Additional photos of the bird can be found in my New Jersey Adventures Album.
Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Boreal Chickadee in nearby New Jersey ~ February 26, 2019
On Saturday, while helping my daughter and son-in-law move into their new home, I got a call from Arlene Koch and, soon after, another from Jason Horn about a Boreal Chickadee that had been found at Merrill Creek Reservoir's visitor center. Fortunately, the bird stuck around and I finally got the chance to try for it on Tuesday morning. As I walked over towards the birders in front of the building, the bird showed up! Over the next couple hours, I got nice looks and some fairly good photos of the Boreal Chickadee, a bird that had not been seen in our area since the early 1980's.
Additional photos of the bird can be found in my New Jersey Adventures Album.
Additional photos of the bird can be found in my New Jersey Adventures Album.
Thursday, February 21, 2019
Varied Thrush in Northampton County ~ February 20, 2019
On Tuesday, my sleep was interrupted by a phone call from Billy Weber. He told me that he had just seen a Varied Thrush from his workplace parking lot in Hanover Township! After saying some choice words in respect to my surprise, I thanked him for the call and quickly got my butt into gear. I arrived at the spot and found several birders, including Jason, already there. He told me that a Merlin had flown in and the thrush flew off along with a flock of Robins. I spent the next several hours waiting for the bird to return, but it never did. I went into work and, at first break, found out from Jason that the bird had returned very late in the day. I told him that I planned to be there at first light and hope for a better outcome.
Wednesday morning under overcast skies and with a snowstorm approaching, I was in position near the main crabapple tree that the bird had been seen in. Thankfully around 7:00 AM, the first bird to fly into the tree was the Varied Thrush! I had nice looks at this striking adult male as it fed on the crabapples. Lighting was definitely an issue, but I was happy to get some fairly nice photos of the bird.
I left there much happier than the day before and work didn't seem as tedious that night. Additional photos of the bird can be found in my 2019 Local Notables Album.
Wednesday morning under overcast skies and with a snowstorm approaching, I was in position near the main crabapple tree that the bird had been seen in. Thankfully around 7:00 AM, the first bird to fly into the tree was the Varied Thrush! I had nice looks at this striking adult male as it fed on the crabapples. Lighting was definitely an issue, but I was happy to get some fairly nice photos of the bird.
I left there much happier than the day before and work didn't seem as tedious that night. Additional photos of the bird can be found in my 2019 Local Notables Album.
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Florida Trip ~ February 7-8, 2019
Since way back in November, I had been reading reports about an American Flamingo that had made the Florida Panhandle its home. I had never tried to see the flamingos that are occasionally spotted in the Snake Bight area of the Everglades because of my huge dislike of mosquitoes. Now I know most people hate mosquitoes, but I hate them a lot because I get raised welts wherever I get bit by them. So when I saw that this bird wasn't at the end of the infamous Snake Bight Trail and the drive would be a few hours shorter, I was really interested. I had also been unlucky at finding the Nanday Parakeet during the few times I was in areas of southeast Florida where they were possible. Last week, I finally had the opportunity to drive down there and, hopefully, see both. I called Jason Horn and asked if he'd be interested in riding along. He had already seen both birds, so to spice up the deal a little, I told him all he'd have to pay for was his food. It would have been a long drive by myself, so I was happy when he said he would come along.
Thursday, February 7th
A little after 9:00 AM, I picked up Jason at his house and we headed south for St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, south of Tallahassee, Florida. While driving through South Carolina, Jason was checking his phone and read that a cuckoo found at the West Delray Regional Park near Delray Beach, Florida on Wednesday had just been identified as a Dark-billed Cuckoo! The Dark-billed is a South American bird that, to my knowledge, had only been recorded once before in North America through a specimen, so this bird would represent only the 2nd North American record. Unfortunately, birders showed up at the spot on Thursday and couldn't refind the bird. We discussed whether we should take the chance and drive directly there for a Friday morning search or whether we should just stick with the original plan. Since the bird hadn't been seen all day on Thursday, we decided to head west from Jacksonville and head for St. Marks as planned.
