It is a fun time to bird in New Jersey when late fall sets in and winter approaches. The leaves have settled off of the trees making birds viewable again and its a time when western vagrants and northern specialties can sneak down south in search of food and climate. Some of the birds that show up that alert you to this time of year are Harlequin Ducks and Snow Bunting. Horned Lark, Redpoll, Crossbill, Siskin, and Grosbeaks all let you know that a new type of birding opportunity has arrived.Saturday, I made a solo mission to Barnegat Inlet to find Harlequin Ducks, Purple Sandpipers and Scoters that take refuge along the jettie’s massive rocks. You don’t have to go far to find Black-bellied Plovers, Ruddy Turnstones and Purple Sandpipers picking through what the sea has deposited on these rocks. A little farther, and just passed that massive bolder, you see a flash of beautiful color. You press on and soon a small flock of Harlequin Ducks ride waves into view. They are like an early Christmas present here just for your enjoyment!

I also got to photograph (through heavy wind and blowing sea) a flock of Scoters and somehow (I didn’t realize it as I was taking the pictures) got all three in the same blurry frame. I have a picture of these on our Flickr site which you can view by clicking the link to our photostream above.



The weekend closed with a stop at Spruce Run to catch a pack of Snow Bunting on the day’s last bit a light. They pick through parking lots and pebbled roads like the sandpipers on jetty rocks and you know the fall is surely here and winter can’t be far behind.

Jeanette and I have seen 9 different species of Owl (6 in NJ) and we were looking for number 10. Perhaps Jeanette’s “most wanted” is the beautiful Snowy Owl. In some of the more northern states there has been a push of Snowy Owls coming south, and we were hoping one would make it close enough for us to chase. On Friday, Edna & Ray Duffy posted information and pictures on the New Jersey Birding list of a Snowy Owl in Norwalk Connecticut. This would be our perfect opportunity.

The bird was about an hour and fifty minutes from our house.The “chase” is a part of birding that I really enjoy. I love the opportunity and possibilities a reported rarity provides. It is a lot of fun to chase a bird and then see it with a group of birders also excited to share in the discovery. There is nothing like sharing your personal first view of a Roseate Spoonbill as it flies over a group of 20 excited birders. Or the joy in seeing a Townsend’s Solitaire, an Ash-throated Flycatcher and a Western Kingbird all in the same afternoon. When these moments are over, everyone turns to each other to reflect and rejoice at their luck in being a part of something so exhilarating.

We hoped this early morning trip to Connecticut would also provide some excitement. Now, this particular Snowy Owl had been around for a while and was already a local celebrity having been on multiple local news channels. So we hoped we weren’t too late.

We arrived at Calf Pasture Beach Park as it was opening (6:45ish) and made our way around the park to the reported spot. As we got out of the car we saw him sitting on a small pier that is close to two other, smaller jetties a couple hundred yards away. We were in the first group of people out of our cars, but a fisherman managed to get out ahead of us. He scared the owl off after he was asked to wait before making his way out to the end of the pier. Apparently, the fish needed to be caught that second. Luckily, the Owl put down on the middle jetty (his favorite we hear) rather than flying across the water as he did yesterday. And just like that, we got to bask in the exhilaration once more.

The Owl sat and watched as we hemmed and hawed over him from a respectable distance. The overcast day made the lighting bad but nothing could dim the beauty of our lifer Snowy Owl!

P.S. The fish must not have been in such a rush to be caught as the fisherman left before we did, with no fish to speak of.

Cackling Goose:

So after voting on Election Day of 08 I got my first pictures of a beautiful Cackling Goose. Rahway River Park in (drum roll please) Rahway NJ is about 5-10 minutes away from my old stomping grounds in Linden NJ so I was comfortable getting to the location. The park is quite large and is actually a good spot for birds tucked into a highly populated area. I saw my first Wood Duck (who can’t remember their first Wood Duck??) there in March of 2007. Two other birders (even a historic election can’t keep us away from our birds!) helped find the bird. I quickly lost him but was lucky enough to get around at a different angle and get some close up looks and photos after re-finding him. It was interesting seeing him up close because it was highly evident that he was different from the surrounding Canada Geese. I am now sure that the many Canada Geese I have tried to make into a Cackling Goose over the last two years were indeed not. The difference in neck length and bill size were highly identifiable and I feel much more confident about identifying them in the future. On November 4th, 2008 I had to vote between two similar candidates. The choice was easy. Cackling beats Canada in a landslide.

