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!
Last Friday I visited my friends at the Pennsylvania Falconry and Hawk Trust annual field meet for the day. I was expecting to see some Red-tailed Hawks hunt but instead I was in for a big surprise!
The first Hawk we hunted with was an adult Northern Goshawk. I’ve only seen this species once and it was not an adult; I also never saw one hunt before. That all changed this time by!
Adult Northern Goshawk
This Goshawk hunted from the glove, a technique I’ve never seen since the Hawks and Kestrels I’ve hunted with flew freely and hunted from higher perches.
Northern Goshawk on the glove
After some failed attempts at rabbits, she came close to capturing a squirrel who was in her grips, but the squirrel was not quite ready to be hawk food!
Northern Goshawk with a Squirrel
The squirrel got away, but it helped me get a nice photo by making some snow fall on the Goshawk.
Northern Goshawk with snow
We saw another adult Goshawk hunt later in the day – this one was sixteen years old!!
Sixteen year old Northern Goshawk
Still, at that age, she was as beautiful as a younger Hawk!
Northern Goshawk
The next bird we hunted with was one I’ve seen in the past but are always a pleasure to watch – a Harris’s Hawk.
Harris’s Hawk up close
This bird hunted with a Dachshund – their relationship was pretty amazing! While the dog tries to find and flush rabbits, the Hawk watches from above. They almost got a cottontail on their own but the brush was too thick.
Harris’s Hawk in flight
Again, no kills, but it’s great seeing the relationship between a falconer, his dog and his bird.
Harris’s Hawk with falconer
I nearly fainted from seeing the next bird we hunted with – an Ornate Hawk Eagle.
Ornate Hawk Eagle
This bird was so perfect that it looked like a stuffed animal. Every color of this bird was so vivid.
Ornate Hawk Eagle posing
This bird also hunted from the glove. We only “somewhat” saw the bird fly once – a rabbit was right below her and she tried dropping on it, but the prey got away. It was still great to see this gorgeous bird!
Ornate Hawk Eagle on the glove
These were my first hunts with accipiters and an eagle – even though we did not catch anything, it was another perfect day with great friends!
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 started my blog in February of this year so this will be my first “new year” with an audience. I am taking this opportunity to do what many others do this time of year – reflect on my year, with a focus on my best birds and experiences. Personally 2013 brought many changes to my life – I started the year in New York and am ending in Pennsylvania. As far as birds go, I got 36 life birds, a great oppurtunity to be a part of the birding community and unforgettable trips with friends.
I started out with a bang doing New Years birding with my friend; the first bird we spotted together was a life bird for me – the Northern Shrike. This bird eluded me any time I would look for it during the previous season. The scope views were great, but he was too far for good photos.
Documentation shot of the Northern Shrike
Halfway into the month, my friends and I went up to the Cayuga Lake region to search for a Townsend’s Solitaire that had been reliably seen. We searched for two hours and never found the bird. Of course, the bird was spotted about ten minutes after we left – go figure. As we were making our way back down the lake I received an email about a juvenile gray-morph Gyrfalcon that was spotted at Montezuma NWR. A Gyrfalcon?? We turned right around and chased this bird which would have been a lifer for all three of us. We had our sights on a bird that we thought was the Gyrfalcon, but it was too far even for scope views and concluded that it was a Rough-legged Hawk (shadows played tricks on us). We went to another area to get a better view and the bird we were looking at was, indeed, the Gyr. It was a great turn-around to our otherwise disappointing day!
I promise you that this is a Gyrfalcon
This month was the start of my interest in falconry. My friends caught and hunted with a handsome male Red-tailed Hawk who they named Rusty.
Rusty, my friend’s Red-tailed Hawk
I watched birds hunt for the first time at the New Jersey Falconry Club Annual Meet. I hope to have the time to hunt with birds one day in the future. For now, I will follow around my friends and photograph them with their birds.
Rogue, my friend’s Harris’s Hawk
January was also the start of my Redpoll invasion that ran well into February. I had over 100 birds at my feeders – they cleaned me out, but it was a great experience. Within the Common Redpoll flocks, I also spotted a couple of Hoary Redpolls.
Common Redpoll
Hoary Redpoll
The winter months bring tons of waterfowl to the finger lakes. This year was my first time seeing rafts of ducks swimming close together – this raft included great views at a life bird, the Eared Grebe.
Eared Grebe
In March, my friends and I did a winter big day where we found a flock of Red Crossbills at a residential feeder. My next lifer was seen on the very next day – a Lapland Longspur within a flock of Horned Larks.
Red Crossbills
Later in the month, after multiple attempts at finding Short-eared Owls both locally and further north, we finally had one fly over low as the sun was setting. I didn’t even lift my camera for it, because I did not want to lose this beautiful sight by playing with settings and focus.
My biggest highlight this month was not an actual bird – earlier in the season, I submitted a photo to Project Feederwatch that was recognized by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology on their Facebook page. An editor at National Wildlife Magazine saw this photo and asked me if she could use it in an article. The magazine arrived in my mail box on March 15th. I was published in a national magazine for the first time!
My photo in National Wildlife Magazine
April brought another really great life bird – the Bohemian Waxwing. A friend and I went up to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology to photograph birds. As soon as we parked the car, I received an email that the Waxwings were nearby. We packed back up and headed to the location. We ended up getting permission to go in private woods and were surrounded by these beautiful birds!
