mocosocoBirds

The impending storm created hopes for a Scoter or two on Morris lakes. This was not to be the case today:

• a Common Loon and a few Buffleheads and Ruddy Ducks were on Lake Musconetcong. Tree, Barn and Northern Rough-winged Swallows were numerous along with a few Purple Martins.
• Budd Lake had a few Double-crested Cormorants and 3 Swallow species.
• Mt. Hope Lake had 3 Bufflehead, 8 Double-crested Cormorants, and for those keeping count, 108 Mute Swans. Last year’s high count was 135 in July.
• Lake Parsippany had 11 Ruddy Ducks and 3 American Coot. All of the lakes had numerous swallows but nothing other than Tree, Northern Rough-winged and Barn were found.

Elsewhere in Morris County:

• Melanie Road Pond in Hanover Township continues to be a Wilson’s Snipe stronghold with 35 in the rain today. Also present were: 2 Greater Yellowlegs, 3 Killdeer, 1 Solitary Sandpiper, 25+ Savannah Sparrows, and lots of the aforementioned 3 swallow species.
• Loantaka Brook Reservation in Harding/Morris Townships had Solitary Sandpiper, 6 Green-winged Teal, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and Yellow-rumped, Yellow and Palm Warblers.
• Jamie Glydon spotted a Spotted Sandpiper at the corporate pond on American Road in Morris Plains.

In Somerset County (all reports from Jeff Ellerbusch):

• A late and apparently healthy Snow Goose was on the Selody Sod Farm in Montgomery Township.
• Finderne Wetlands in Bridgewater had Greater Yellowlegs, Wilson’s Snipe and Orchard Oriole.
• The ponds along Duke Parkway West in Hillsborough had Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs and Solitary Sandpiper.
• Negri-Nepote Grasslands in Franklin Township had 5 Greater Yellowlegs, 1 Lesser Yellowlegs, 1 Solitary Sandpiper and 1 Pectoral Sandpiper.

Some of the usual locations in the Great Swamp N.W.R. held Virginia Rails 10-14 days ago. As of this weekend, none were heard in the Great Swamp and Lord Stirling areas. Only a visual of an American Bittern at Lord Stirling kept the weekend from being a complete Rail/Bittern shutout. Is it too dry? At least Marsh Wrens are in at the Great Swamp. Perhaps a change in Rallidae fortune will occur with the rain forecast for Sunday and the anticipated migration push afterward.

Lord Stirling Park was host to the first 2 Ovenbirds of 2012 for Somerset County and the first Great Crested Flycatcher of 2012 in the MoCoSoCo region thanks to Jeff Ellerbusch. A flyover Solitary Sandpiper was also witnessed.

Pleasant Plains Road in the Great Swamp had continuing Warbling Vireo by the bridge, Yellow-throated Vireos by the overlook and lots of Yellow Warblers and Common Yellowthroats along White Bridge Road and Pleasant Plains Road. Barred Owls were calling at dawn and after dawn from both the Wildlife Observation center on Long Hill Road and Pleasant Plains Road.

Jeff Ellerbusch had 12 Purple Martins at the Robert J. Stahl Natural Area on River Road, Bedminster.

John Beetham eBirded Lesser Yellowlegs, Least Sandpiper, Northern Parula and Grasshopper Sparrow from the Negri-Nepote Grasslands in Franklin Township today. The last three species are firsts in 2012 for the entire MoCoSoCo region.

The adult Little Blue Heron found today at Ledell Pond in Mendham Township has a post of its own here.

The following new and continuing arrivals were at Pleasant Plains Road in the Great Swamp N.W.R today:

• House Wren
• Common Yellowthroat
• Yellow-throated Vireo
• Warbling Vireo *
• Prairie Warbler *
• Blue-winged Warbler *
• Orchard Oriole
• Increasing numbers of Yellow Warblers and Gray Catbirds.

Thanks to Simon Lane and Harvey Tomlinson for the reports from The Swamp.
(* = 1st Morris County record for 2012)

Elsewhere:

• Orchard Orioles were heard singing in Hillsborough Township today.
• Jeff Ellerbusch had a flyover Common Loon at Glenhurst Meadows this morning.
• Last evening, April 19, Jamie Glydon found Morris County’s first Spotted Sandpiper of 2012 at the Columbia Turnpike Fields in Florham Park.
• Yesterday at Glenhurst Meadows in Warren Township, Harvey Tomlinson heard a Red-headed Woodpecker drumming and doing its “queah” calls down by the Passaic River.

Yellow-throated Vireo was at the overlook this morning on Pleasant Plains Rd., Great Swamp N.W.R. Yellow Warbler and Gray Catbird were also present. Mike Newlon adds Orchard Oriole to the list. This is the 1st Yellow-throated Vireo reported in Morris or Somerset Counties in 2012.
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At Glenhurst Meadows this morning Mike Newlon had Brown Thrasher, Blue-headed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Wilson’s Snipe and Solitary Sandpiper. The Blue-headed Vireo is the 2nd reported in two days in the MoCoSoCo region.
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Jamie Glydon reports a Northern Waterthrush at Bee Meadow Park in Hanover Township, the first in the MoCoSoCo region in  2012.
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From Dave Emma:
Following up on the report from yesterday, there are indeed some Pine Warblers at the Black River WMA. I looked VERY hard for the Black Throated Green, but did not see or hear it. The only other species of note I saw was a few Goldfinches.
Any day now…….
Dave
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On the other side of the ledger, zero Bonaparte’s Gulls were on the Raritan River in Franklin Township. The Sod fields on Skillman Road in Montgomery Township had no shorebirds.

