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For the second year in a row, the Birders traveled to Bombay Hook at this transitional time of year – raptor and shorebird migration nearly over, waterfowl moving in.
The day was a November weather miracle. The night before we had more than an inch of rain in Medford, and a temperature drop; northern parts of New Jersey had “wintry mix” or snow. But by 8 AM, as the group gathered, clouds were clearing and the sun was out. By afternoon, a brisk northwest wind was picking up, but we had a fine morning.
The auto-tour route at the refuge offered plenty of action, with lots of raptors and waterfowl. We had excellent looks at the ducks, which included all the “dabblers.” Some drakes were still molting out of their eclipse plumage (a fall phase in which the males and females are hard to tell apart) into their breeding plumage of bright new feathers.
A special feature of Bombay Hook is the large flock of Avocets, and we saw several hundred of these black and white waders feeding close to the road as the tide rose. There was one brown Marbled Godwit among them. We also enjoyed Bald Eagles, Northern Harriers, a few Forster’s Terns, a perched accipiter (Cooper’s Hawk or Sharp-shinned Hawk?), and a late Eastern Phoebe.
We arrived home by mid-afternoon, and one car saw a flock of Wild Turkeys very close to Medford Leas. All agreed that it was a great day.
Participants: Dino and Peggy Fiabane, Chris Christensen, Marie Gleason, Holly Hoffman, Robert Koch, Laurie Larson, Kathy Roberts, Kathy Tarr, Jean and Chris Tindall and Barbara Trought.
Photos: Robert Koch and Chris Christensen.
Bird List. 44 species:
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
American Black Duck
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Wild Turkey
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
American Coot
American Avocet
Marbled Godwit
Greater Yellowlegs
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Forster’s Tern
Great Blue Heron
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Northern Harrier
Cooper’s/Sharp-shinned Hawk
Bald Eagle
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Eastern Phoebe
American Crow
Fish Crow
American Robin
European Starling
House Sparrow
House Finch
White-throated Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Northern Cardinal