Bohemian Waxwings
May was highlighted by The Biggest Week in American Birding. Back in February, I volunteered to be on the events blogging team. I ended up getting a bit more involved than last year, met many new friends and walked away with a lot of great memories – and 12 life birds.
This Long-eared Owl was the most unexpected life bird at Magee Marsh
Cape May Warbler at Magee
Things slowed down in June and July. We did, however, get to see the return of a local family of Barred Owls. At about the same time, I also had a guest Great Horned Owl in my own woods. All of these birds proved to be great subjects and were fun to watch.
Young Barred Owl
Great Horned Owl
In August, I added some more really good life birds – An American White Pelican who was out of range at Montezuma NWR and some Least Bitterns that I was able to self-identify in the field. A Black-billed Cuckoo also flew into my yard – this was a very unexpected visitor!
Black-billed Cuckoo
Then came September and our annual trip to Cape May. For me, this trip started last year and both visits were beyond my expectations. While the morning flight at Higbee was not as great as last year, we still went on a good day and saw many birds zip by.
Cedar Waxwings morning flight
I finally saw a Marsh Wren – a bird that I had previously only heard… many times… many many times.
Marsh Wren
We also found out where the Black Skimmer flock likes to hang out during the fall – a beach near the 2nd Avenue jetty. I was in Skimmer heaven!
Black Skimmers
Endless Black Skimmers
I moved to my new house in Pennsylvania – this was a big change for me. Leaving New York was difficult, but it had to be done. Before I left, however, I was given the opportunity to hold my favorite bird, the American Kestrel, for the first time thanks to my friends.
Me with an American Kestrel
Birding slowed down for me in October. I spent a lot of time settling into my new house and only went birding once with a new friend. Other than that, I watched as migrants passed through my yard. In November, this same friend also brought me to Barnegat on the coast of New Jersey – a first for me. The trip yielded five life birds including the Harlequin Duck – our target bird.
Harlequin Ducks
We stopped by Sandy Hook Gateway National Park to check in on some Snowy Owl sightings. Just as we were about to give up, a fisherman told us where to find the one of the birds on the north beach. The photo op was unbeatable. This was one of the earlier Owls from this years irruption.
Snowy Owl
Last week, my best Christmas present was in the form of votes – I won week 7 of Project Feederwatch’s BirdSpotter Contest. This was completely unexpected since I never asked anyone for votes – it just happened!
My winning House Finch photo
We visited Barnegat again in December with another friend to show her the Harlequins. Once again, the trip did not disappoint us. Not only were we rewarded with great views at Harlequins, we also had up-close looks at Northern Gannets and an unexpected visit from two Razorbills off shore.
Northern Gannet
I look forward to seeing new birds in new places for 2014. Every year keeps getting better as I add more places to visit. More trips to Cape May are already planned, the Biggest Week is already in discussion and we are even considering going to the Rio grande Birding Festival this year. Perhaps my post a year from now will be even better than this one!
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!
Last week, I shared photos of birds on ice. The wintery weather continued this week with a heavy snowstorm. It was so heavy at times, that snow was just accumulating on the birds who would stay in the same place for a minute or more.
Dark-eyed Junco accumulating snow
I had at least thirty or so Juncos on my deck, in the trees and scattered around the ground.
Dark-eyed Juncos
It’s a good thing they are ground feeders or they would have cleaned me out!
Dark-eyed Junco
The Junco’s weren’t the only birds out during this storm – my feeders were very busy with all of my common visitors.
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Finch looking in
Hairy Woodpecker
Hairy and Downy Woodpecker comparison
It’s amazing how these birds can survive the winter. I’m happy to provide them with a helping hand.
When there is snow or ice, natural food for birds can be more difficult to come by so they flock to feeders in higher numbers. I woke up to plenty of ice this morning and it has not gotten warm enough to melt – the ice is still neatly covering tree branches and anything else that was not manually de-iced. I was able to get some photos this morning through my sliding doors of some of my common feeder birds – the first real “set” of photos from my new house. Enjoy!
Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Junco
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Finches
Male House Finch
Mourning Doves, sticking together like usual
American Goldfinch
Male American Goldfinch
Even my feeder Chickadee was frozen
And some more birds from the next morning:
Female Red-bellied Woodpecker
Blue Jay close-up
Male Downy Woodpecker
Carolina Wren
Dark-eyed Junco moving snow around to search for food
Snowy Owls have been showing up in high numbers across the United States. A friend and I went to Sandy Hook Gateway National Park in New Jersey to follow up on an early sighting of two owls. We had no idea where to look and just about gave up when a fisherman in the parking lot asked us if we saw the Owl. He told us where to go and led us to a very cooperative subject. She was resting on the beach with some photographers who already had their sights on her.
This Snowy Owl was resting near the dunes
She sat comfortably and preened for about an hour while we were there.
Snowy Owl preening some tail feathers
Snowy Owl cleaning her large feet
The setting was perfect as it neared dusk.
The sky was turning pink, but light was quickly fading so we left her where we found her.
One more shot as we were walking away
The reason why the sky was pink
Remember, these birds are tired and hungry from a long journey south – enjoy them at a distance and do not get so close that they need to use extra energy to fly away! All of my photos are cropped from my original 400mm focal length. All photographers that were with us respected her space!
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!
