Another weekend, another trip to the Barnegat jetty to see coastal birds. Every trip brings something new and exciting. This time, the waves were high and the waterfowl stayed closer to the jetty than they have in the past. I got the best looks at Harlequin, Long-tailed Ducks, Red-breasted Mergansers and Common Loons than I ever have. The biggest “up-close” surprise, however, were the Scoters. We came across one or two as we were making our way up the jetty; as we got closer to the end, we noticed the large flock.
Flock of Black and Surf Scoters
As we got closer, they went a little bit out to see, so we waited at the end of the jetty.
Black and Surf Scoters
They ended up floating in closer once again and we snapped away.
Surf Scoters
Black Scoters
The birds would fly down the jetty…
Black Scoter Flying by
Surf Scoter Flying by
… float back out to sea and repeat.
Varying Plumages of Surf Scoters
It was fun watching them land – their form was different from what I’ve seen from other birds.
Surf Scoter Landing
Black Scoters Landing
They are not very graceful when they hit the water and look very goofy in the process.
Black Scoters Landing
Surf Scoter Landing
This was yet another successful trip with good friends and great photo ops!
Prior to my trip to Barnegat after Christmas, I’ve seen Northern Gannets three times – two of those times were through a scope from very far away. The other was through binoculars, looking at a land-locked bird who was flying in the opposite direction. I figured that I would have to go on a boat to get a good look at these beautiful birds.
Our trip to Barnegat changed that – While looking at Harlequin Ducks, we noticed some Gannets across the bay diving into the ocean.
Northern Gannets diving in the distance
I was happy enough to see this from a distance because it was still a better view than I had ever seen and I was finally able to get some documentation photos of them. To watch them dive was a huge bonus!
When we reached the end of the jetty, we went up on a platform to get a better view of the water (and to stay dry since the waves were rough). That is when some of the Gannets started flying in close.
Northern Gannet flying by
What a great Christmas present! We stayed up on the platform and looked for other birds while photographing any Gannet that flew within photo-distance. We were almost at eye-level with them.
Another Northern Gannet flying by
The group kept getting closer and closer. A boat ended up scattering them to our advantage and the birds started fishing not far off of the jetty.
There were hundreds of Northern Gannets!
Three Northern Gannets flying by
They even started floating toward us in the water!
Northern Gannet in the water
Another birding goal accomplished without even expecting it! Out of an entire day of great birding and photographing, the Gannets won me over!
I went back to Barnegat Lighthouse State Park the day after Christmas with two of my friends. Our main target bird was the Harlequin Duck – I did not get great photos of them during my last trip to the jetty and I wanted to fix that. It would also be a life bird for one of my friends. We ended up running into very cooperative subjects!
A pair if male Harlequin Ducks
The sun came out just enough for some great photos
We followed them down the jetty, getting ahead of them every time they would dive for food.
Cropped close-up
The female Harlequin is much more drab, but still a cute duck
The males stayed together, so it was difficult to get a single shot, but I finally did
We caught the three ducks again on our way back down the jetty where they were soon joined by a third male.
Three male Harlequin Ducks
The female had her picks from some very nice looking birds!
The trip was a huge success. My friends and I walked away with many great Harlequin photos!
This weekend, I went to Barnegat, New Jersey with a friend to photograph waterfowl, specifically the Harlequin Duck. Not only did I get to see my gorgeous life bird Harlequins, I also saw four more unexpected life birds.
My Harlequin Duck life bird
After finding this beautiful male, we came across some Sandpipers on the rocks. My face apparently lit up when my friend told me they were Purple Sandpipers.
One of my Purple Sandpiper life birds
Further down the jetty, a flock of waterfowl was floating not far from the beach. This flock contained three more life birds: Common and King Eiders along with Black Scoters.
Common Eiders with Scoters
First year male King Eiders
One of my Black Scoter life birds, there were also adult males further away
The King Eiders were a rare find and we got great looks! They are beautiful even though we did not see any adult males.
King Eider female (front) and juvenile male (back)
Another huge highlight was finally getting close to Long-tailed Ducks and Surf Scoter.
Long-tailed Ducks
Surf Scoter
The Sandpipers along the rocks also allowed us to get very close. There were a lot of Dunlin.
Dunlin on the Jetty
Lots and lots of Dunlin.
Flock of Dunlin
Along with Ruddy Turnstones…
Ruddy Turnstone
And even more Purple Sandpipers.
One of my Purple Sandpiper life birds
This turned out to be one of my best photo trips! The New Jersey coast has been very good to me!
