The day was a good one, with some surprises and some new spring arrivals despite the very cold morning.
Salem County in spring can be very interesting birding; it can offer early arrivals but also can hold on to winter temperatures and winter birds. This March morning at the Pedricktown Causeway few of the expected waterbirds were present and the hoped-for Sandhill Cranes were not visible. (The photo shown here was taken March 8 when at least 20 birds were present). Low tide in the morning was not in our favor, and we left the causeway with just one Red-tailed Hawk on our day list.
But the most surprising events of the day were to come as we arrived at Featherbed Lane. We quickly noticed a large bird arriving from the southeast, flying with the distinct choppy wingbeats of a Short-eared Owl. It crossed the road heading north, circled back, did a little aerial maneuver with a Bald Eagle, and then perched in a snag long enough to be photographed. Then it departed to the southeast. Just after the owl disappeared Holly heard a Raven croaking and we all saw it fly across the road southbound. Both Raven and Owl were completely unexpected bonus birds.
The next stop at the Route 45 bridge across Mannington Meadow revealed the first of the day’s Bald Eagle nests with a bird on eggs. Then we spotted a single Sandhill Crane dropping into the reeds at the far edge of the marsh! Unfortunately it was hidden after it landed; but when we drove over the hill beyond the bridge, there was another Sandhill standing in the middle of an unplowed field. We wondered if this was a mate or relative of the bird in the marsh.
The next stop was at Sunset Road, another corner of Mannington Meadow. Several more Bald Eagle nests were in big trees close to the water. A little group of Greater Yellowlegs, early migrants, were fishing as the tide rose. They were close enough to make the photographers very happy.
From Mannington we drove east and south to the end of Frog Ocean Road at the Mad Horse Creek boat launch. A pond here often attracts birds, and today was no exception, with a flock of 50+ Greater Yellowlegs, a Lesser Yellowlegs and 7 Dunlin.
A beautiful Ring-necked Pheasant was a surprise, as they are becoming scarce. And our Eagle observations continued; two more birds on their nests, and more distant nests than we could keep track of. This bayside region has been a stronghold for NJ’s eagle population as it recovers from the low of a single nest in the 1980s.
Other observations included a displaying group of wild turkeys in a yard near Hancock’s Bridge, a Cooper’s Hawk in a roadside tree at Mannington, and a couple of American Pipits flushed from Nimrod Road near the marsh. Tired but happy, we arrived home by mid-afternoon.
Weather: Cloudy, cold (20°) at 8 AM; clearing, 40° at 4 PM
Participants: Holly Hoffman, Robert Koch, Laurie Larson, Miriam Swartz, David Wurster
List: 42 species
1 Canada Goose
2 Mute Swan
3 Gadwall
4 Mallard
5 American Black Duck
6 Green-winged Teal
7 Ring-necked Duck
8 Hooded Merganser
9 Common Merganser
10 Red-breasted Merganser
11 Ring-necked Pheasant
12 Wild Turkey
13 Rock Pigeon
14 Mourning Dove
15 Sandhill Crane
16 Dunlin
17 Lesser Yellowlegs
18 Greater Yellowlegs
19 Ring-billed Gull
20 Double-crested Cormorant
21 Great Blue Heron
22 Black Vulture
23 Turkey Vulture
24 Northern Harrier
25 Cooper’s Hawk
26 Bald Eagle
27 Red-tailed Hawk
28 Short-eared Owl
29 Northern Flicker
30 American Kestrel
31 Peregrine Falcon
32 Blue Jay
33 American Crow
34 Fish Crow
35 Common Raven
36 Carolina Wren
37 American Robin
38 Northern Mockingbird
39 European Starling
40 American Pipit
41 Dark-eyed Junco
42 Common Grackle
