And I'm not talking about telling Balds from Goldens, either. Part of the task in surveying for anything is to avoid double-counting - you're always asking, did I count that bird before or is it a new one? Happily, Bald Eagles have gotten to the point in southern NJ where there are so many of them that the day is continually spent re-assessing that question.
Highly skilled birders get in the habit of not only identifying a bird to species, but then noticing the differences between the bird in front of them and others of the same species they've seen before. Start doing this, and you'll notice there are pale first-year Herring Gulls and lighter ones, for example, or Mallard hens with more or less orange on the bill, or Hermit Thrushes that are exceptionally heavily spotted below, or waxwings that seem bigger and have white spots on the wing. . ."hey, wait a minute!" You get the idea - once more we learn the value of the old adage, know your common birds well. It's also just plain fun to get to know an individual bird, so you can it's not a redtail, it's that redtail I saw perched there yesterday.
I'm quite confident that Bald Eagles can tell each other apart just fine, but for humans it's not such a simple matter. With immature eagles it's a bit easier. For the survey we note what plumage young birds are in, adopting the terminology used in the Peterson Hawks field guide and elsewhere: Immature, White Belly I and II, Transitional, and adult. Within the immatures, there is quite a range of variation in the amount and location of white in the plumage, as well as in molt, so for example on Saturday when I saw a transitional bird I noted it was relatively darker on the head than these birds often are - it had the Osprey-like eye stripe but the crown was tawny to chocolate-y, not gleaming white at a distance as it sometimes can be.
But how do you tell one adult Bald Eagle from another adult Bald Eagle? Answer: I don't know. I surveyed the Cohansey River yesterday, had over 30 individual sightings of adult Bald Eagles, and concluded based on timing and location (we plot the eagles on topo maps as we encounter them) that the sightings represented 12 individuals, which was still "too many." There are four known Bald Eagle nests in the area I surveyed, and I knew where each one was and accounted for each member of each pair, but then I saw another clear pair of adults sitting close to each other but away from any known nest, plus two other singles that I couldn't be sure were attached to a nest. "Our" Bald Eagles are on territory and have begun sprucing up their nests - I saw both members of one pair sitting in their nest together - but wintering birds from points north may well still be around.
Then you have distant sightings, like two adults in the scope chasing a White-Belly II, way out there but probably over one of the known nests. Then you drive back by a nest that had no eagles near it a half hour ago, and this time there are two there. The ones that had chased the immature? New ones? I guess it's a nice problem to have. And it could be worse - Chuck Slugg told me he had over 70 eagle sightings yesterday and had to sort them out.
My full list from the Cohansey yesterday is below. I will say it is a beautiful and bird rich area, particularly the north side of the river, where I'd never been in winter - a marvelous mix of agricultural lands and wetlands.
Location: Cohansey eagle survey area
Observation date: 1/13/08
Number of species: 61
Snow Goose 100
Canada Goose 500
Mute Swan 5
American Black Duck X
Mallard X
Northern Pintail X
Bufflehead X
Hooded Merganser X
Common Merganser 5
Wild Turkey 18
Great Blue Heron 3
Turkey Vulture 35
Bald Eagle 15
Northern Harrier 13
Sharp-shinned Hawk 4
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 18
American Kestrel 1
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon X
Mourning Dove X
Belted Kingfisher 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 5
Downy Woodpecker 2
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 5
Blue Jay X
American Crow X
Fish Crow X
Horned Lark 50
Carolina Chickadee X
Tufted Titmouse X
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 5
Brown Creeper 2
Carolina Wren X
Golden-crowned Kinglet 5
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
Eastern Bluebird 10
Hermit Thrush 5
American Robin X
Northern Mockingbird X
Brown Thrasher X
European Starling X
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Eastern Towhee 2
Field Sparrow 2
Savannah Sparrow 15
Song Sparrow X
Swamp Sparrow X
White-throated Sparrow X
Dark-eyed Junco X
Northern Cardinal X
Red-winged Blackbird X
Common Grackle X
Purple Finch 1
House Finch X
American Goldfinch X
House Sparrow X
Monday, January 14, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Mid-winter Bald Eagle Survey Under Way
NJAS's annual mid-winter Bald Eagle Survey is this weekend. Thankfully, the weather has cooperated thus far!
