South Jersey thread (8 Viewers)

[dak]

I went down to Cape May today. Even though I have lived in south NJ most of my life, I never went solely to bird. Well, it was everything that I had heard. I stopped at the Cape May Bird Observatory and for some reason there was a swarm of warblers there, along with an expert from the Nature Conservancy. He was rattling off birds one after another. We got: redstart, parula, Cape may, blue winged, Tennessee, orange crowned, prairie, and black and white warblers. And brown thrasher, scarlet Tanager, and yellow throated video. And raptors omg. I saw at least a dozen sharpies/cooper's and some broad winged, red shouldered, eagles, and a bunch of others too far to ID. What a great birding day!

 

[dak]

Yellow rumped warblers have been swarming S Jersey last couple weeks, pretty much to the exclusion of all others. Find fruiting cedars, and you'll find yellow rumps.

 

[dak]

Fosythe NWR update...Looks like the fall migration is pretty much over. Tons of yellow rumped warblers overwintering along with the usual winter birds. Ducks are everywhere - shovelers, green teals, ruddies, hoodies, buffleheads, blacks, pintails, ring necks. I heard that a group of atlantic white pelicans was spotted a couple weeks ago. Lots of peeps, I could only id white rumped and least pipers, but I'm sure there were many others. Also a couple weeks ago a sage thrasher appeared, and was quite a celeb for a few days. The resident bald eagle family is spending more time here now. The merlins that enthralled me for a while are gone, sigh.

 

[edpronay]

Hi Dak, it was nice to see you again at FNWR. The yellow rumped warblers were the highlight of the day for me. I will post a few photos later. I may get there tomorrow as well, if work permits. Next week seems to be much colder.

 

[dak]

Hi Ed! Welcome to Birdforum. I'd love to see some photos. You can post them in the gallery as well, under the north america section.

 

[dak]

I saw 2 pregrines out on the drive today, but the light was terrible and the photos all looked like greyscale. Into the trash bin..

 

[edpronay]

Here are a few from Monday.

 

[dak]

Wonderful photos Ed. I love the one of the robin swallowing a cedar berry. You should put them up on the photo gallery. If you resize the image to 3000x2000 pixels or less, they will appear as a thumbnail but will show good resolution when a viewer opens up the image.

 

[edpronay]

Thank you, Dak, I just uploaded 2 photos to the gallery.

 

[dak]

I saw something interesting today. Two female Wood Ducks swimming together, and one was alo preening the other around the head and neck. I didn't know that ducks do that.

 

[edpronay]

I saw something interesting today. Two female Wood Ducks swimming together, and one was alo preening the other around the head and neck. I didn't know that ducks do that.

Did you see them near the tower? I seen a female Wood Duck there about 2 weeks ago.

 

[dak]

Yep, at the gull pond tower.

 

[edpronay]

I'm planning to come on Friday. The weather seems to be good.

 

[MikeInPA]

Where is this Forsythe NWR you keep mentioning? Is it anywhere near Brigantine?🤣 I first visited in 1975 when it was Brigantine and I’ve been regular visitor for years. It will always be Brig to me. I also visit Barnegat Lighthouse SP several times in the Winter months. The jetty is THE place to see not only the Harlequin duck but also Scoter, Eider and my favorite the Long-tailed Duck. There’s often flocks of Dunlin, Sanderling, Ruddy Turnstones and Purple Sandpipers on the jetty. The jetty is very dangerous if you’re not steady on your feet. Not only can it get slippery with ice but slimy stuff as well as bird crap. It’s usually extremely cold so wear plenty of layers. The gaps between the jetty rocks are wide enough to fall into as one guy did a few years ago. He was stuck with the tide coming in but was pulled out in time.

Barnegat Jetty

 

[dak]

Brig is now Forsythe. Not sure when the name change happened. I have heard of the Barnegat jetty birds, and will be making some trips there to get some photos. The Harlequin duck would be a lifer for me.

 

[lmans66]

Just wear a warm jacket in winter.... you will want it

 

[edpronay]

Barnegat jetty is an excellent place during winter, I'm attaching a few photos I took there some time ago.

 

[Jeff Hopkins]

To add, Great Cormorant and Ipswich Savannah Sparrow are also reliable at Barnegat Jetty.

 

[MikeInPA]

Brig is now Forsythe. Not sure when the name change happened. I have heard of the Barnegat jetty birds, and will be making some trips there to get some photos. The Harlequin duck would be a lifer for me.

🤣 Yeah I know. It's always going to be Brig to me, I'll never forget the 2 American Bitterns landing right beside the car back in 1975.

As for the warm clothing advice, absolutely. It's really bitter when the wind rips across the inlet. You need multi layered gloves as well as jackets.
You often don't need a long lens to get great shots as at times the Harlequins hang around on the jetty just a couple of yards away.

 

[dak]

Mike that is a stunning photo. The colors and detail are over the top. I hope to get some captures of these beauties this winter.