Friday, February 8th
At around 2:00 AM, I pulled into a rest area along I-10 where we grabbed a few hours of sleep. After a little "shut-eye", we drove two exits farther east on I-10, grabbed some breakfast, and pulled into the refuge's entrance a little after 6:00 AM. At dawn, we gathered our gear and started walking out the dikes towards Stony Bayou 2. Luckily, in the southeastern corner of the impoundment stood the American Flamingo. Even luckier was the fact that the fog lifted for about an hour and gave way to the early morning sun just long enough to get some fairly good distant photos.
On the south side of the dike, opposite from the flamingo, several wrens were calling. I got some decent photos of a cooperative Sedge Wren.
I didn't fair as well with the Marsh Wren, which always seemed to be either behind something or a little out of focus.
As we worked our way back to the car, a Brown-headed Nuthatch clung to a palm tree next to an area of pines.
Pine Warblers were also in this area. Other birds of note from the dike included Pied-billed Grebe, Anhinga, Snowy Egret, Little Blue and Tricolored Heron, White Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, American Wigeon, Redhead, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Clapper Rail, Common Gallinule, and Forster's Tern.
Farther south along Lighthouse Drive, we found American White Pelican, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Canvasback, and Red-breasted Merganser. We continued down to the end of Lighthouse Drive where, you guessed it, the lighthouse is. The shoreline was full of Dunlin and several Brown Pelicans sat on pilings. On the way back out, we saw a pair of eagles perched in the vicinity of their nest.
An American Alligator rested along one of the channels.
At "Stop 2", the Vermilion Flycatcher that was spending the winter there allowed me to get some photos.
We left the refuge around 11:00 AM and headed for the St. Petersburg area to look for Nanday Parakeet. In the town of Perry, we decided to stop at a KFC for lunch. As soon as I parked, Jason got a message from Ross Gallardy that the Dark-billed Cuckoo had been refound! Ross and his wife just happened to be vacationing in Florida and he had just seen it. Once again, we contemplated what we should do. We did a quick calculation and figured that even if we drove straight through to the spot, we'd only have about a half hour before dark to look for the bird. So we decided to once again stick to the original plan but put ourselves in position to be at the spot at first light Saturday morning.
Along the way, we stopped at the Chassahowitzka Wildlife Management Area. Back in October, a Double-toothed Kite was spotted there. We drove in to take a look around. Some of the birds seen there included Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Bluebird, White-eyed and Blue-headed Vireo, and warblers that included Pine, Palm, Yellow-throated, Yellow-rumped, and Black-and-white.
We continued south and ran into rush-hour traffic as we got closer to St. Petersburg. We only had about an hour of light left and were still about 20 minutes away from one of the favored parakeet sites, Largo Central Park Reserve. Luckily, while I was staring at traffic, Jason spotted a few Nanday Parakeets in a tree at the intersection of Fulton Drive and East Bay Drive in Largo. I pulled into a parking lot on the corner and got some photos of my second life bird of the trip.
I even got a photo of two Nandays trying to make more Nandays.
I reserved a motel in the town of Clewiston and then headed out of St. Petersburg, crossing the Sunshine Skyway Bridge at sunset. From there, we headed south towards Fort Myers and then east to Clewiston for some badly-needed sleep at the Plaza Travel Inn.
Thursday, February 7th
A little after 9:00 AM, I picked up Jason at his house and we headed south for St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, south of Tallahassee, Florida. While driving through South Carolina, Jason was checking his phone and read that a cuckoo found at the West Delray Regional Park near Delray Beach, Florida on Wednesday had just been identified as a Dark-billed Cuckoo! The Dark-billed is a South American bird that, to my knowledge, had only been recorded once before in North America through a specimen, so this bird would represent only the 2nd North American record. Unfortunately, birders showed up at the spot on Thursday and couldn't refind the bird. We discussed whether we should take the chance and drive directly there for a Friday morning search or whether we should just stick with the original plan. Since the bird hadn't been seen all day on Thursday, we decided to head west from Jacksonville and head for St. Marks as planned.