I decided to try the Glenhurst meadows this morning. There had been reports of Vesper Sparrow there which have thus far eluded me. After a horrible few days of snow and cold (ok well rain and cold might be more accurate) it was nice to get out into a warm morning and see what was around. I bumped into a couple of Princeton area birders (Mary Margaret and Charles - hope I spelled those right) who were on an Orange-crowned warbler. I hadn’t been able to photograph this guy in NJ so I was happy to be able to share the bird. A walk through the “wet” paths of the park turned up many Song, Swamp, Savannah and White-throated sparrows. I also saw a few Field and two juvenile White-crowned sparrows. Others reported Vesper (of course I missed it) and even a first of fall Fox sparrow. There were also Rusty blackbirds around as well as Yellow-rumped and Palm warblers. A beautiful day for birding!

I read the DE rare bird alert early today and saw that the reported Harris’s Sparrow was seen early this morning. A trip to Wilmington DE is about an hour and a half from my house (equivalent to a trip to the Brig for us) so I decided to jump in the car and take a shot. The bird showed up about 5 min after i arrived and stuck around for about 2 minutes. He did this twice in a half and hour period. He was unafraid and allowed many people to be within 15 feet of him. A striking bird and one truly worth the trip!

Philadelphia Vireo:

A Northern Wheatear was seen and photographed on Friday so a trip to Cape May on Sat was needed. The morning started with no sign of the Wheatear, which may have turned out to be a one day wonder, but quickly turned around with a Golden-winged Warbler and a pair of Philadelphia Vireo. Higbee produced the mentioned birds with the Warbler making the rounds from the porta-john (is that really what you call them? Whatever, the bathroom things) area through to the path in the far left corner of the parking lot leading to the first field. It was seen all-too-fleetingly on a few occasions by different groups of birders. Mine was identifiable but far from satisfying. On the contrary, we were treated to 2 (at least two there were reports of others and maybe even another individual along with these 2) very obliging Philly Vireos that jumped out into the sun and shown for us all to see. I stopped back by the Hawkwatch to see if the Wheatear had made an appearance and to check on the local goings-on.

Eagle vs. Osprey:

As usual this time of year, the deck was packed with birders, new and experienced (see how I avoided “old” there? :)) all looking to see what all the fuss was about. The friendly staff, when not tending to the hawk watching, was greeting new visitors and offering whatever assistance they could provide. I heard many asking questions and others borrowing binoculars. All queries met with satisfying answers. Who knows how many “birders” were developed today on that spot. Although my time was short there, I was treated to swooping Merlin, circling Sharp-shinned and Coopers, and a pack of beautiful Kestrel. My main event (and as I understand it was really Round 2) was the Bald Eagle vs. Osprey battle for a late breakfast fish. This happens quite often there and it never gets old. The Osprey does the work of catching the food and then the Eagle swoops in to startle and bully the prize away. They turned and veered and rose and darted, all in close proximity to us eager onlookers. In the end, stamina seemed to win the day when the Eagle made a final go of it only to come up short. The Osprey had won this round. (I heard the earlier occurrence ended with a victorious Eagle) I actually got some pretty cool pictures of this duel and “fun” had truly reigned.

Cattle Egret:

The rest of the morning was put in at the Brig with a wonderfully energetic Cattle Egret and a pack of lounging Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrows.
Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow:

We took a quick trip to Sandy Hook today and were pointed to a very cooperative Lark Sparrow on the bike path towards Randolph Road. It was on the ground just off the right side of the path. This was just on the other side of the barrier set up in the path as you walk towards Randolph Rd. Not a lot else. Black & White warblers, Common Yellow-throat, Cedar Waxwing, and soaring Osprey were some of the others making appearances. Sandy Hook is having some pretty serious road work done at the entrance to the site. Wondering how that will affect Fall and Winter birding there.

