Lake Hopatcong
Waterfowl, Lake Hopatcong, NJ, Jan. 14, 2015 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)
(Click on the photo for a larger image)
There was barely any remaining open water at Lake Hopatcong on Sunday, January 14. There is even less today. A small section of water, kept open with the help of dock-protecting pumps at Lake Hopatcong Yacht club on Bertrand Island is all that is left of ice-free conditions at the lake. This is one of the last open sections of water, other than moving rivers, in Morris County.
Waterfowl is crammed into this relatively tiny pool: 2 Mute Swans (down from 120 on Sunday), 6 Gadwall, 4 American Wigeon, 8 Mallards, 180 Ring-necked Ducks, 3 Lesser Scaup, 4 Bufflehead, 1 Common Goldeneye hen, 4 Hooded Mergansers, 5 Ruddy Ducks and 15 American Coot were joined by a Canvasback drake.
Canvasback, et al, Lake Hopatcong, NJ, Jan. 14, 2015 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)
Canvasback, et al, Lake Hopatcong, NJ, Jan. 14, 2015 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)
Towards the end of daylight, Ring-billed and Herring Gulls appeared from the north heading south. Who knows where they are from and where they are going. One lone Ring-billed Gull remained on the ice.
Ring-billed Gull, Lake Hopatcong, NJ, Jan. 14, 2015 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)
The Somerset County Barnacle Goose is not reported since January 10 at North Branch Park. The Greater White-fronted Goose was last reported two days ago. Both are probably in the area as there are still thousands of geese lingering in this section of Somerset County.
eBird Checklists for the mocosocoBirds region may be viewed via eBird’s Region Explorer. Use the following links:
The eBird Hotspot Primer is here and can also be accessed via the Hotspot menu item on the mocosocoBirds.com website.
@mocosocoBirds at Twitter is another communications stream. Instant field reports and links of interest are tweeted throughout the day. The latest tweets appear on the sidebar of this page. One can follow mocosocoBirds at Twitter or link to @mocosocoBirds.
Finis
mocosocoBirds 