July 9 - Rainy Day with Great birds

While this morning started with a delay as Bill got stuck in traffic because the highway was closed at 4:30 am due to a tractor-trailer accident, and then we had to drive through lots of fog & drizzle, eventually it was a fantastic day. 
We met friends Andy & Jen at Forsythe NWR, aka "Brig".  Here we had many of the expected species...Purple Martins, Carolina Chickadees, Seaside & Saltmarsh Sparrows, Clapper Rails, Gull-Billed and Least Terns, Little Blue Heron, we also had some early migrants like Pectoral Sandpiper and Whimbrels.  Later we got our primary target, the female Red-Necked Phalarope.
Here's a dramatic picture taken by friend Chris Takacs, showing just how small these phalaropes are.

The flight shot is courtesy Steven Albert.  Click on images to enlarge

We departed Brig and headed north toward Waretown to try for the Mississippi Kite that has been seen again this year.  I saw this bird here last July 2015.

Before Waretown, Bill and I took a short detour to Tuckerton's Great Bay Boulevard.  Here we saw more Seaside and Saltmarsh Sparrows, along with an Adult Little Blue Heron, and several Tri-colored Herons.  Then we saw 5 American Avocets in flight at close range, but they quickly took off toward Brig.

Our friend Andy called and said that two Mississippi Kites were being seen, so we headed over to meet him and the now sleeping Jennifer.  Hey, its sometimes hard to get up at 4 am !
By the time we arrived Andy had located the Kite's nest !!  We saw the parents bringing food and feeding the 2 young, so this represents the first known record of breeding Mississippi Kites in the State of New Jersey !!
Here is more info on these birds: Mississippi Kites found nesting in New Jersey

While driving home, we saw the birding alert that an Adult Franklin's Gull has been found at Liberty State Park's Boat Launch.  So we headed over there.  Upon arriving we saw friend Ed Borowik who had arranged with the Park Police to allow some birders to briefly park their cars near where the bird was being seen.  We got fine looks at the bird, and moments later Andy & the now awoken Jennifer arrived and also got to see the bird.  This Franklin's Gull was my first being seen in New Jersey.

Credit: Larry Scacchetti

So it was quite a day, even after the obstacles that the early morning had in store for us,

July 3 - Clinton Road

Today I took a solo hike along Clinton Road.  This area is part of the City of Newark's Watershed.  I'm fortunate to have such a lovely area so close to my home, and one which supports dozens of breeding birds.  I also saw a Black Bear very early this morning.

The hike is not too difficult and produces many species of Warblers, Thrushes, and Flycatchers.
The warblers seen today included Louisiana Waterthrush, Yellow, Black-Throated Green, Magnolia,  Redstart, Hooded, Black-and-White, Cerulean, Prairie, Common Yellowthroat, and Ovenbird
The Thrushes were Veery, Wood Thrush, Hermit, Robins, Catbird, and Towhee.
The Flycatchers were Least, Acadian, Pewee, Phoebe, Great-Crested, Eastern Kingbird, along with Bluebirds and Cedar Waxwings.
A juvenile Red-Shouldered Hawk was also seen.

In the section of the trail where I had the Hermit Thrushes I also saw Blue-Headed Vireos.  Other vireos seen today were Yellow-Throated and the ubiquitous Red-Eyed.

July 2 - High Point and environs

Out today with friends Andy & Jennifer, we went north to enjoy more breeders and avoid the heat. 
Starting at Sawmill Road and Route 23 we had Least Flycatcher, Chestnut-Sided Warbler, Yellow Warbler and several thrushes.
Along Deckertown Pike we heard, and eventually saw, the Alder Flycatcher. Here we also had Ruby-Throated Hummingbird.
Along Ridge Road, and also in Kuser Bog we had Yellow-Bellied Sapsuckers, which is a relatively recent addition to the breeding birds of New Jersey.

We stopped at Wallkill NWR on the drive back to show them the Bank Swallows.

June 26 - Old Mine Road

With Spring Migration over and Fall Migration still weeks away I turned my attention to the local breeders that we're fortunate to have in our area.  My friend Bill E.  joined. It is an hour drive from my home to the Delaware River, but the birding is quite good.  We mostly heard, but saw a few, about 25 of the Hooded Warbler during our 15-mile drive today.  There were several Louisiana Waterthrushes, some well into their molt.  Acadian Flycatchers were plentiful. We heard then saw a pair of Red-Breasted Nuthatches, which was a first for both of us this year.
Along the River, we saw a pair of young Bald Eagles, still all brown.  In the trees along the reiver we also spotted a Porcupine !

