Deerhaven Lake facing west, the Green Pond Mountain escarpment in the background, Morris County, NJ, June 22, 2013 (photographed by Jonathan Klizas)

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Deerhaven Lake is a personal favorite Morris County location. It is on Newark Watershed property meaning that a hiking permit is required. Some of the nesting trees were fallen by Superstorm Sandy in 2012 but the heronry is going strong. 44 Great Blue Herons were viewed at one time this morning. Others had already flown from the heronry to points unknown putting the actual number of Herons using the site at approximately 50+ minimum. This is probably the largest heronry in Morris County.

(Click on the pictures below to view a larger image).

Heronry, Deerhaven Lake, NJ, June 22, 2013 (digiscoped by Jonathan Klizas)

Heronry, Deerhaven Lake, NJ, June 22, 2013 (digiscoped by Jonathan Klizas)

Heronry, Deerhaven Lake, NJ, June 22, 2013 (digiscoped by Jonathan Klizas)

This is a rich birding area. A Brown Creeper was singing, a Red-breasted Nuthatch “hanking” and a Pine Warbler trilling from the west side of the lake near Green Pond Road. A Common Gallinule was out in the open for all of the 20 minutes I was viewing it. Wood Ducks are in eclipse. All of the photographs in this post are taken from the east side of the lake. This requires a one-plus mile hike on a marked trail (the Four Birds Trail), an unmarked trail and no trail (i.e. bushwhack) to reach the eastern lake shore.

Common Gallinule, Deerhaven Lake, NJ, June 22, 2013 (digiscoped by Jonathan Klizas)

Here is the list from this morning:
Canada Goose – 5
Wood Duck – 27
Mallard – 11
Wild Turkey
Double-crested Cormorant – 2
Great Blue Heron – 44
Green Heron – 3
Common Gallinule – 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Wooodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee – 2
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Yellow-throated Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo – 8
Warbling Vireo – 3
Blue Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow – 10
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper – singing
Eastern Bluebird – 2
Wood Thrush – 5
American Robin
Ovenbird – 10
Worm-eating Warbler
Louisiana Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat – 4
Yellow-Warbler
Pine Warbler
Song Sparrow – 3
Scarlet Tanager – 3
Rose-breasted Grosbeak – 2
Indigo Bunting – 1
Red-winged Blackbird – 25
Common Grackle – 16
Baltimore Oriole
American Goldfinch -3

Indian Pipe emerging from Sphagnum Moss, Deerhave Lake, NJ, June 22, 2013 (photo by Jonathan Kizas)