We'll post full results here when we have them, but I can say that things bode well for CMBO's coming field trips: Winter Raptors on the Delaware Bayshore (January 19), Where the Eagles Are (January 21), as well as for our Wintering Raptors of the Delaware Bayshore workshop in February. Check under workshops and special programs on this site, http://www.birdcapemay.org/workshops.php.
I covered the Maurice River (Cumberland County) yesterday, and saw 15 Bald Eagles: 11 within "my" territory and 4 others when I went poaching a bit. Interestingly, I only saw 2 non-adults, and I think I know why. Multiple eagle pairs nest along the Maurice (pronounced "More-iss," by the way), and these territorial birds do not tolerate interlopers. Indeed, one of my earlier sightings of the day included some serious territorial behavior. A huge group of Snow Geese at Heislerville got in the air, signalling that an eagle was nearby. I soon spotted a bird in transitional plumage (i.e. approaching adult), and then realized not one but two adults were in hot pursuit of the young bird, gaining fast. The adults came from upstream along the Maurice, and once the immature reached Matt's Landing they broke off pursuit, presumably because they had reached the edge of their territory.
Several Cooper's Hawks, redtails, Peregrines, and that very rare bird these days, a single American Kestrel, also spiced the day. Non-raptors were abundant, too - with the mild weather, several Great Egrets have persisted, and waterfowl numbers along the Maurice were high. A full list is below; the bulk of the non-eagles on the list came from the Heislerville and Port Norris areas, on the south and north sides of the Maurice River mouth respectively. I'd also note that HUGE numbers of gulls were attracted to the clam operation at Port Norris/Bivalve, arriving after roosting all night on the bay around sunup and departing by 4 p.m. I didn't have much time to sift them, but that's where I'd send any "Larophiles." If you can stand the smell. . .speaking of being philosophical (see Jason's post below), it does take a certain Zen like state to study large gull flocks, and well-named Bivalve and its, um, scents, provides an even better chance to test one's inner tranquility, especially after you drive your car through the fresh-shelled clams, coating the undercarriage. . .
Location: Maurice River Eagle Survey
Observation date: 1/12/08
Notes: Mid-winter Bald Eagle Survey, Maurice River.
Number of species: 76
Snow Goose 5000
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 13
Gadwall 2
American Black Duck 500
Mallard 200
Northern Shoveler 2
Northern Pintail 250 Includes 160 at Maurice River bluffs feeding on wild rice
Green-winged Teal 50 at Maurice River bluffs feeding on wild rice
Lesser Scaup 5
Bufflehead 150
Common Goldeneye 1
Hooded Merganser 5
Red-breasted Merganser 20
Ruddy Duck 40
Wild Turkey 10
Great Blue Heron 25
Great Egret 4
Black-crowned Night-Heron 1
Black Vulture 10
Turkey Vulture 30
Bald Eagle 11
Northern Harrier 30 Watched 2 adults at Heislerville drive a transition plumage bird away.
Cooper's Hawk 6
Red-tailed Hawk 10
American Kestrel 1 along river road s of mauricetown causeway
Peregrine Falcon 3
Clapper Rail 2
Killdeer 7 port norris
Greater Yellowlegs 75 heislerville impoundment
Sanderling 15
Dunlin 40
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X these and other gulls apparently roosted on bay, huge numbers flew into bivalve in the morning, were gone by 4 p.m.
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon X
Mourning Dove 100
Great Horned Owl 2
Belted Kingfisher 4
Red-bellied Woodpecker 5
Downy Woodpecker 5
Northern Flicker 5
Blue Jay X
American Crow X
Carolina Chickadee 30
Tufted Titmouse 10
Red-breasted Nuthatch 5
White-breasted Nuthatch 5
Brown Creeper 2
Carolina Wren 10
Marsh Wren 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet 5
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
Eastern Bluebird 10
Hermit Thrush 2
American Robin X
Northern Mockingbird 5
Brown Thrasher 2
European Starling X
Cedar Waxwing 75
Yellow-rumped Warbler 50
Eastern Towhee 2
Field Sparrow 2
Song Sparrow 5
Swamp Sparrow 15
White-throated Sparrow 50
Dark-eyed Junco 5
Northern Cardinal 15
Red-winged Blackbird X
Common Grackle X
Boat-tailed Grackle 75
Brown-headed Cowbird 50
Purple Finch 10
House Finch 20
American Goldfinch 15
House Sparrow X
We'll post full results here when we have them, but I can say that things bode well for CMBO's coming field trips: Winter Raptors on the Delaware Bayshore (January 19), Where the Eagles Are (January 21), as well as for our Wintering Raptors of the Delaware Bayshore workshop in February. Check under workshops and special programs on this site, http://www.birdcapemay.org/workshops.php.
