.

After my one short post on the alert I let it be--one of my strict rules is I never argue on the internet. But the conversation continued without me. The last time I looked at the app I thought, "This is supposed to be fun, I don't need this gas."

Laughing Gull

Meanwhile, Mike and I continued down the length of Island Beach which only got windier. Finally, we headed back to the mainland going up to Brick to look for Redheads, which we didn't find, and then up to Point Pleasant where Lake of the Lilies had plenty of scaup and one coot, Little Silver Lake had a Pied-billed Grebe and finally over to the Manasquan Inlet to see if there were any interesting gulls besides the continuing, over-wintering Laughing Gull which we found immediately. The answer was no. 

By then it was mid-afternoon and on the way back to Mike's my phone started to blow up. Sorta sorry I ever saw the damn birds to begin with.

February--11 Year Birds

Ruddy Turnstones, Barnegat Light SP

February is an historically slow month for birds. After the New Years rush of January, when almost every day brings new year birds onto the list, February tends to be deja vu all over again. So with that consideration, 11 year birds, with almost half of them considered "rare" is not bad, plus I had quite a few repeat rarities for the month, like Cackling Goose, Eurasian Wigeon, and Ash-throated Flycatcher, along with 3 separate sightings of Eastern Phoebe, which sure won't be rare in a month or so. When I saw the Ash-throated Flycatcher again in New Egypt, I wasn't even looking for it. I was passing by the area it and the phoebe had been frequenting, looking for American Kestrel for my county list, when I glanced out the car window and saw the phoebe. 10 seconds later, I looked a little to the right of the phoebe and saw the Ash-throated perched on a stick. Nice, but I was happier to finally find a kestrel on Long Swamp Road a few minutes later, having driven up and down West Colliers Mills Road seemingly for 2 months without finding one.

Tundra Swan, Whitesbog

I haven't added up the trips, but it felt like I split the majority of the month between Colliers Mills/New Egypt and Whitesbog, with a couple of trips down to Brig (Golden Eagle, Yellow-breasted Chat) and only one trip to Assunpink. I didn't get to either Sandy Hook or Island Beach SP, leaving the freezing my face off trips for Barnegat Light where I finally saw a King Eider (drake) after failing to find the hen multiple times in January.

House Sparrow

The turkeys returned this month to our backyard, along with quite a few other notable species: Pine Warbler, Fox Sparrow, and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, along with one species yesterday that I'd rather not see--House Sparrow. It was only one male and I hope it stays that way. Checking my records, its the first House Sparrow beneath our feeders since September of 2017. They are actually scarce around here, especially since the addlepated neighbor, who use to have a bird house they colonized, was taken away for her own safety. Secret admission--I find them to be very handsome little birds. If they just weren't so aggressive! I also admire starlings and Brown-headed Cowbirds.

For the month I tallied 126 species, down from January's result of 135. Of course, there were 2 fewer days in this month.

Counties birded: Atlantic, Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean

Species            First Sighting

Snow Goose   Brig

Brant   Manasquan Inlet

Cackling Goose   Deer Head Lake

Canada Goose   Lake of the Lilies

Mute Swan   Wreck Pond

Trumpeter Swan   Assunpink WMA

Tundra Swan   Whitesbog

Wood Duck   Whitesbog

Northern Shoveler   Wreck Pond

Gadwall   Wreck Pond

Eurasian Wigeon   MacLearie Park

American Wigeon   MacLearie Park

Mallard   Lake of the Lilies

American Black Duck   Manasquan Inlet

Northern Pintail   Forsythe-Barnegat

Green-winged Teal   Forsythe-Barnegat

Canvasback   Colliers Mills WMA

Redhead   Riverfront Landing

Ring-necked Duck   Holly Lake

Greater Scaup   Lake of the Lilies

Lesser Scaup   Lake of the Lilies

King Eider   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Common Eider   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Harlequin Duck   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Surf Scoter   Spring Lake

