Bonaparte’s Gulls, Vesper Sparrows in Morris, Oct. 20, 2014

Posted on October 20, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

https://flic.kr/p/oNmLtG
(Photo by Alan Boyd)
5 Bonaparte’s Gulls were found and photographed on Lake Musconetcong this morning by Alan Boyd. The photo is above. Common Loon, Pied-billed Grebe and the usual Mute Swans and Double-crested Cormorants were also at the lake.

From Mike Hiotis at the Great Swamp NWR:
“Two Vesper Sparrows were close to the road shoulder on the entrance drive to the Fenske Visitors Center. This is the west end of Pleasant Plains Rd. They both flushed off the roadside to the tree line east and were scoped. A 3rd bird flushed with them but I did not relocate it….”

Also at the Great Swamp NWR:
A strong push of migrants were brought into the area, and apparently throughout the state, overnight into this morning. The following Sparrow species were reported from the Fenske Visitors Center this morning: Eastern Towhee, Chipping, Field, Vesper, Savannah, Fox, Song, Lincoln’s, Swamp, White-throated, White-crowned and Dark-eyed Juncos. (Simon Lane). This is the first report of Fox Sparrows in the Morris and Somerset region this season.

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385 Raptors at Chimney Rock, Martinsville, NJ, Oct. 19, 2014

Posted on October 20, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

Chimney Rock
Martinsville, NJ, USA
Daily Raptor Counts : 10/19/2014

Species Day’s Count Month Total Season Total
BV 0 0 0
TV 0 0 0
OS 3 108 342
BE 11 47 155
NH 8 37 69
SS 278 909 1629
CH 17 70 142
NG 0 0 0
RS 14 39 52
BW 0 185 6470
RT 2 2 2
RL 0 0 0
GE 0 4 5
AK 43 267 817
ML 9 85 209
PG 0 0 3
UI 0 6 25
Total 385 1759 9920
Hours 10.3 148.2 403.2

Notes : Brisk Northwest wind. A very impressive migration of accipiters
and falcons. 11 Bald eagles. 9370 Canada Geese and 50 Brant.

John Kee

Daily Totals
Species Checklist for Oct 19, 2014
Hourly Stats Report
Bird Checklist Query
2014 Summary (standard)

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29 Raptors at Wildcat Ridge, Hibernia, NJ, Oct. 19, 2014

Posted on October 19, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

Wildcat Ridge
Hibernia, New Jersey, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 19, 2014
Species Day’s Count Month Total Season Total
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
Osprey 1 11 74
Bald Eagle 2 18 65
Northern Harrier 0 3 16
Sharp-shinned Hawk 23 179 345
Cooper’s Hawk 1 38 108
Northern Goshawk 0 1 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 2 6
Broad-winged Hawk 0 2 6465
Red-tailed Hawk 0 9 18
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 0 39 75
Merlin 0 2 7
Peregrine Falcon 0 2 4
Unknown Raptor 1 2 17
Total: 29 308 7201


Observation start time: 09:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 6 hours
Official Counter Fred Vanderburgh
Observers: Nora O., Mike L., Tom G.


Visitors:
Visitors = 77 including Cub Pack 2 from Cedar Grove.

Weather:
Temperature 51-54F, visibility 5 miles, cloud cover decreasing from 50-0%, Very windy 5 mph gusting to 23 mph.

Raptor Observations:
All migrants at low altitudes and to our SE. Immature BE’s spotted at 1&2:30 pm DST.

Non-raptor Observations:

Report submitted by Fred Vanderburgh
Wildcat Ridge information may be found at: http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/wldcthwk.htm

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Eastern Meadowlark, Orange-crowned Warbler, Sunday Bird Notes, Oct. 19, 2014

Posted on October 19, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

Eastern Meadowlarks in Harding Twp.

3 Eastern Meadowlarks are at Frelinghuysen Fields in Harding Twp. Also at the Fields this morning were numerous Savannah Sparrows, 2 American Pipits, Wilson’s Snipe, Merlin, American Kestrel and other typical species of the area.

Eastern Meadowlark is a Species of Special Concern in New Jersey, both in its breeding and non-breeding status. While stable in certain grasslands of Somerset County (e.g. Duke Farms), the species is now difficult to find in Morris County with only a few sightings reported each year during migration and no known breeding locations as of 2014. This is quite a change from the New Jersey Breeding Bird Atlas of the 1990s when approximately 15 blocks of Morris County (i.e. 15 separate locations at least) had probable and confirmed breeding Eastern Meadowlarks.

  • The list of Species of Special Concern in New Jersey is here.
  • The NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Wildlife Species of Special Concern in New Jersey web page is here.

Frelinghuysen Fields is a property of the Harding Land Trust, a local organization created to “preserve the treasured landscapes” of Harding Township.