I covered the Maurice River (Cumberland County) yesterday, and saw 15 Bald Eagles: 11 within "my" territory and 4 others when I went poaching a bit. Interestingly, I only saw 2 non-adults, and I think I know why. Multiple eagle pairs nest along the Maurice (pronounced "More-iss," by the way), and these territorial birds do not tolerate interlopers. Indeed, one of my earlier sightings of the day included some serious territorial behavior. A huge group of Snow Geese at Heislerville got in the air, signalling that an eagle was nearby. I soon spotted a bird in transitional plumage (i.e. approaching adult), and then realized not one but two adults were in hot pursuit of the young bird, gaining fast. The adults came from upstream along the Maurice, and once the immature reached Matt's Landing they broke off pursuit, presumably because they had reached the edge of their territory.
Several Cooper's Hawks, redtails, Peregrines, and that very rare bird these days, a single American Kestrel, also spiced the day. Non-raptors were abundant, too - with the mild weather, several Great Egrets have persisted, and waterfowl numbers along the Maurice were high. A full list is below; the bulk of the non-eagles on the list came from the Heislerville and Port Norris areas, on the south and north sides of the Maurice River mouth respectively. I'd also note that HUGE numbers of gulls were attracted to the clam operation at Port Norris/Bivalve, arriving after roosting all night on the bay around sunup and departing by 4 p.m. I didn't have much time to sift them, but that's where I'd send any "Larophiles." If you can stand the smell. . .speaking of being philosophical (see Jason's post below), it does take a certain Zen like state to study large gull flocks, and well-named Bivalve and its, um, scents, provides an even better chance to test one's inner tranquility, especially after you drive your car through the fresh-shelled clams, coating the undercarriage. . .
Location: Maurice River Eagle Survey
Observation date: 1/12/08
Notes: Mid-winter Bald Eagle Survey, Maurice River.
Number of species: 76
Snow Goose 5000
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 13
Gadwall 2
American Black Duck 500
Mallard 200
Northern Shoveler 2
Northern Pintail 250 Includes 160 at Maurice River bluffs feeding on wild rice
Green-winged Teal 50 at Maurice River bluffs feeding on wild rice
Lesser Scaup 5
Bufflehead 150
Common Goldeneye 1
Hooded Merganser 5
Red-breasted Merganser 20
Ruddy Duck 40
Wild Turkey 10
Great Blue Heron 25
Great Egret 4
Black-crowned Night-Heron 1
Black Vulture 10
Turkey Vulture 30
Bald Eagle 11
Northern Harrier 30 Watched 2 adults at Heislerville drive a transition plumage bird away.
Cooper's Hawk 6
Red-tailed Hawk 10
American Kestrel 1 along river road s of mauricetown causeway
Peregrine Falcon 3
Clapper Rail 2
Killdeer 7 port norris
Greater Yellowlegs 75 heislerville impoundment
Sanderling 15
Dunlin 40
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X these and other gulls apparently roosted on bay, huge numbers flew into bivalve in the morning, were gone by 4 p.m.
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon X
Mourning Dove 100
Great Horned Owl 2
Belted Kingfisher 4
Red-bellied Woodpecker 5
Downy Woodpecker 5
Northern Flicker 5
Blue Jay X
American Crow X
Carolina Chickadee 30
Tufted Titmouse 10
Red-breasted Nuthatch 5
White-breasted Nuthatch 5
Brown Creeper 2
Carolina Wren 10
Marsh Wren 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet 5
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
Eastern Bluebird 10
Hermit Thrush 2
American Robin X
Northern Mockingbird 5
Brown Thrasher 2
European Starling X
Cedar Waxwing 75
Yellow-rumped Warbler 50
Eastern Towhee 2
Field Sparrow 2
Song Sparrow 5
Swamp Sparrow 15
White-throated Sparrow 50
Dark-eyed Junco 5
Northern Cardinal 15
Red-winged Blackbird X
Common Grackle X
Boat-tailed Grackle 75
Brown-headed Cowbird 50
Purple Finch 10
House Finch 20
American Goldfinch 15
House Sparrow X
CMBO Cape May Point walk- 1/12/08
The following was sightings information and list was emailed to me from Karl Lukens re: the CMBO Cape May Point Walk on 1/12/08.
