A view of Rancocas Creek (Image by Michelle Horowitz)
Today was a chilly but lovely day, so we ended up birding at two parks for day 3. First my in-laws joined me for a hike at Boundary Creek Natural Resource Area. We saw 10 species, with highlights including Eastern Bluebirds and a pair of Northern Mockingbirds. There also was a beautiful male Northern Cardinal who posed for a picture.
A beautiful male Northern Cardinal (Image by Michelle Horowitz)
Boundary Creek Natural Resource Area (10 species, 66 individuals)
3 Canada Geese
24 Mallards
14 Ring-billed Gulls
12 Turkey Vultures
1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
1 Tufted Titmouse
2 Northern Mockingbirds
4 Eastern Bluebirds
4 Dark-eyed Juncos
1 Northern Cardinal
After Boundary Creek I ended up going to Strawbridge Lake. There have been some Common Mergansers in the area, so I wanted to see if they were around today. I started noticing Common Mergansers at Strawbridge within in the past 5 years, which was a pleasant surprise. Unfortunately they weren’t at the lake today but I did see some other species.
Strawbridge Lake (12 species, 38 individuals)
13 Canada Geese
4 Mallards
3 Mourning Doves
2 Ring-billed Gulls
2 Turkey Vulture
1 Downy Woodpecker
3 American Robins
4 House Sparrows
1 House Finch
2 Dark-eyed Juncos
2 White-throated Sparrows
1 Northern Cardinal
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology released their “halftime report” today. At the time of writing this post, 7,373 species have been seen and over 191,000 checklists have been submitted from 192 countries. Last year’s species total was 7,538, so it would be amazing to see if that total could be beat this year.
So far, May has been a pretty busy birding month for us: new life list editions, an owlet, purchasing our first spotting scope, big day events, and rare birds. The past week wasn’t as busy, but we still had the opportunity to get out a few times this week to enjoy the spring migrants. Dave and I went to Strawbridge Lake and Boundary Creek, Dave and his dad went to Palmyra Cove, and I went with my mom and sister to Haddon Lake for Mother’s Day. I wanted to share some of the pictures we took on this week’s trips.
Strawbridge Lake
Palmyra Nature Cove (all these pictures were taken by Dave)
Haddon Lake Park
We didn’t take any pictures at Boundary Creek because it was supposed to rain and pretty dark out. The highlight of that trip was seeing 5 Baltimore Orioles: 3 males and 2 females. It was fascinating watching the orioles flying around chasing each other, fighting, calling/singing, and displaying.
We have a very exciting trip coming up…I can’t wait to share our experiences with you! It’ll be a surprise…stay tuned.
Last Tuesday Dave and I went to Strawbridge Lake to destress after a long work day. The evening started out normal enough. We saw Canada Geese, American Robins, American Crows, Turkey Vultures, Red-winged Blackbirds, a Northern Mockingbird, and House Finches to name a few. You know, the usual cast of characters.
As we approached the end of the lake, something small was swimming in the distance. It was a Pied-billed Grebe! We’ve seen Pied-billed Grebes in the past, mainly at Palmyra and Amico Island. They are usually really far out though, making it hard to see their details.
Pied-billed Grebe (Image by BirdNation)Pied-billed Grebe resting (Image by BirdNation)
This was our first Pied-billed Grebe at Strawbridge Lake. The best part was that instead of swimming away, the Grebe swam towards us! What a cutie it was :-). I couldn’t believe how close it got to us as it preened and splashed in the water. I think it knew we were there, but didn’t seem to mind putting on a show for us. This Pied-billed Grebe was a fantastic surprise to an otherwise seemingly normal night.
Here are some fun facts about Pied-billed Grebes:
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s entry about the Pied-billed Grebe call them “part bird, part submarine”, which is an apt description of these expert divers. These grebes dive to catch crustaceans, fish, and other invertebrates with their chunky silver and black bills. They can trap water in the feathers to control their buoyancy and reducing drag as they chase after prey. Sometimes they submerge themselves in the water with only their eyes and nostrils on the water’s surface, similar to a crocodile, to avoid danger. If they do run into danger, they’ll “crash-dive”, plunging head first to make a splash.
Like other grebes, Pied-bill ingest a decent amount of their own feathers. Sometimes these feathers make up half their stomach contents. The purpose of these feathers is to create a sieve-like plug to prevent hard parts of their prey from entering the intestines. They later regurgitate pellets of indigestible materials.
Pied-billed Grebes have lobed feet that help propel them through the water. Their feet are very close to their rears. This makes them excellent swimmers, but makes walking on land awkward. They are also poor fliers, so they try to stay on water as much as possible.
Have you seen a Pied-billed Grebe? Tell me about it in the comments.
I’ve been lucky to go to many of my favorite birding spots over the past week or so, and each trip has had something in common: Northern Flickers! I’m a big fan of woodpeckers, and Northern Flickers are no exception.
I remember exactly where I was when I spotted my first Flicker. Dave and I were walking along Strawbridge Lake and scanning the grass with our binoculars. “Robin…Robin…another robin…wait, what is that? Wow, it’s yellow underneath!” It was large, tan, and speckled. It had a long beak, black and red patches, and brilliant yellow feathers on its underparts. We didn’t even know we were looking at a woodpecker because it was pecking around in the grass. At the time we were newer to birding and only knew downys/hairys, so when our field guide told us we found another woodpecker species we were very excited. It always brightens my day seeing a Northern Flicker.
