Tundra Swans and ducks were birds of the day, largely because they sit low and you can get close enough to see them through the fog. The Red-shouldered Hawk made himself evident by repeated calling but we couldn't see him across the foggy pond. One of our participants asked about the derivation of the name "wigeon". A quick search shows the word has been in use since the early 1500s but there's no clear provenance. It does make for a handy link though to help remember that wigeon is the duck with the white head stripe, whatever the word's origin. Leaders: Kathy Horn, Roger Horn, Karl Lukens, and Kyle Chelius.
28 species
Canada Goose 19"
Gadwall 12
American Wigeon 7
American Black Duck 4
Mallard 22
Northern Shoveler 6
Northern Pintail 13
Ring-necked Duck 15
Bufflehead 11
Great Blue Heron (Blue form) 1
Turkey Vulture 3
Red-shouldered Hawk (lineatus Group) 1
Herring Gull (American) 3
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 3
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 2
Carolina Chickadee 4
Winter Wren 1
Carolina Wren (Northern) 9
American Robin 14
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 6
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 30
White-throated Sparrow 6
Song Sparrow 2
Eastern Towhee 1
Northern Cardinal 2
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Bird Walk for Beginners - Monday, January 16th, 2017
Though this was billed as a "bird walk for beginners," we encountered a bird so unusual that many experienced birders have never seen one! It was an almost totally leucistic American Robin. Leucism is a partial loss of color due to a genetic mutation that prevents melanin and other pigments from being deposited in the feathers. In this case, it was a robin that was almost totally white except for some patches of 'robin red' in the breast. You wonder how long such a bird will survive since he practically glowed amidst the dark leaves of the holly tree he was feeding in. Speaking with the property owners, who are helping birds make it through the winter by providing a bird bath for bathing and drinking, we found that the bird had already been there for two weeks so he's evaded the local Cooper's hawks and goshawks so far. Other favorites this morning included a perched Red-shouldered Hawk, feeding Fox Sparrow and a very cooperative Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.
Leaders: Kathy & Roger Horn, and Karl Lukens.
42 species
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 4
Gadwall 11
American Wigeon 4
American Black Duck 6
Mallard (Northern) 15
Northern Shoveler 8
Ring-necked Duck 8
Black Scoter 1
Bufflehead 6
Red-throated Loon 1
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Great Blue Heron 1
Black Vulture 2
Turkey Vulture 14
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull (American) 10
Great Black-backed Gull 2
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 20
Mourning Dove 5
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1
Downy Woodpecker (Eastern) 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 7
American Crow 3
Tree Swallow 3
Carolina Chickadee 5
White-breasted Nuthatch (Eastern) 2
Carolina Wren 7
American Robin 4 Leucistic bird found; mostly white with patches of red feathers in breast
Northern Mockingbird 6
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 5
Fox Sparrow (Red) 1
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 2
White-throated Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 1
House Finch 9
American Goldfinch 1
House Sparrow 3
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Leaders: Kathy & Roger Horn, and Karl Lukens.
42 species
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 4
Gadwall 11
American Wigeon 4
American Black Duck 6
Mallard (Northern) 15
Northern Shoveler 8
Ring-necked Duck 8
Black Scoter 1
Bufflehead 6
Red-throated Loon 1
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Great Blue Heron 1
Black Vulture 2
Turkey Vulture 14
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull (American) 10
Great Black-backed Gull 2
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 20
Mourning Dove 5
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1
Downy Woodpecker (Eastern) 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 7
American Crow 3
Tree Swallow 3
Carolina Chickadee 5
White-breasted Nuthatch (Eastern) 2
Carolina Wren 7
American Robin 4 Leucistic bird found; mostly white with patches of red feathers in breast
Northern Mockingbird 6
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 5
Fox Sparrow (Red) 1
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 2
White-throated Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 1
House Finch 9
American Goldfinch 1
House Sparrow 3
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
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| Leucistic American Robin [Photo by Roger Horn] |
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| Northern Mockingbird [Photo by Roger Horn] |
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| Yellow-bellied Sapsucker [Photo by Roger Horn] |
Kick Off Your Year List - Sunday, January 1st, 2017
We KICKED the year off right on our January 1st field trip. Twenty-five enthusiastic birders covered a number of sites around the Cape May area, including Cape May Point State Park, Lake Lily, Northwood Center, Sunset Beach, Meadows, Two Mile Beach, and Sunset Lake. We turned up 78 species for the day, including Tundra Swan, 16 species of duck, Red-throated and Common Loon, Horned Grebe, Red-necked Grebe, Great Cormorant, Red-shouldered Hawk, Purple Sandpiper, Barred Owl, and Yellow-breasted Chat. An unexpected treat was a lingering Monarch Butterfly. A great day to be out!!!!!! Leaders: Brett Ewald, Catherine Busch, Bill Boyle, Karen Thompson, Warren Cairo, and Steve Weis.