"Nice morning for a walk around Cape May Point. No Crossbills this morning, but a nice variety of ducks on Lily Lake including 1 Canvasback, 1 drake Redhead, a female Lesser Scaup, as well as numerous American Wigeons ,Gadwall, and Coots. On the ocean and bay we had Black and Surf Scoters, Long-tailed Ducks, a Common Eider, and Red-throated Loons. Land Birds included 7 Red-breasted Nuthatches, Cedar Waxwings, and a couple of Purple Finches."
"Nice morning for a walk around Cape May Point. No Crossbills this morning, but a nice variety of ducks on Lily Lake including 1 Canvasback, 1 drake Redhead, a female Lesser Scaup, as well as numerous American Wigeons ,Gadwall, and Coots. On the ocean and bay we had Black and Surf Scoters, Long-tailed Ducks, a Common Eider, and Red-throated Loons. Land Birds included 7 Red-breasted Nuthatches, Cedar Waxwings, and a couple of Purple Finches."
SPECIES SEEN ~ CMBO TRIP
Northern Gannet 5
Mute Swan 5
Canada Goose 2
American Wigeon 20
Gadwall 10
Mallard 10
Canvasback 1
Redhead 1
Lesser Scaup 1
Common Eider 1
Long-tailed Duck 5
Black Scoter 15
Surf Scoter 10
Hooded Merganser 2
Ruddy Duck 10
Black Vulture 4
Turkey Vulture 4
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Sanderling 4
Purple Sandpiper 4
Ring-billed Gull 3
Great Black-backed Gull 5
American Herring Gull 15
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 15
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 3
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
Cedar Waxwing 5
Gray Catbird 2
Northern Mockingbird 5
Brown Thrasher 1
American Robin 15
Red-breasted Nuthatch 7
Blue Jay 3
American Crow 5
European Starling 40
House Sparrow 30
Purple Finch 2
House Finch 20
American Goldfinch 5
Yellow-rumped Warbler 20
Fox Sparrow 2
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 10
Dark-eyed Junco 1
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Brown-headed Cowbird 10
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Quick spin around the State Park....
I had a short time for a walk this morning before I had to catch a flight. The morning started of quite slow and I was thinking that my walk would be very short. In fact, I hadn't even brought my scope along since I was trying to travel light. Typically I start my Cape May Point State Park walks to the right of the hawkwatch platform as I like to hit the dune crossovers for some sea watching. This morning I started down the boardwalk path and decided to look for owls first thing. Much to my dismay I did not come across any little eyes peering back at me from the cedars and pines. Not that this means there were no owls. I pretty much proved my inability to find owls when I worked for Braddock Bay Raptor Research. The "owl woods" are arguably one of the best places in the east to find migrating owls in the spring and in my three seasons there was lucky enough to find only a handful on my own.
Since I struck out on owls I walked the length of the board walk and was glad that I had not carried my scope as the ponds were pretty much devoid of ducks for some reason. I had noticed that Lake Lily seemed to have a decent number on the water, so the plan was to scope there after my walk but I ultimately ran out of time. Once I got to the back side of the state park things had really started to pick up. I am guessing that the fact that the sun was a good bit higher and hitting more of the vegetation helped to bring birds out of hiding in search of food.
All in all, the walk was very productive with 60 species recorded. Given that I had walked the trails for less than two hours this was a great start had I been conducting another big day for the month, though forty species is still a big leap.
There were a number of nice finds for the day. The bird that probably took the top billing for bird of the day, one YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT along the very back trail which boarders TNC's CMMBR. So, the question begs asking; is this the latest Chat I've ever had or......the earliest!? I supposes this would be considered Philosophical Birding. A pretty novel idea, Don, what do you think about a CMBO Philosophical Birding walk this spring?