Credit: Bill Elrick

We saw several warbler species, the aforementioned Waterthrush and Hooded, along with Chestnut-Sided, Yellow, Common Yellowthroat, Black-Throated Green, Blackburnian, Cerulean, Redstart etc
Many thrushes were seen with Veery being dominant, but Wood-Thrushes were also found.  A pair of Spotted Sandpiper were along the river, as was Belted Kingfisher.

Here's a view of the lovely scenery in this area.

June 18 - Jamaica Bay Goodies

Today we tried a seawatch out at Robert Moses State Park at Field 2.  We did not see many ocean birds at all, but we did eventually see a handful of the Wilson's Storm-Petrels.  So we decided to head back west toward home and try Jamaica Bay's East Pond.  Here Andy was able to locate the White-Faced Ibis which has been sighted here over the past week or more.

We then too a walk over to Big John's Pond and the viewing blind which is there.  Here we were treated to incredibly close views of the lovely Yellow-Crowned Night-Herons, and then we got to see the Barn Owls in the nest box which is across the pond.  We could see there were at least 2 young birds (later I found out there are actually 3 young this year) and also the Adult inside the box.
Here is some digiscope photos taken by esteemed East Pond Marsh Warden Andrew Baksh.

June 11 - Garganey

A mega-rarity of Garganey was reported from the Finger Lakes Region of New York State this past Sunday afternoon.  Unfortunately for me it was a very busy week at work so I could not try until today, Saturday June 11.
My regular group of friends were not available so I was unsure if I would even try for this bird.  I awoke around 4 a.m to find I did not have the desire for the 4+ hour drive up to the Montezuma NWR in Seneca Falls, NY.  I guess it was on my mind as I woke again about 45 minutes later with the will to take the trip !  I left home at 5 a.m and started on my drive west into Pennsylvania and then north into Central New York.  Fortunately 3/4 of the drive was on Interstates so the ride was relatively easy.  More good news was received when a birder posted online that the bird had been seen around 8:00.
I arrived on site at the Knox-Marsellus Marsh just past 9 a.m, and went to East Road. After parking,   a nice birder about to depart was able to immediately get me on the Garganey !
This is my 644th ABA-area species.

Click to enlarge

Credit: Jay McGowan (finder of the bird)

The bird was moving amongst the small brush at the edge of the marsh, with mostly it's head and neck in view for almost 30-minutes.  The bird the disappeared for bit and I took a short ride to the Knox-Marsellus Overlook.  Here is saw some lovely Black Terns, a pair of Caspian Terns, and a Trumpeter Swan.  I had previously only seen the Trumpeter Swan in New Jersey, so this was a bonus NY State Bird for me. In addition to the Life Bird of Garganey, my NY State List is now at 365.


Here is some pics of the Marsh

After returning from the overlook, I joined other newly arriving birders in the search to re-locate the Garaney.  I then spotted the bird swimming in open water, which gave me a complete view of the bird.  We enjoyed this view for about 5 minutes before the bird once again went into the marsh vegetation.

The next day I read that the bird was not spotted until after 2 pm on Sunday, so I was lucky that I went on Saturday and saw the bird as soon as I arrived.

May 1 - Fork-Tailed Flycatcher in NJ !

A rainy day here in northern NJ meant very few birds at Garret Mountain, however just as I was leaving at 8 a.m. I received a note that yesterday afternoon's rarity was being seen again this morning !

The Fork-Tailed Flycatcher which had been found late on Saturday afternoon at the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area.  This WMA is located near Millstone, NJ in the southwestern part of Monmouth County.

I arrived at the stakeout spot just past 9 a.m, and met fellow birder Simon Lane.  We walked into the large field and immediately Simon was on the bird !  Initially we were both put off for just a moment as the bird was showing it's yellow crown-stripe in a manner I had never seen before. Perhaps it had something to do with the rain ?

Nevertheless we were not far form the bird and binoculars were all that was needed to get nice views of this beauty from Central America.

Here's some shots by friend Larry Scacchetti which were taken yesterday before the rain came in.
Click to enlarge:

I had last seen this species back in 2013, and prior to that back in 2010.  Oddly both of those records are from Connecticut, so this sighting becomes my 380th bird seen within New Jersey !