Cape Island--Cape May Pt.
60 species
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 9
Gadwall X
American Wigeon X
American Black Duck 30
Mallard X
Northern Shoveler 9
Northern Pintail 2
Green-winged Teal 1
Ring-necked Duck X
Black Scoter 12
Long-tailed Duck 5
Bufflehead X
Hooded Merganser X
Ruddy Duck X
Red-throated Loon X
Northern Gannet 1
Double-crested Cormorant 5
Great Blue Heron 3
Turkey Vulture 7
Northern Harrier 1
Cooper's Hawk 2
Bald Eagle 1 Immature
Red-shouldered Hawk 2
American Coot 1
Ruddy Turnstone 4
Sanderling 1
Lesser Yellowlegs 7 In flight over dunes towards DE - id'ed in scope by Brett Ewald
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) X
Mourning Dove 5
Barred Owl 1 Seen by a few chased by crows across lake
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 5
American Crow X
Carolina Chickadee 5
Red-breasted Nuthatch 3
Carolina Wren 4
American Robin X
Gray Catbird 1
Brown Thrasher 3
Northern Mockingbird 3
European Starling X
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) X
Yellow-breasted Chat 1 Seen across lighthouse pond east through scope. Presumably same bird seen by Scott Whittle on 12/29
Dark-eyed Junco 2
White-throated Sparrow X
Song Sparrow 1
Eastern Towhee 1 heard only
Northern Cardinal 6
Red-winged Blackbird X
Common Grackle X
Brown-headed Cowbird X
House Finch X
House Sparrow X
Cape Island--CMP--CMBO Northwood Center
22 species
Canada Goose X
Gadwall X
Mallard X
Ring-necked Duck X
Greater Scaup 1
Hooded Merganser X
Ruddy Duck X
Cooper's Hawk 1
Mourning Dove X
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Carolina Chickadee X
Tufted Titmouse X
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 1
American Robin X
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) X
White-throated Sparrow X
Northern Cardinal X
Common Grackle X
Purple Finch 2 seen by a few
American Goldfinch 1
Cape Island--Sunset Beach/Concrete Ship
8 species
Black Scoter X
Red-throated Loon 2
Double-crested Cormorant X
Sanderling X
Purple Sandpiper 3
Bonaparte's Gull 2
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Cape Island--CMMBR (Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge (Meadows))
27 species
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan X
Tundra Swan 3
Gadwall X
Mallard X
Northern Shoveler X
Green-winged Teal X
Black Scoter X
Bufflehead X
Hooded Merganser X
Double-crested Cormorant X
Great Blue Heron 1
Turkey Vulture X
Ruddy Turnstone X
Sanderling X
Bonaparte's Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) X
Mourning Dove X
Tree Swallow 10
Carolina Wren 1
American Robin X
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) X
White-throated Sparrow X
Song Sparrow X
House Sparrow X
Cape Island--Cape May Harbor--Delaware Ave.
5 species
Brant (Atlantic) X
Bufflehead X
Red-breasted Merganser X
Common Loon X
Double-crested Cormorant X
Cape May NWR--Two Mile Unit
16 species
Surf Scoter X
Black Scoter X
Long-tailed Duck X
Common Loon X
Great Cormorant 1
Double-crested Cormorant X
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Ruddy Turnstone 2
Sanderling X
Dunlin X
Herring Gull (American) X
Great Black-backed Gull X
American Robin X
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) X
White-throated Sparrow X
Song Sparrow X
Sunset Lake
14 species
Brant (Atlantic) X
American Black Duck X
Bufflehead X
Hooded Merganser X
Common Loon X
Horned Grebe 4
Red-necked Grebe 1 Long neck & bill, pale cheek and flanks.
Double-crested Cormorant X
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 4 exact count - flying together through scope view
Northern Harrier 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Herring Gull (American) X
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)