I digress. Anyway, other species that stand out; 6 Ruby-crowned kinglets, 5 Baltimore orioles and 50 Snow buntings on the beach. Try as I may, I was unable to locate a Lapland longspur in the bunch. Fifteen Tree swallows, a handful of Fox Sparrows, 12 Purple finches (both fly overs and birds feeding in shrubs) and an Eastern phoebe round out the top birds.
There was a good number of Cedar waxwings flying about, especially at the back of the state park. Again, try as I may, there were no large waxwings in the mix. I did try to turn a flock of cedars into crossbills as I drove into the parking lot.....wishful thinking.
One adult Bald eagle came cruising in heading toward the ocean with noticeable determination. This bird seemed to be flapping as hard as it could, constantly, headed out as if it were racing itself in a time trail to the coast. Almost as a soon as it hit the beach it stopped flapping and set wings to soar. After a few minuets I finally realized why the eagle was moving with such determination. Ducks scattered, not many but the eagle must have thought that there was one...."lame duck" in the bunch. Then I saw something I didn't think I'd ever see. Two Mallards (a drake and hen) flew past and strafed the eagle. Not much in the way of interaction but the ducks did make a second pass. Then as if the adrenalin finally wore of and they realized who they were tangling with, they flew off the find the refuge of the thicker parts of the marsh.
So, I'd say that it was quite a nice day. Definitely one of my best counts for my "Flight Day" list. So why was headed to the airport to "leave on a jet plane"? I've come down to Birdwatch America (the nations largest birding trade show) so that I can continue to bring you great new innovative birding product in the Northwood Center Nature Store. Hopefully if you visit us this spring you'll find a few of the fruits of my labor here.
By the way, FeatherEdgeOptics.org is now live, go and take a look even if you are not in the market for a new pair of binoculars. If you know someone who is, please send them our way, you know we'll take good care of them.
Location: Cape May Point SP
Observation date: 1/10/08
Notes: 5715 steps= 3.7 miles
Number of species: 60
Canada Goose 5
Mute Swan 6
Gadwall 6
American Wigeon 8
American Black Duck 1
American Black Duck x Mallard (hybrid) 1
Mallard 43
Greater Scaup 1
dark-winged scoter sp. 35
Long-tailed Duck 3
Hooded Merganser 1
Red-breasted Merganser 4
Red-throated Loon 1
Northern Gannet 5
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Turkey Vulture 3
Bald Eagle 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Sanderling 3
Bonaparte's Gull 4
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull 3
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Rock Pigeon 4
Mourning Dove 5
Red-bellied Woodpecker 4
Downy Woodpecker 6
Northern Flicker 15
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 5
American Crow 13
Tree Swallow 15
Carolina Chickadee 15
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 23
Winter Wren 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6
Hermit Thrush 8
American Robin 37
Gray Catbird 15
Northern Mockingbird 3
Brown Thrasher 1
European Starling 250
Cedar Waxwing 145
Yellow-rumped Warbler 175
Yellow-breasted Chat 1
Eastern Towhee 8
Fox Sparrow 10
Song Sparrow 3
White-throated Sparrow 45
Snow Bunting 50
Northern Cardinal 15
Red-winged Blackbird 5
Common Grackle 10
Brown-headed Cowbird 25
Baltimore Oriole 5
Purple Finch 12
House Finch 5
American Goldfinch 5
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Since I struck out on owls I walked the length of the board walk and was glad that I had not carried my scope as the ponds were pretty much devoid of ducks for some reason. I had noticed that Lake Lily seemed to have a decent number on the water, so the plan was to scope there after my walk but I ultimately ran out of time. Once I got to the back side of the state park things had really started to pick up. I am guessing that the fact that the sun was a good bit higher and hitting more of the vegetation helped to bring birds out of hiding in search of food.
All in all, the walk was very productive with 60 species recorded. Given that I had walked the trails for less than two hours this was a great start had I been conducting another big day for the month, though forty species is still a big leap.
There were a number of nice finds for the day. The bird that probably took the top billing for bird of the day, one YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT along the very back trail which boarders TNC's CMMBR. So, the question begs asking; is this the latest Chat I've ever had or......the earliest!? I supposes this would be considered Philosophical Birding. A pretty novel idea, Don, what do you think about a CMBO Philosophical Birding walk this spring?