Violet-crowned Hummingbirds:

Now, I realize this seems to be more about “Birding outside of New Jersey” in recent posts but I can’t help but mention our recent trip to South Eastern Arizona. More New Jersey specific bird blogging upcoming…I promise. So Arizona. For all those birders who have experienced this wonderful place it will come as no shock when I say it is truly amazing. I am not stating anything new here, but for a “newer” birder, Arizona brings back that exhilaration of everything being new and a discovery. It’s location and environmental conditions are just right to allow for a wide variety of birds you can see no where else. From year round residents (making discovery a little easier with the ability to keep a “running” track of a particular species in a given area) to Mexican vagrants they are all special in Arizona. It just “feels” like a tropical place. These “zones” exist there that harbor their own specialized species. At one point much of the area was under water with only individual “islands” of mountain or cliff tops visible. This led to select species development with an exaggerated diversity. Some of the birds and birding lead to wonder how all of these differences exist so close together. One second its 50 degrees at over 7000 feet and the next you are surrounded by scalding desert and 105 degrees of “dry” heat.

Jeanette and I were very lucky to have a wonderful guide familiar with all of the differences Arizona has to offer. Rich Hoyer, a WINGS Tour Leader and local birding celebrity (at least it seemed that way with the admiration of all of the local birders :)) gave us two wonderful days of birds, knowledge, and an appreciation for all of Arizona’s extensive wildlife. We birded all of the local “hot spots” and were treated to amazing (there’s that word again) views of birds we had never seen. We got to see (and photograph) a Sinaola Wren, which if accepted, will be the first ever found in the United States. We saw Trogon, and Hummingbirds, and western warblers and flycatchers. We enjoyed orioles and tanagers and communal woodpeckers and Hawks. We basked in birds named “Montezuma”, and “Inca” along side those known as “Tropical” and “Painted”. It was sensory overload and it was one of the greatest times I have ever had. Amazing.

Now some of the birds. This was my holy grail the Elegant Trogon. On my Flickr site this picture got a comment I loved which was “who put that stuffed animal up in that tree???” This guy really, really looks tropical and was worth the entire trip alone.
Elegant Trogon:

Painted Redstart:

A bird I looked very much forward to the Vermillion Flycatcher was as accessible as he was beautiful.
Vermillion Flycatcher:

Broad-billed Hummingbird:

At the famous “Patagonia Road Side Rest” we got to see this “strong” looking Zone-tailed Hawk. He had lunch in hand and on his lips. Who doesn’t sample the goods first?
Zone-tailed Hawk:

This was our “big” one. Rich led us right to this first in US sighting. He knew call and song and gave all in attendance a birding memory they wont soon forget. I tried to throw together a bunch of different angles and shots. The clarity isn’t great as the bird was some distance away.
Sinaola Wren:

Female Blackburnian Warbler:

So I usually don’t go on about unsuccessful birding trips (it’s just not as fun to talk about them :)), but that is a big part of it and I think what truly makes Birding so special. You can have 10 Billion dollars but you aren’t going to pay a bird to show up for you. The misses make the “gets” that much sweeter. So yes back to Maine. We decided it might be worth 16 hours of driving (8 each way) to go and try to see some of the Boreal species found in northern Maine. There also was the opportunity to see the only truly endemic bird of the Northeast, the Bicknell’s Thrush. So with visions of Boreal Chickadees, Grey Jays, Spruce Grouse, and Black-backed Woodpeckers in our heads we headed off. Fast forward 16 hours and a whole lot of walking and none of the birds mentioned above made and appearance except…for the Bicknell’s Thrush. We briefly saw and heard a single bird who sat singing wonderfully off the side of the Appalachian Trail (Unfortunately, not in the open enough for a picture :() on Route 4 near Rangeley Maine. What a beautifully long melody! Though we missed the area’s specialty birds we did see many Blackburnian, Black-throated Blue and Green warblers and 2 Moose! (Its not Mooses is it? :)) Above is a picture of a beautiful female Blackburnian Warbler and below is our friend the Moose.
Moose in Maine:

So with some luck last fall Jeanette and I saw multiple Cave Swallows near Congress Hall in Cape May and loads of Tree, Cliff, Barn and N. Rough-winged at Bull’s Island (A great spot for Cliff Swallow). That left only one of New Jersey’s more common swallows to see for us, and that was the Bank Swallow. With some great information from fellow birder Tom O. (Thanks Tom! :)) we headed down to South Amboy to look for them flying in and out of their homes in the “Bank” of an eroding Sand Dune. They didn’t disappoint and we were surrounded by them as we walked towards the beach. Some work to apparently “improve” the dune has left less area for the swallows to live in which you can see at the bottom of the picture above. A life bird in South Amboy! Who knew?