Jeff Ellerbusch found a Black-bellied Plover today at Selody Sod Farm in Montgomery Township representing the first of 2012 for the mocosoco region. The cumulative totals from both morning and afternoon birding sessions include:
Semipalmated Plovers – 11
Killdeer – 173
Black-bellied Plover – 1
Pectoral Sandpiper – 1
Least Sandpiper – 9
Black-bellied Plover, Selody Sod Farm, Montgomery Township, NJ, August 10, 2012 (ID photo by J. Ellerbusch)
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Yesterday at Finderne Wetlands, 16 Bobolinks were seen in the vegetation near the first pond. 4 juvenile Least Sandpipers and 4 Solitary Sandpipers were in the long pond. The following Snapping Turtle lounged near the shorebirds.
Snapping Turtle on a hot summer day, Finderne Wetlands, NJ, August 9, 2012 (photo by J. Klizas).
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An update to the Somerset County list is in order. The benefit of contemporary communication is the rapidity with which information travels. A Buff-breasted Sandpiper (BBSA) was found at Selody Sod Farm on August 6. The Somerset County list was lacking any known record although it seemed likely that one existed. Sure enough, within a few days two records of BBSA in Somerset County surfaced. Chris Aquila had a BBSA at Duke Farms a few years ago. Through some diligent research, Mike Hiotis discovered a BBSA record of Tom Bailey’s in Millstone from 1996. Kudos to Chris and Mike for their alertness and for communicating their finds. Now if everyone would enter all of their records into eBird…
mocosocoBirds 