I digress. Anyway, other species that stand out; 6 Ruby-crowned kinglets, 5 Baltimore orioles and 50 Snow buntings on the beach. Try as I may, I was unable to locate a Lapland longspur in the bunch. Fifteen Tree swallows, a handful of Fox Sparrows, 12 Purple finches (both fly overs and birds feeding in shrubs) and an Eastern phoebe round out the top birds.
There was a good number of Cedar waxwings flying about, especially at the back of the state park. Again, try as I may, there were no large waxwings in the mix. I did try to turn a flock of cedars into crossbills as I drove into the parking lot.....wishful thinking.
One adult Bald eagle came cruising in heading toward the ocean with noticeable determination. This bird seemed to be flapping as hard as it could, constantly, headed out as if it were racing itself in a time trail to the coast. Almost as a soon as it hit the beach it stopped flapping and set wings to soar. After a few minuets I finally realized why the eagle was moving with such determination. Ducks scattered, not many but the eagle must have thought that there was one...."lame duck" in the bunch. Then I saw something I didn't think I'd ever see. Two Mallards (a drake and hen) flew past and strafed the eagle. Not much in the way of interaction but the ducks did make a second pass. Then as if the adrenalin finally wore of and they realized who they were tangling with, they flew off the find the refuge of the thicker parts of the marsh.
So, I'd say that it was quite a nice day. Definitely one of my best counts for my "Flight Day" list. So why was headed to the airport to "leave on a jet plane"? I've come down to Birdwatch America (the nations largest birding trade show) so that I can continue to bring you great new innovative birding product in the Northwood Center Nature Store. Hopefully if you visit us this spring you'll find a few of the fruits of my labor here.
By the way, FeatherEdgeOptics.org is now live, go and take a look even if you are not in the market for a new pair of binoculars. If you know someone who is, please send them our way, you know we'll take good care of them.
Location: Cape May Point SP
Observation date: 1/10/08
Notes: 5715 steps= 3.7 miles
Number of species: 60
Canada Goose 5
Mute Swan 6
Gadwall 6
American Wigeon 8
American Black Duck 1
American Black Duck x Mallard (hybrid) 1
Mallard 43
Greater Scaup 1
dark-winged scoter sp. 35
Long-tailed Duck 3
Hooded Merganser 1
Red-breasted Merganser 4
Red-throated Loon 1
Northern Gannet 5
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Turkey Vulture 3
Bald Eagle 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Sanderling 3
Bonaparte's Gull 4
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull 3
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Rock Pigeon 4
Mourning Dove 5
Red-bellied Woodpecker 4
Downy Woodpecker 6
Northern Flicker 15
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 5
American Crow 13
Tree Swallow 15
Carolina Chickadee 15
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 23
Winter Wren 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6
Hermit Thrush 8
American Robin 37
Gray Catbird 15
Northern Mockingbird 3
Brown Thrasher 1
European Starling 250
Cedar Waxwing 145
Yellow-rumped Warbler 175
Yellow-breasted Chat 1
Eastern Towhee 8
Fox Sparrow 10
Song Sparrow 3
White-throated Sparrow 45
Snow Bunting 50
Northern Cardinal 15
Red-winged Blackbird 5
Common Grackle 10
Brown-headed Cowbird 25
Baltimore Oriole 5
Purple Finch 12
House Finch 5
American Goldfinch 5
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Golden with Snake photo
[George Myers took this photo of the Jake's Landing Golden Eagle mentioned previously, carrying an apparent snake it hijacked from a gull.]
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Golden Eagle Steals Snake from Gull (!)
No, I didn't just try to come up with the most bizarre title possible for this blog. Chuck and Mary Slugg just emailed me the following:
"Had 2 adult bald eagles at the nest site at Beaver Dam. Went to Jake's Landing and had adult golden eagle stir up snow geese, go down, come up and perch for what seemed forever, take off, accost a gull in mid-air and cause it to drop a snake which the eagle snatched in mid-air and flew off with snake in talons. Spectacular." Both Beaver Dam (Beaver Swamp WMA) and Jake's Landing are on CMBO's Cape May Birding map, available as a .pdf on this web site.