Friday, February 8th
At around 2:00 AM, I pulled into a rest area along I-10 where we grabbed a few hours of sleep. After a little "shut-eye", we drove two exits farther east on I-10, grabbed some breakfast, and pulled into the refuge's entrance a little after 6:00 AM. At dawn, we gathered our gear and started walking out the dikes towards Stony Bayou 2. Luckily, in the southeastern corner of the impoundment stood the American Flamingo. Even luckier was the fact that the fog lifted for about an hour and gave way to the early morning sun just long enough to get some fairly good distant photos.
On the south side of the dike, opposite from the flamingo, several wrens were calling. I got some decent photos of a cooperative Sedge Wren.
I didn't fair as well with the Marsh Wren, which always seemed to be either behind something or a little out of focus.
As we worked our way back to the car, a Brown-headed Nuthatch clung to a palm tree next to an area of pines.
Pine Warblers were also in this area. Other birds of note from the dike included Pied-billed Grebe, Anhinga, Snowy Egret, Little Blue and Tricolored Heron, White Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, American Wigeon, Redhead, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Clapper Rail, Common Gallinule, and Forster's Tern.
Farther south along Lighthouse Drive, we found American White Pelican, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Canvasback, and Red-breasted Merganser. We continued down to the end of Lighthouse Drive where, you guessed it, the lighthouse is. The shoreline was full of Dunlin and several Brown Pelicans sat on pilings. On the way back out, we saw a pair of eagles perched in the vicinity of their nest.
An American Alligator rested along one of the channels.
At "Stop 2", the Vermilion Flycatcher that was spending the winter there allowed me to get some photos.
We left the refuge around 11:00 AM and headed for the St. Petersburg area to look for Nanday Parakeet. In the town of Perry, we decided to stop at a KFC for lunch. As soon as I parked, Jason got a message from Ross Gallardy that the Dark-billed Cuckoo had been refound! Ross and his wife just happened to be vacationing in Florida and he had just seen it. Once again, we contemplated what we should do. We did a quick calculation and figured that even if we drove straight through to the spot, we'd only have about a half hour before dark to look for the bird. So we decided to once again stick to the original plan but put ourselves in position to be at the spot at first light Saturday morning.
Along the way, we stopped at the Chassahowitzka Wildlife Management Area. Back in October, a Double-toothed Kite was spotted there. We drove in to take a look around. Some of the birds seen there included Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Bluebird, White-eyed and Blue-headed Vireo, and warblers that included Pine, Palm, Yellow-throated, Yellow-rumped, and Black-and-white.
We continued south and ran into rush-hour traffic as we got closer to St. Petersburg. We only had about an hour of light left and were still about 20 minutes away from one of the favored parakeet sites, Largo Central Park Reserve. Luckily, while I was staring at traffic, Jason spotted a few Nanday Parakeets in a tree at the intersection of Fulton Drive and East Bay Drive in Largo. I pulled into a parking lot on the corner and got some photos of my second life bird of the trip.
I even got a photo of two Nandays trying to make more Nandays.
I reserved a motel in the town of Clewiston and then headed out of St. Petersburg, crossing the Sunshine Skyway Bridge at sunset. From there, we headed south towards Fort Myers and then east to Clewiston for some badly-needed sleep at the Plaza Travel Inn.
Florida Trip ~ February 9-10, 2019
Saturday, February 9th
Our alarms went off at 4:00 AM. We left the motel and headed for West Delray Regional Park. We arrived a little before first light and walked over to where the bird was found the day before. A Whip-poor-will zoomed past us as it was barely light enough to see. As the sky brightened, we heard cuckoo-like calls coming from the west side of the pond adjacent to the mountain bike trail but never saw the bird. Eventually, about 75 birders were spread out all over the area. At around 8:00 AM, the Dark-billed Cuckoo was spotted and everyone converged on the spot. The bird was perched about two feet off the ground in a spot that was a little tough to find initially, but it stayed perched in one area most of the time, which allowed everyone to eventually find it.
After a while, it moved into a much more open position where I got much better photos.
