From Susan Treesh:
I posted earlier to JerseyBirds about the very good thrush habitat at Bamboo Brook County Park in Morris County. There were no surprises, but good numbers of all the “summer birds,” though I saw no grassland species in the meadows except for some field sparrows and tree swallows. Bluebirds were everywhere – this has been a bluebird summer for me in Central Jersey.

The interconnecting trails between Bamboo Brook and other parks are very intriguing. I’d like to solicit further information and discussion from the Mocosoco readership on the trails and the bird life. In particular I could not find any trails linking these parks to the SOUTHERN section of Hacklebarney (there are linking trails in the north), and would be interested if anyone knows of some. There seem to be a lot of unmarked trails! I’m not sure how often these parks are birded, though I think more often than is reported.

Editor’s Note: I can’t help with the trails. The Chester Township area is on my target list of places to explore more (as are countless other places in Morris and Somerset Counties, as well as the entire world). One part of Hacklebarney that is productive in spring is Black River Road along the Lamington River. This a very pretty spot with a nice density of Louisiana Waterthrushes as well as other typical species.
—————
At the Great Swamp NWR, Jim Mulvey reports seeing: “a group of 8-10 young Wild Turkeys right near the entrance to the refuge near White Bridge Road. They were observed about 20 feet off of the road through some thicket, so I wasn’t able to get a precise count. Mom was with them as well…a nice start to my afternoon visit.”
—————
Nothing more has developed at Melanie Lane Wetlands regarding shorebirds. The same Spotted Sandpiper, the few Least Sandpipers and the regular band of Killdeer were present today. In July 2012, there were up to 21 Great Egrets and 3 Black-crowned Night-Herons seen at Melanie. This year: none.