If you're wondering about the snake business given that it's January, it reached 70 degrees F. in Cape May today. I haven't talked to the Sluggs and suppose it could have been an eel; regardless, how cool was that! Makes me think of the snake-eagles I hopefully will see in a few weeks while leading the NJAS tour to Tanzania - Black-chested, Brown, and Western Banded Snake-eagles are possible. . .
Speaking of eagles, mark your calendar for the Cumberland County Eagle Festival February 2. More info will be posted here shortly.
In other news, a few butterflies have been reported lately, including two Red Admirals yesterday, and an extraordinary Monarch on New Year's Day in Cape May Point. Moths collected around the lights here last night, and I'd wager that woodcock are displaying across Cape May and Cumberland Counties as I write this.
"Had 2 adult bald eagles at the nest site at Beaver Dam. Went to Jake's Landing and had adult golden eagle stir up snow geese, go down, come up and perch for what seemed forever, take off, accost a gull in mid-air and cause it to drop a snake which the eagle snatched in mid-air and flew off with snake in talons. Spectacular." Both Beaver Dam (Beaver Swamp WMA) and Jake's Landing are on CMBO's Cape May Birding map, available as a .pdf on this web site.
If you're wondering about the snake business given that it's January, it reached 70 degrees F. in Cape May today. I haven't talked to the Sluggs and suppose it could have been an eel; regardless, how cool was that! Makes me think of the snake-eagles I hopefully will see in a few weeks while leading the NJAS tour to Tanzania - Black-chested, Brown, and Western Banded Snake-eagles are possible. . .
Speaking of eagles, mark your calendar for the Cumberland County Eagle Festival February 2. More info will be posted here shortly.
In other news, a few butterflies have been reported lately, including two Red Admirals yesterday, and an extraordinary Monarch on New Year's Day in Cape May Point. Moths collected around the lights here last night, and I'd wager that woodcock are displaying across Cape May and Cumberland Counties as I write this.
Barnacle Goose et. al, plus Newburyport & Gloucester - future home of a CMBO Winter Bird Workshop?
[Karl Lukens reports from Sunday: "The Barnacle Goose was at the field behind Strawberry Lane at 8:00 am and later (10:45 am) at the Batts Lane/No Frills Farm field. Both times the flock contained the Canada Goose with the white head and neck. George, Steve, and I (with Ken and Jean Lukacs) had 2 Red-headed Woodpeckers, and the drake Redhead at Villas WMA this morning. " Photo by Karl Lukens.]
Wouldn't you love to go to a place where, on your first scan, you hit Red-necked Grebe after Red-necked Grebe, punctuated by a few Horned Grebes here, a few Razorbills there, and way more than a few Common Eiders over there? Not to mention plenty of loons (both species) and two dozen or so Black-legged Kittewakes dancing over the water and occasionaly smashing into it with apparent glee?
That would describe my first scan off Plum Island, MA on Saturday. Having missed the recent Cape May Black Guillemot and Dovekie, I had planned a spur-of-the-moment venture to points north for a bout of winter birding to make up for those misses, and soak up white-winged gulls, Snowy Owls, and the like. By the last day, the deal had been sealed - the Cape May School of Birding will go on the road next year for a Winter Birding Workshop, details TBA.
Among other Plum Island highlights, mostly within the Parker River NWR, were three Snowy Owls, 5 Rough-legged Hawks, 4 Northern Shrikes, and 4 Lapland Longspurs. A Dovekie has been hanging around the public fish pier in Gloucester, and we saw that easily and at length. Unfortunately we dipped on the Slaty-backed Gull that's been reported in Gloucester, but 8 Iceland gulls in varying plumages, plus 2 Glaucous Gulls were nice consolations.
The Massachusetts highlight, surprisingly, came from birds we can see relatively easily in or near Cape May. It was a calm, sunny, 50ish day at Rockport's Halibut Point on Sunday afternoon, with a glassy sea and low tide - I don't expect those conditions again anytime soon! A few Black Guillemots could be found by scoping in the distance, but the best birds from my persepctive were much closer: Purple Sandpipers scrambled about over the rocks, and Harlequins bobbed up from dives like corks, making their rubber-ducky squeaks. It was a tranquil moment with birds in their normal habitat just doing what they do - sometimes that trumps rare and exotic species, and it did this time.