Needless to say, I was thrilled to get to see this bird and even more thrilled that Jason got the bird, too, since he came along with no expectations other than hoping that something like this might show up during the trip. Later in the morning, rain showers moved into the area and we happily headed out. Other birds seen while at the park included Anhinga, White and Glossy Ibis, Wood Stork, Osprey, Red-shouldered Hawk, Merlin, Monk Parakeet, Belted Kingfisher, Pileated Woodpecker, Great Crested Flycatcher, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Pine, Palm, and Yellow-rumped Warbler.
We started the long drive back home but made a stop at the Viera Wetlands along the way. The auto route around the impoundments allows for many photographic opportunities. We got super looks at Roseate Spoonbill, Tricolored Heron, Anhinga, Boat-tailed Grackle, and a couple Sandhill Cranes sitting on their nests.
Roseate Spoonbill
Tricolored Heron
Anhinga
Boat-tailed Grackle
A Great Egret grabbed a frog that was at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Hundreds of American Robins were flying back and forth adjacent to the entrance. Other birds present included Pied-billed Grebe, Cattle Egret, White Ibis, Ring-necked Duck, Hooded Merganser, Bald Eagle, Northern Harrier, Red-shouldered Hawk, Crested Caracara, Common Gallinule, Forster's Tern, and Loggerhead Shrike.
We left the wetlands and continued north. American White Pelicans were seen in Georgia just before dark.
Sunday, February 10th
I pulled into a rest area in northern Virginia and took a little snooze. We had left temperatures in the low 80's in Florida and it was now 21 degrees at dawn. Since it was very early on Sunday morning, there was thankfully very little traffic as we drove through Washington and Baltimore. At around 9:00 AM, I dropped off Jason and drove the last half hour home. We covered 2807 miles in three days, and I saw three life birds, something that will likely not happen again on the east coast.
Our alarms went off at 4:00 AM. We left the motel and headed for West Delray Regional Park. We arrived a little before first light and walked over to where the bird was found the day before. A Whip-poor-will zoomed past us as it was barely light enough to see. As the sky brightened, we heard cuckoo-like calls coming from the west side of the pond adjacent to the mountain bike trail but never saw the bird. Eventually, about 75 birders were spread out all over the area. At around 8:00 AM, the Dark-billed Cuckoo was spotted and everyone converged on the spot. The bird was perched about two feet off the ground in a spot that was a little tough to find initially, but it stayed perched in one area most of the time, which allowed everyone to eventually find it.
After a while, it moved into a much more open position where I got much better photos.
Needless to say, I was thrilled to get to see this bird and even more thrilled that Jason got the bird, too, since he came along with no expectations other than hoping that something like this might show up during the trip. Later in the morning, rain showers moved into the area and we happily headed out. Other birds seen while at the park included Anhinga, White and Glossy Ibis, Wood Stork, Osprey, Red-shouldered Hawk, Merlin, Monk Parakeet, Belted Kingfisher, Pileated Woodpecker, Great Crested Flycatcher, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Pine, Palm, and Yellow-rumped Warbler.
We started the long drive back home but made a stop at the Viera Wetlands along the way. The auto route around the impoundments allows for many photographic opportunities. We got super looks at Roseate Spoonbill, Tricolored Heron, Anhinga, Boat-tailed Grackle, and a couple Sandhill Cranes sitting on their nests.
A Great Egret grabbed a frog that was at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Hundreds of American Robins were flying back and forth adjacent to the entrance. Other birds present included Pied-billed Grebe, Cattle Egret, White Ibis, Ring-necked Duck, Hooded Merganser, Bald Eagle, Northern Harrier, Red-shouldered Hawk, Crested Caracara, Common Gallinule, Forster's Tern, and Loggerhead Shrike.
We left the wetlands and continued north. American White Pelicans were seen in Georgia just before dark.
Sunday, February 10th
I pulled into a rest area in northern Virginia and took a little snooze. We had left temperatures in the low 80's in Florida and it was now 21 degrees at dawn. Since it was very early on Sunday morning, there was thankfully very little traffic as we drove through Washington and Baltimore. At around 9:00 AM, I dropped off Jason and drove the last half hour home. We covered 2807 miles in three days, and I saw three life birds, something that will likely not happen again on the east coast.
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