February 23 - Harris' Sparrow

After the long chase on Sunday for the Thick-Billed Murre I was just too tired to get out yesterday.  So this morning I took a drive before work to try for the Harris' Sparrow down in Titusville, NJ.

I arrived at 7:30 and within just a few minutes the bird made its first appearance in the shrub next to the homeowner's porch.  The Harris' would try to get underneath the array of feeders but always seemed to squabble with other species there, like the White-Throated Sparrows, and quickly get chased off.

I stayed in the car as the mixed flock was very skittish. This technique seemed to pay off as the Harris' made several attempts at the feeders, and also had many appearances under that shrub by the porch.

This is bird # 378 seen within the State of New Jersey !

Here is an image of the bird, credit to Fred Pfeiffer:

February 21 - Montauk Point

The group took the long trip out to the easternmost point of Long Island today so we could search for a rarity a Montauk Point.  We arrived at Lake Montauk, technically not a lake but rather an inlet, and headed for the eastern jetty.   I scanned just outside of the jetty and immediately located the rarity of the Thick-Billed Murre.  This bird was a lifer for Jennifer !
I had seen this species very briefly last February while up in Gloucester, Massachusetts when the bird was mostly diving but I was able to get 3-4 glimpses of it.  Today's views much far superior as this bird stayed above the water almost the entire time.  Here's a pic taken by Bill E.

click to enlarge.

We then walked out onto the jetty itself and were able to see the bird from a distance of 40-50 yard away.  Through my scope I could make out the indentation of the eye-line that will appear once the bird reaches full breeding plumage.  At one point the bird opened its mouth wide to reveal the remarkable yellow inside of it's bill.

Here's the only image I could find of this, and thanks goes to Angus !

credit: Angus

Later at Camp Hero, Jennifer was able to locate a drake King Eider.  Undoubtedly one of my favorite ducks because of it's scarcity in this region and it's lovely colors.  Here's an image showing the species:

We saw both Loons, Oldsquaw, Red-Breasted Megransers, Razorbills, Bonparte's Gulls, Herring Gulls, Greater Black-Backed Gulls, Black Scoter, Surf Scoter, White-Winged Scoter, Common Eider, Great Cormorant, Black Duck etc.

On a peculiar note, when we arrived at Montauk Point's Camp Hero later in the morning, we came upon this sight...which I conclude was an up-and-coming band producing a video of their performance, using the Long Island coast as their background:

Another reason to include this image is its background.  Here you can get an idea of the number of birds...all of those black dots on the water...click to enlarge !

February 13 - Northern New Jersey and Black Dirt Region

Today I made a stop at the Sussex Landfill in search of Gulls.  I was only able to find the Iceland Gull this year and could not locate any Glaucous Gulls.

I then took a drive through the Black Dirt Region of Orange County, New York and found very few birds here today.  Some Horned Larks, and a Rough-Legged Hawk were the only noteworthy species that I could see today.

February 7 - New York's 'Southern Shore'

Coastal birding was on the agenda again today, this time in New York State along the southern shore of Long Island.  We began at Point Lookout and Jones Beach inlet.  The best birds were some Razorbills, White-Winged Scoters, a flyby female Harlequin Duck, Purple Sandpipers on the Jetty.

Later we visited Jones Beach State Park's West End, where we saw the over-wintering Lark Sparrow.
From the Coast Guard Station we had some Common Eider, Ruddy Turnstone, both Loons, and some Black-Bellied Plovers.

From Oak Beach we had Boat-Tailed Grackles, and some Common Goldeneye on the bay.

Finally we stopped ad Capri Lake in West Islip and had several duck species.  The beautiful redhead is plentiful here, we found one Canvasback, one Shoveler, a Pied-Billed Grebe, and both species of Scaup with the Lesser species being predominant.

Overall a fair day of birding, spent with good friends !