White-winged Scoter   Manasquan Inlet

Black Scoter   Manasquan Inlet

Long-tailed Duck   Manasquan Inlet

Bufflehead   Manasquan Inlet

Common Goldeneye   LBI Bayside

Hooded Merganser   Lake of the Lilies

Common Merganser   Prospertown Lake

Red-breasted Merganser   Manasquan Inlet

Ruddy Duck   Lake of the Lilies

Wild Turkey   35 Sunset Rd

Pied-billed Grebe   Manasquan Reservoir IBA

Horned Grebe   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Eared Grebe   Lakes Bay

Rock Pigeon   Wawa South Toms River

Mourning Dove   Lake of the Lilies

American Coot   Lake of the Lilies

Black-bellied Plover   Forsythe-Barnegat

Killdeer   Ephraim P. Emson Preserve

Ruddy Turnstone   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Sanderling   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Dunlin   Forsythe-Barnegat

Purple Sandpiper   Manasquan Inlet

American Woodcock   Collinstown Rd

Greater Yellowlegs   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Razorbill   Manasquan Inlet

Laughing Gull   Manasquan Inlet

Ring-billed Gull   Lake of the Lilies

Herring Gull   Lake of the Lilies

Lesser Black-backed Gull   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Great Black-backed Gull   Lake of the Lilies

Red-throated Loon   Manasquan Inlet

Common Loon   Manasquan Inlet

Northern Gannet   Barnegat Lighthouse SP

Great Cormorant   Raritan Bay Waterfront Park

Double-crested Cormorant   Lake of the Lilies

Great Blue Heron   Lake of the Lilies

Black Vulture   Brig

Turkey Vulture   Deer Head Lake

Golden Eagle   Motts Creek

Northern Harrier   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Sharp-shinned Hawk   Manahawkin WMA

Cooper's Hawk   New Egypt

Bald Eagle   MacLearie Park

Red-shouldered Hawk   Meadowedge Park

Red-tailed Hawk   MacLearie Park

Belted Kingfisher   Manahawkin WMA

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   Cattus Island County Park

Red-headed Woodpecker   Colliers Mills WMA

Red-bellied Woodpecker   35 Sunset Rd

Downy Woodpecker   Wells Mills Park

Hairy Woodpecker   Manahawkin WMA

Northern Flicker   Manahawkin WMA

American Kestrel   New Egypt

Merlin   Lake of the Lilies

Peregrine Falcon   Ken Buchanan Riverfront Park

Eastern Phoebe   Meadowedge Park

Ash-throated Flycatcher   New Egypt

Blue Jay   Crestwood Village

American Crow   35 Sunset Rd

Fish Crow   Manasquan Inlet

Common Raven   New Egypt

Carolina Chickadee   35 Sunset Rd

Tufted Titmouse   35 Sunset Rd

Tree Swallow   Brig

Golden-crowned Kinglet   Colliers Mills WMA

Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Whitesbog

White-breasted Nuthatch   Wells Mills Park

Brown Creeper   Colliers Mills WMA

Winter Wren   Whitesbog

Carolina Wren   Wreck Pond

European Starling   Wells Mills Park

Gray Catbird   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Brown Thrasher   New Egypt