So it’s been an extra sunny week for me (despite all the rain/cold weather we’ve had in Jersey) because I’ve been seeing Northern Flickers everywhere. Northern Flickers have many characteristics and behaviors that make them unique from other North American Woodpeckers.
There are two variations of Flickers: Yellow-shafted and Red-shafted. Red-shafted are the Western variation, so since I’m on the East Coast I always see Yellow-shafted. These terms refer to the feathers under their wings and tails. When a Flicker flies you will see flashes of either yellow or red depending on your location.
Both males and females have gray caps, tan faces/bodies, black chest crescents, and spotted/speckled feathers. Yellow-shafted Northern Flickers have red patches on the nape of their necks. You can tell the difference between the sexes though: Yellow-shafted males have a black “mustache”. These “mustache” patches are actually called malar marks. Red-shafted males have red malar marks and both sexes lack the red nape patch that their Eastern cousins have. Where the two variations meet geographically you can find hybrids, or intergrades, which have traits of both Red- and Yellow- shafted Flickers.
Check out this male’s “mustache” at Cooper River Park (Image by David Horowitz)
When you think of woodpeckers, you probably picture them scaling up trees drumming at the bark, right? If you want to find a Northern Flicker though, your best bet is to look down, not up. Unlike other North American woodpecker species, Northern Flickers are the only species to forage on the ground because that’s where their favorite food lives: ants. They do also eat seeds, fruit, and nuts, but they mainly eat ants and beetles. One thing they do have in common with other woodpeckers is that they nest in tree cavities. On occasion, Northern Flickers have been found nesting in vacated Belted Kingfisher burrows. Another behavior they share with other woodpeckers is drumming on objects for territory defense and communication.
A male Northern Flicker forages at Boundary Creek (Image by BirdNation)
I was originally going to write about Flickers for Migration Monday, but only the Northern populations in Alaska and Canada are migratory. Northern Flickers in the United States are generally residents. (I have another cool bird planned for Migration Monday tomorrow)
So next time you see a large flock foraging in an open field don’t make my mistake and assume they’re all robins :-P! You may find the unique and awesome Norther Flicker mixed in with the bunch.
Spring begins 2 weeks from today, but for me it began this weekend because I was seeing red: Red-winged Blackbirds and American Robins! These two species are the harbingers of spring and I saw them at both Boundary Creek and Strawbridge Lake this weekend.
Yesterday I went to Boundary Creek for the first time in a few weeks. It was quite busy. All the grasses in the meadow were cut, so robins could be seen running across the fields in large numbers. Other birds we saw in the meadow were a Tufted Titmouse singing his little heart out, some European Starlings, a Song Sparrow, a Northern Flicker and many Blue Jays. The Blue Jays were screaming loudly as usual. It turns out there was a Cooper’s Hawk slinking around in the trees by the creek. I guess the Jays were trying to blow his cover.
Tufted TitmouseSong Sparrow
When we arrived at the creek we hear a loud conk-la-ree! It was the moment I was waiting for. Red-winged Blackbirds were out in the creek and in the trees calling out to each other. I missed their call! The Mallards and Canada Geese were busy swimming around, the Belted Kingfisher was calling from his usual tree, and Ring-billed Gulls flew across the sky. There were a few Carolina Chickadees zipping through the trees. At one point a large flock of crows flew over head. It was a beautiful morning. Here’s a lovely robin looking for a meal.
This Red-winged Blackbird was having a conversation with another blackbird in a neighboring tree:
Today I returned to Boundary Creek in the morning to see who was around today.It was quieter but we did see Canada Geese, Mallards, Carolina Chickadees, American Robins, and the Belted Kingfisher. We found the Cooper’s Hawk hanging out in a tree not far from the creek. It’s an adult Cooper’s and here it is adjusting its feathers.
We also saw a pair we didn’t expect to see today: wood ducks! The male and female were hanging out near some preening Canada Geese in the creek. We haven’t seen them here in awhile, especially the male. Last year a pair of wood ducks (maybe the same one?) had two broods of chicks. We would see the family swimming in the evenings on the beaver pond. I always get excited when I see the wood ducks, they are so beautiful. We took some pictures but unfortunately we were slightly too far away to get a good shot. (We are looking into getting a nicer cam that’s better for birding soon, suggestions appreciated!)
Another surprise visitor was a mink! This is the second mink we’ve seen this year. The other was at Palmyra Cove in January. This mink was running through and on top of the beaver lodge. (I will tell you about the resident beavers some other time.)
In the afternoon we went to Strawbridge Lake. When we went to Boundary earlier today it was cold, overcast, and windy. By the time we arrived at Strawbridge it was sunny and a little warmer. It was very busy. Some highlights: a flock of 30 American Crows flying overhead, a Carolina Wren calling from a branch, and a Great Blue Heron relaxing on some branches.
Great Blue Heron basking in the sunlight
An older gentleman approached us as we were watching the heron and we started talking about some of the birds we’ve seen at the lake. He asked us if we ever saw the Bald Eagle and we replied no. After talking for a few more minutes we parted ways and what did we see? The Bald Eagle! It was an adult because it had the bright white plumage on its head. The Eagle was high up on a branch, observing all the activity on the lake like he was a king looking out over his domain. What a majestic and beautiful bird.
As spring approaches I’m looking forward to seeing more birds arriving to the area. The next few days are supposed to be warmer (between the high 50s and low 70s!) so we’ll see what shows up!
BirdNation 