Orange-crowned Warbler in Great Swamp NWR

An Orange-crowned Warbler was seen near the pond at the North Gate (a.k.a. the closed bridge) on Pleasant Plains Road. Tennessee, Palm and Yellow-rumped Warblers, White-crowned and numerous Song and White-throated Sparrows were also present (Simon Lane).

Tennessee Warbler, Great Swamp NWR, Oct. 19, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

Tennessee Warbler, Great Swamp NWR, Oct. 19, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

Other Field Notes

Pine Siskins at Troy Meadows, NJ, Oct. 19, 2014 (photo by Chris Thomas)

Pine Siskin

Pine Siskins and Purple Finches were at Troy Meadows this morning (Chris Thomas).

Vesper Sparrow and White-crowned Sparrow were seen near the Community Garden of Duke Farms. Lincoln’s Sparrow and Purple Finches were observed at Glenhurst Meadows (Vicki Schwartz).

Ruddy Duck numbers at Mt. Hope Lake (Mill Pond) continue to grow with 348 tallied this windswept afternoon (J. Klizas).

View eBird checklists and other data at the following links.
Click on the Checklists tab of the BirdTrax applet to display the most recent checklists. Click on this icon, checklist-nobox ,to view the contents of the checklist:

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247 Raptors at Chimney Rock, Martinsville, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014

Posted on October 18, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

Chimney Rock
Martinsville, NJ, USA
Daily Raptor Counts : 10/18/2014

Species Day’s Count Month Total Season Total
BV 0 0 0
TV 0 0 0
OS 10 105 339
BE 3 36 144
NH 2 29 61
SS 176 631 1351
CH 10 53 125
NG 0 0 0
RS 5 25 38
BW 1 185 6470
RT 0 0 0
RL 0 0 0
GE 0 4 5
AK 30 224 774
ML 10 76 200
PG 0 0 3
UI 0 6 25
Total 247 1374 9535
Hours 10.0 137.9 392.9

Notes : West gusty winds. 186 accipiters and 40 falcons! Single late
Broad-winged.

John Kee

Daily Totals
Bird Checklist Query
2014 Summary (standard)
Species Checklist for Oct 18, 2014
Hourly Stats Report

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40 Raptors at Wildcat Ridge, Hibernia, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014

Posted on October 18, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas
Wildcat Ridge
Hibernia, New Jersey, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 18, 2014
Species Day’s Count Month Total Season Total
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
Osprey 2 10 73
Bald Eagle 5 16 63
Northern Harrier 0 3 16
Sharp-shinned Hawk 32 156 322
Cooper’s Hawk 0 37 107
Northern Goshawk 0 1 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 1 5
Broad-winged Hawk 0 2 6465
Red-tailed Hawk 1 9 18
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 0 39 75
Merlin 0 2 7
Peregrine Falcon 0 2 4
Unknown Raptor 0 1 16
Total: 40 279 7172


Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 7 hours
Official Counter Fred Vanderburgh
Observers: Kevin M, Tom G.

 

Visitors:
Visitors = 43 including Gary.

Weather:
Temperature 51-65F, 100% high cloud cover, visibility 8-15 miles, NW wind 3-6 mph with gusts to 10 mph.

Raptor Observations:
A surprisingly good eagle day! Migrants were were spotted in the eastern sky at low altitudes. Few came close to the watch site. 6 WBII BE’s were spotted but only 5 were counted because one was going NE.

Non-raptor Observations:
Kinglests, chickadees and titmouse were around the watch site. Many Canada geese skeins observed.

 

Report submitted by Fred Vanderburgh (fvanderb@optimum.net)
Wildcat Ridge information may be found at: http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/wldcthwk.htm

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Sparrows and other field notes, Oct. 18, 2014

Posted on October 18, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas
White-crowned Sparrow, Troy Meadows, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

White-crowned Sparrow, Troy Meadows, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

Sparrows dominate the southwestern portion of Troy Meadows as of this morning from Smith Ditch on Troy Road to the Patriots Path parking lot on South Beverwyck Road. This is a relatively small sampling of the meadows. The number of sparrows throughout the entirety of Troy Meadows right now must be staggering.

Swamp Sparrow, Troy Meadows, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

Swamp Sparrow, Troy Meadows, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

The gas line was recently mowed making for easier walking and observation of field-edge habitat. The following numbers are on the short end as there are many more birds in the area but only my two eyes to view them: 34 Yellow-rumped Warblers, 8 Eastern Towhees, 12 Field Sparrows, 20 Savannah Sparrows, 75 Song Sparrows, 1 Lincoln’s Sparrow, 50 Swamp Sparrows (w-a-y undercounted), 125 White-throated Sparrows and 2 White-crowned Sparrows. Red-shouldered Hawk, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Common Yellowthroat, Palm Warbler and Indigo Bunting are some of the other species present.