I was fortunate to co-lead a group of Hillsborough High School biology students today for a birding trip at the Sourland Preserve in Hillsborough Township. Accompanied by New Jersey Audubon naturalists from the Plainsboro Preserve as well as some teachers and parents, three groups of 25 students each, explored different habitats of the Preserve looking for birds. The group I was a part of was fortunate to find the first Scarlet Tanager reported in New Jersey in 2012, as far as is known. The bird was well seen and heard by most in our group. It is also another species on the early arrival pile for 2012. It is at least 7-10 days earlier than the average 1st arrival date for New Jersey. Also on the trip were 2 Black-and-white Warblers, a territorial Common Yellowthroat, House Wren, numerous White-throated Sparrows, Pileated Woodpecker as well as species typical of the area. One Dark-eyed Junco was a surprise since most of this species in the MoCoSoCo area appeared to have moved on since the weekend. This observer saw a Common Raven in the parking area early in the morning. There already is one nesting confirmation of Common Raven in Hillsborough. Possibly, this individual is part of a second nesting pair in the Sourland Mountain area.
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From Steve Fasciana:
Hi Jonathan,

I had good views of a singing male Black-throated Green Warbler today (4/18) at Black River WMA in Chester along the railroad bed trail beginning on Pleasant Plains Road. Also heard a possible Pine Warbler in the evergreens on the neighboring Hermits of Mt Carmel property.

Regards,
Steve

Editor’s note: The first Black-throated Green Warbler in New Jersey for 2012 was apparently found yesterday at Cape May Point. Steve’s record becomes the first of 2012 for the MoCoSoCo region.
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Other notes:

• Jeff Ellerbusch found a Warbling Vireo at the D&R Canal Towpath north of Landing Lane in Somerset County.
• Harvey Tomlinson notes that the pair of Red-headed Woodpeckers continue at Lord Stirling Park along the Passaic River.
• Jamie Glydon reports a Common Yellowthroat From Bee Meadow Park in Hanover Township.
• Here they come! A Gray Catbird was seen and heard this morning on Pleasant Plains Road in the Great Swamp. All three eastern mimic thrushes could be witnessed in the short distance from the curve in the road by the Helen Fenske Visitors Center to the hedgerow near the currently unoccupied ranger’s house.

Submitted by Jonathan Klizas

Some of the verbs used on this web site may be unfamiliar to some readers. The verb “to tweet” refers to a posting made on Twitter, the microblogging and social networking service. “To eBird” is to list a record on Cornell’s eBird database. One can read the eBird postings through various means such as the eBird Google Gadget, eBird Alerts, etc.

• Jim Gilbert tweeted a Yellow Warbler form the Great Swamp, April 16. This is the first Yellow Warbler report from the MoCoSoCo region in 2012.
• Andrew Lucas eBirded an Orchard Oriole and 2 Common Yellowthroats from Griggstown Grasslands. This is the first Orchard Oriole reported in the MoCoSoCo region in 2012. The 2 Common Yellowthroats are first of the season, but there was a female COYE on January 11 in Griggstown.
• Another Common Yellowthroat was at Sourland Preserve in Hillsborough today, seen by Holly Ellerbusch.
• Black-and-white Warbler(s) continued this morning at the Great Swamp Wildlife Observation Center on Long Hill Road in Harding Township. After watching the warbler in the tops of the trees in the parking area, this observer looked to the ground to find a young kit staring at him from 10 feet away. After a moment of eye contact the kit ran under the Friends of the Great Swamp shed.
• Simon Lane reports Orchard Oriole, Yellow Warbler and Black-and-white Warbler from the Great Swamp this evening. This is the first Oriole report for Morris County in 2012.

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From Jamie Glydon:
I had the rare privilege of working from home today. This meant I had an extra few minutes in the morning hours to do some birding.
Nothing new to note at Bee Meadow.
Troy Meadows (Troy Meadow Rd access) produced my first 2 Solitary Sandpipers for Morris County in 2012. They were “flyovers” at the gas line cut. They were calling frequently.
Another FOY for me at Troy Meadows, was a Savannah Sparrow. The SASP was located sitting on the rubber pieces at the old “firing range”.

Good Birding – Jamie
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From Alan Boyd:

Hi Jonathan,
I heard at least two singing House Wrens in our neighborhood this morning. This is at least a week earlier than I’ve ever had them here before.

Alan Boyd – Flanders

Southerly winds and 90 degrees Fahrenheit weather brought some arrivals to the Morris and Somerset County area today.

• Black-and-white Warblers have arrived as of yesterday and today in the Great Swamp.
• Blue-gray Gnatcatchers increased in numbers.
• Morris County’s first Chimney Swift of 2012 appeared yesterday at the Great Swamp. Thanks to Matt Bango and Jim Mulvey for reporting the above reports to eBird.

• A modest influx of Savannah Sparrows appeared in the Great Swamp near the Fenske Vistor’s Center this morning.
• Jeff Ellerbusch reports the MoCoSoCo region’s first Marsh Wren of 2012 in Lord Stirling Park this evening.