Northern Mockingbird   18 Aberdeen Avenue

Eastern Bluebird   Cattus Island County Park

Hermit Thrush   Wells Mills Park

American Robin   Wells Mills Park

House Sparrow   Lake of the Lilies

House Finch   Wells Mills Park

American Goldfinch   35 Sunset Rd

Chipping Sparrow   Colliers Mills WMA

Field Sparrow   Brig

American Tree Sparrow   Assunpink WMA

Fox Sparrow   35 Sunset Rd

Dark-eyed Junco   35 Sunset Rd

White-throated Sparrow   Tip Seaman CP

Savannah Sparrow   Cream Ridge

Song Sparrow   Lake Como

Swamp Sparrow   Manahawkin WMA

Eastern Towhee   Brig

Yellow-breasted Chat   Brig

Eastern Meadowlark   Colliers Mills WMA

Red-winged Blackbird   Tip Seaman CP

Brown-headed Cowbird   Collinstown Rd

Rusty Blackbird   Colliers Mills WMA

Common Grackle   Wreck Pond

Boat-tailed Grackle   Manasquan Inlet

Palm Warbler   Great Bay Bvld. WMA

Pine Warbler   35 Sunset Rd

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Wells Mills Park

Northern Cardinal   Lake Como

New Egypt | Colliers Mills 2/27--Brown Thrasher, Rusty Blackbird

On an incredibly windy day, Mike & I bounced between Jackson & New Egypt looking for birds brave enough to withstand the 30 mph gusts. We hoped for snipe (or even Pectoral Sandpiper) at Patriots Park in Jackson, where we have seen both before in winter, but had to settle for a nice for bluebirds.  A quick stop at Colliers Mills failed to turn up the Canvasback hen that had been on Turnmill Pond last week. We spent more time on Brynmore Road in New Egypt, coming up with the expected species though the lack of starlings was startling. It wasn't until we thought we were done there that we came up with our first year bird--a Brown Thrasher in some tangles along the road.

Along W. Colliers Mills Road we stopped in at the new Ephraim P. Emson Preserve, which looks promising for warblers in the spring, being mostly hardwood forest, but today all it had for us was an American Kestrel. Across the road, as we were leaving, a large flock of Eastern Meadowlarks flushed and a Northern Harrier hunted the fields

We spent most of our time in the woods at Colliers Mills, trying to stay out of the wind. Sometime in the last week the annual burning of the fields occurred and picking at the charred ground was a mixed flock of robins, blackbirds, and starlings. When we approached the blackbirds and starlings flew to a tree. The robins didn't care. The light on the blackbirds was perfect and one of them was not a Red-winged Blackbird but the much more desirable Rusty Blackbird.

We looked at Prospertown Lake but no Common Mergansers (or any other waterfowl that wasn't a Canada Goose) were on the choppy water. After a quick stop at the New Egypt Wawa, I showed Mike the newest mini hotspot, the Old Zoar Cemetery, which is next to a yard with feeders. The owner of the feeders made the mistake of listing Pileated Woodpecker during the Great Backyard Bird Count and now a few of us Ocean County birders have been visiting the cemetery hoping to find one at her suet. No luck yet. If Pileated Woodpecker hadn't been reported in other spots of New Egypt, I wouldn't have taken the report seriously, since the GBBC is notorious for misidentifications.

Another sweep of the New Egypt fields turned up nothing new save a Common Raven, which, I was happy to see, no longer is flagged as "rare" in the county, so no rote description of "large croaking corvid with wedge-shaped tail" is required any longer on the eBird list.

By that time we had been out in the wind for over 5 hours and the birds, being smarter than birders, were all hunkered down and out of sight so windblown but satisfied with a few cool birds, we packed it in for the day. 39 species in all:

Mallard  4

American Black Duck  2

Ring-necked Duck  3

Bufflehead  4

Rock Pigeon  25

Mourning Dove  10

Killdeer  9

Herring Gull  130

Black Vulture  5

Turkey Vulture  18

Northern Harrier  1

Red-tailed Hawk  2

Red-bellied Woodpecker  7

Downy Woodpecker  3

Hairy Woodpecker  1

American Kestrel  1

Blue Jay  10

American Crow  4

Common Raven  1

Carolina Chickadee  6

White-breasted Nuthatch  3

Carolina Wren  3

European Starling  79

Brown Thrasher  1

Northern Mockingbird  1

Eastern Bluebird  10

American Robin  26

House Sparrow  2

Chipping Sparrow  1

Dark-eyed Junco  39

White-throated Sparrow  12

Song Sparrow  7

Eastern Meadowlark  15

Red-winged Blackbird  16

Brown-headed Cowbird  7

Rusty Blackbird  1

Common Grackle  15

Northern Cardinal  9