Field Sparrow, Troy Meadows, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

Field Sparrow, Troy Meadows, NJ, Oct. 18, 2014 (photo by Jonathan Klizas)

Wildlife Preserves, the owner of Troy Meadows, is undertaking a Phragmites eradication project at Troy Meadows. It is not known for how long this will be taking place or what effect it will have on the birds and birding the area. Further information regarding this will appear in this space.

Glenhurst Meadows had 4 Common Ravens, Nashville Warbler, 2 Eastern Meadowlarks, 3 Purple Finches and 4 Pine Siskins among other typical species (Jeff Ellerbusch).

Chuck Smith at Lincoln Park Gravel Pits, Oct. 12:
Swarms of Palm and Yellow-rumped warblers were everywhere. Lots of White-throated , Song, and Swamp Sparrows, a single White-crowned and a hand full of Savannah Sparrows, 3 Wilson’s Snipe and 20+ Wood Ducks. The highlight was a Peregrine Falcon and a Merlin perched on the back side of the island in the back lake. They would occasionally fly around harassing nearby crows and then return to their perch. Also 3 Coopers Hawks, an adult Bald Eagle and a few Red-tailed Hawks.

A pair of Blue-winged Teal are present during Oct. 13-17 at the back pond of Ann Van Middlesworth Park, Hillsborough Twp. (Vicki Schwartz).

Northwest winds tonight should help move the remaining songbirds in the migration pipeline into our area.

Northwest winds from 15-20 MPH during the day on Sunday could make for an interesting raptor day, as well.

eBird checklists and other data can be viewed at the following links:
Morris
Somerset

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149 Raptors at Chimney Rock, Martinsville, NJ, Oct. 17, 2014

Posted on October 17, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

Chimney Rock
Martinsville, NJ, USA
Daily Raptor Counts : 10/17/2014

Species Day’s Count Month Total Season Total
BV 0 0 0
TV 0 0 0
OS 16 95 329
BE 4 33 141
NH 2 25 57
SS 67 455 1175
CH 8 43 115
NG 0 0 0
RS 1 20 33
BW 0 184 6469
RT 0 0 0
RL 0 0 0
GE 0 4 5
AK 39 194 744
ML 11 66 190
PG 0 0 3
UI 1 6 25
Total 149 1125 9286
Hours 10.2 127.9 382.9

John Kee

Daily Totals
Bird Checklist Query
2014 Summary (standard)
Species Checklist for Oct 17, 2014
Hourly Stats Report

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28 Raptors at Wildcat Ridge, Hibernia, NJ, Oct. 17, 2014

Posted on October 17, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

Wildcat Ridge
Hibernia, New Jersey, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 17, 2014
Species Day’s Count Month Total Season Total
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
Osprey 0 8 71
Bald Eagle 0 11 58
Northern Harrier 0 3 16
Sharp-shinned Hawk 19 124 290
Cooper’s Hawk 4 37 107
Northern Goshawk 0 1 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 1 5
Broad-winged Hawk 0 2 6465
Red-tailed Hawk 2 8 17
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 2 39 75
Merlin 0 2 7
Peregrine Falcon 0 2 4
Unknown Raptor 0 1 16
Total: 28 239 7132


Observation start time: 08:30:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 6.5 hours
Official Counter Kevin McCarthy
Observers:


Visitors:
13

Weather:
Temp: 55 – 66 degrees F. Visibility 5 miles with haze increasing to 8. Clouds 0 – 45%. Wind from West, shifting to South and back to West at 2 – 8 mph. Brief gusts up to 15 mph.

Raptor Observations:
One male Kestrel remained in the old cedar tree area for an hour.

Non-raptor Observations:

 

Report submitted by Kevin McCarthy ()
Wildcat Ridge information may be found at: http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/wldcthwk.htm

 

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23 Raptors at Chimney Rock, Martinsville, NJ, Oct. 16, 2014

Posted on October 16, 2014 by Jonathan Klizas

Chimney Rock
Martinsville, NJ, USA
Daily Raptor Counts : 10/16/2014

Species Day’s Count Month Total Season Total
BV 0 0 0
TV 0 0 0
OS 5 76 310
BE 0 28 136
NH 0 22 54
SS 13 378 1098
CH 0 34 106
NG 0 0 0
RS 0 19 32
BW 0 184 6469
RT 0 0 0
RL 0 0 0
GE 0 4 5
AK 2 152 702
ML 3 52 176
PG 0 0 3
UI 0 5 24
Total 23 954 9115
Hours 5.8 110.8 365.8

Notes : WSW wind after the rain.

John Kee

Daily Totals
Bird Checklist Query
2014 Summary (standard)
Species Checklist for Oct 14, 2014
Hourly Stats Report

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