January 31 - New Jersey's "North Shore"

This morning I began the day with a seawatch at Manasquan Inlet.  The numbers of birds was not great but there was some good diversity.  One of my first target birds was the Purple Sandpiper and these were easily seen on the concrete breakers which form the jetty.   One slight surprise was a Red-Necked Grebe, because this mild winter has not resulted in the Great Lakes freezing, so many of this species have remained outside of the Tri-State area.   A pleasant surprise was a Razorbill feeding within the inlet and affording very close views, although they were brief as this bird was actively feeding so it spent much of the time underwater.

 I was able to see all 3 species of Scoter, Long-Tailed Ducks, Red-Breasted Mergansers, both Loons etc.  I then stopped at the various lakes & oceanfront viewing areas as I made my way northward. Of note on Wreck Pond was the expected Lesser Black-Backed Gull, and I saw yet another on Sylvan Lake.

The final stop today was at Monmouth Beach's Cultural Center for a distant view of the Western Grebe.  This bird has appeared here for several winters now.

January 17 - Close & Far

With my plans for a long day of driving & birding out at Long Island's Montauk Point deferred until next weekend, I started this morning with a local hike.  The Newark Watershed area of Clinton Reservoir is a great spot for birds, and just 15 minutes from home.
I hiked along Hank's Pond for about an hour simply to get some fresh air and stretch my legs, but still hoping I would see some good stuff.
On the hike out I saw my absolute favorite resident bird of New Jersey in the Pileated Woodpecker.
Click on these fantastic images to enlarge !

credit: John McKean

credit: Kevin Smith


Later I heard, then saw, a few White-Tailed Deer flush about 75 yards away.  To my surprise I then saw a Black Bear!  I guess we can thank this year's El Nino once again for the mild weather that has kept this bear from hibernating as of yet.  That will finally change this week as the temperatures and weather are quickly turning toward their normal patterns.

During the hike back I got what I was hoping for as a Ruffed Grouse flushed from the trailside in an explosion of noise and color.  Unfortunately this reddish morph bird flew far away, through the mountain laurel and blueberry bushes, and across a ravine.  I had not seen this bird in several years, so it was nice to see they are still breeding in this area.  Here'a a stuffed bird, showing the colors.

After a quick lunch at home, I then took a ride up to Ulster County, New York.   I went to the Shawangunk Grasslands NWR in search of the Short-Eared Owl.  This grassland area is a very reliable spot for these Owls.   I had hoped that the overcast skies would result in the Owls starting their feeding early, and I was correct.   Just minutes after arriving around 2:30 I saw the first of the Owls chasing one of the several Northern Harriers.  Within 30 minutes there were about 5-6 Owls flying about, and often times coming close to me, within 75 yards.
Click to enlarge this fantastic image !

Credit: Tam Stuart

January 9 - Colorful Chasing

This morning the regular group got together after several weeks apart due to the Holidays, New Year etc.  We took a ride just over the border into Pennsylvania, near Tinicum, to try for a rare bluebird of the Western US.
After a short wait, Bill spotted our target of the Mountain Bluebird.   I had last seen this species over 7 years ago during my trip to Colorado in 2008.

click to enlarge

We then visited nearby Peace Valley Park and saw some good birds in Bald Eagles, Lesser Black-Backed Gulls, Brown Creeper etc.  Then we headed back toward New Jersey...

The next stop was the Monroe Township Park where Greater White-Fronted Goose and Barnacle Goose had been reported earlier in the morning.  We arrived at that area and found lots of activity and dog-walking which meant the geese had flown away to the many nearby farms of corn-stubble.
As luck would have it, we stopped at a field that had several hundred geese present.  Again Bill was the first to see the Barnacle Goose, along with two other geese that had silvery backs and may be hybrids of Canada and Barnacle.  We enjoyed the Barnacle Goose for some time before heading toward home once again.

credit: Bill Elrick (NYNJBirdingguide.com)

Since we had a little time left in our day, we stopped at the Hatfield Swamp to try for the long-staying Painted Bunting. We were about to give up when the bird flew into the ad-hoc feeder that had been setup, and again Bill was the first to see the bird.  We enjoyed this immature male bird from just 10 yards away !

Dave Blinder found this bird on December 18th.