From Jeff Ellerbusch:

Bufflehead Rd Ponds, Bridgewater Township – 6:25am.
The female Common Goldeneye and 3 Drake Ruddies are still there since the 29th, Barn Swallow since the 31st.

– Wood Duck- 3
– Ring-necked Duck- 22
– Common Goldeneye- 1 Fem
– Ruddy Duck- 3 males
– Pied-billed Grebe- 1
– G B Heron- 2
– Herring Gull- 1
– Phoebe- 1
– Fish Crow- 7
– Tree Swallow- 5, way down from 40+ on the 31st
– Barn Swallow- 1
– Red-winged Blackbird- 1,500+

Finderne Wetland
I ran across this large field in early March which caught my eye while driving on Finderne Ave, have since visited it a handfull of times. In March the field resembled more a lake than a field and connected seamlessly with the overflowing Raritan. It has since turned back into a field though in spots is reasonably marshy. Before this morning I have not gone in, haven’t had the time and wasn’t sure if it was private, and only viewed it from a raised lot where I park. Today I decided to walk in and realized not only is it public but it looks to be very, very promising. There is a path that runs along most of the perimeter and is easy to walk. Nearly all of the field is bordered by the Raritan, there are also a few small ponds and marshy areas, and the field itself looks very nice…would love to see it in prime sparrow season. There are three signs spaced evenly along the loop each with the title Finderne Wetland Mitigation Project… so for now lets call it Finderne Wetlands. Also this is really close to the Bufflehead Rd Ponds, maybe a little over a mile.

– Cackling Goose “Richardson”- 1, with 75 or so Canadas on a Soccer field which is on the property and to the far right. The soccer goal posts are visible as soon as you step foot in the field.
– Wood Duck- 1
– G-winged Teal- 75
– No. Pintail- 5
– Hooded Merg- 6
– Common Merg- 1 male
– D-c Cormorant- 2-3
– G B Heron- 2
– Great Egret- 1
– Kestrel- 1 female
– Killdeer- 1
– Snipe- 2
– Herring Gull- 7
– Kingfisher- 2
– Phoebe- 1
– Fish Crow- 9
– Tree Swallow- 5
– Chickadee Sp.- 2, looked very good for Carolina, so good that i’m hesitant to even call them intergrades. Played a quick burst of Carolina song and they went nuts, started to sing and give there gargle notes… farthest north i’ve seen them.
– Am. Tree Sparrow- 3
– Savannah Sparrow- 2
– Rusty Blackbird- 2 males
– Eastern Meadowlark – 5+

Google Maps:

Finderne Wetlands- 40.554032,-74.590194
Where I’ve been Parking- 40.556204,-74.585967
Cackling Goose- 40.556599,-74.595172

Jeff