mocosocoBirds

Morris and Somerset Counties’ après storm findings were quite modest compared with those found elsewhere in the state. Jeff Ellerbusch managed a Brant, Great Egret and Common Merganser at Finderne Wetlands.

Lake Parsippany held 4 Common Loons throughout the day joined by small groups of Bufflehead, Ruddy Ducks and 2 Pied-billed Grebes. Rick Radis had a Long-tailed Duck at 12:30. At 2:00, the Long-tailed Duck was gone. A few minutes later, Jamie Glydon saw 6 White-winged Scoters with the 4 Common Loons. By 2:30, the White-winged Scoters were gone. Such is the dynamic of migration and storms.

White-winged Scoters, Lake Parsippany, Oct. 30, 2012 (Photo by Jamie Glydon)

The storm damage in Morris Township is much worse than I thought when I awoke this morning. Our house and property barely lost a branch. Yet down the street trees were lying atop roofs and power lines were stretched to the ground by fallen trees. An attempt to drive into Mendham Township was thwarted at every turn by closed roads. It may be some time before electric power returns to our area. This post was written on a battery-powered laptop tethered to an iPhone hotspot. Good luck to all.

The coming storm overwhelms any other news today. People are busy with tasks such as cleaning gutters, clearing sewer drains, buying food items, getting gasoline for generators, buying ice that will melt into puddles in the refrigerator when the power does go out, as well as reading various Nixle reports that Jersey Central Power and Light said all customers should prepare for power outages lasting 7-10 days AFTER the storm. In an attempt to maintain normalcy and to see what the prelude to the storm might bring our way, birders did get into the field today. In the Morris and Somerset region, Chimney Rock’s 3 Evening Grosbeaks and 4th Golden Eagle of the season, an adult, were certainly the highlights of the day.

Duckage was thick at Melanie Lane Wetlands, where 70 Gadwall, 6 Northern Pintail (Morris County’s 1st of the season), 20 Green-winged Teal, and 4 Ruddy Duck joined the many Canada Geese, Mallards and American Black Ducks in attendance. American Wigeon, Wood Ducks, Green-winged Teal and Fox, White-throated, White-crowned, Song and Swamp Sparrows were at the southern end of Troy Meadows.

Lake Parsippany had only 1 Bufflehead with 15 Ruddy Ducks and a Pied-billed Grebe. Jamie Glydon found a Tennessee Warbler (TEWA) at Bee Meadow Park. Despite much effort and prodding by Jamie, the TEWA defied morphing into an Orange-crowned Warbler.

Meteorologists and weather-news people are saying that Sandy, The Storm of 2012, will be unlike anything most of us have ever experienced. Many of us are still smarting from the two weather bombshells of 2011, tropical storm Irene and the October 29 snowstorm (the irony of that latter date is not lost on anyone) so, I am not sure there is an appreciation of any more meteorological drama. Roadway passage and sanity permitting, there will be those who venture into the storm and its aftermath to see what unique avian species the storm may bring our way. Mocosocobirds will report any findings in our area albeit the posts will emanate from an iPhone 5 once the power goes out.

Good birding and be safe!

From Tom Smith:
This morning at Finderne Wetlands we found a good number of sparrows, including a Nelson’s Sparrow on the east side of the north-south creek. (It is possible there was a small flock of ~3-4 of them.)
I put a picture at http://www.flickr.com/photos/tsmzth/8129093501/.
Also in that area was a Snipe, along with the more usual Savannahs, Songs, Swamps, Myrtles, Palms, etc.
[Editor’s Note: this is the 4th Nelson’s Sparrow found in Somerset County this season and 2nd for Finderne]

The trails behind Veteran’s Memorial Park in Hanover featured a continuing Vesper Sparrow, along with a few Savannah and Field Sparrows, a Phoebe, and a large flock of Siskins.
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To today’s Veteran’s Memorial Park list, Jamie Glydon adds another Vesper Sparrow and a Fox Sparrow.