These two were seen on March 15, 2014 in the Barnegat Inlet. It was an extremely windy day, and I was out on the rocks. I'm surprised these came out as clear as they did.

                                                               Black Scoter

                       

                                                              Black Scoter

Female Scaup

Green Heron

Yesterday I was visiting a friend in Forked River. This Green Heron was across the lagoon in front of her house. It's the best view I've ever had of this species.

 

 The second picture was taken when he first landed on the branch. The lighting wasn't very good, and the wind was making it difficult to hold the camera still. And of course, he was moving somewhat as well. I was surprised it turned out as well as it did.

Woodpeckers

A few weeks ago, a few members of Southern Ocean Birding Group went on a field trip to Old Mine Road, which goes along the Delaware River in New Jersey. The main purpose of the trip was to see  migrating warblers. It was a success, but we heard more than we saw. Although I always had my camera at the ready, the little warblers, stayed high in the trees and seldom stayed in one spot long enough for me to focus on them. Therefore, my best picture on the trip was of a Pileated Woodpecker, which I took near the home we were staying in in Pennsylvania.

 

 

I've also seen Pileated Woodpeckers in Florida and Virginia, but so far, not in New Jersey. I have seen other woodpeckers here, however, and a couple of days ago, I was able to capture a picture of this Red-bellied Woodpecker enjoying the food in one of my backyard feeders.

 

 

Not just birds

I've been birding, but have had little time to update this blog. Here are a few of what I've seen. How many can you identify? Obiously, the first two are not birds. You never know what you'll see out in the woods of South Jersey. The last one was seen along the Potomac in Virginia.

 

 

 

 

 

Osprey Flying And a Black-necked Stilt, birding trip highlights

Yesterday I was on a birding field trip to southern New Jersey. Our primary purpose was to see migrating warblers, but the highlight of the day turned to be a Black-necked Stilt at Heislerville. We didn't arrive there until mid afternoon. The last thing we did was walk down a bike/walking path where we'd heard someone had spotted a Black-necked Stilt. We encountered a man with a scope who said he'd seen one there, but it had flown about five minutes previously. We then assumed this would be one of those times we just missing a special sighting. We continued on in spite of this. When we were nearing the end of the trail, someone in our group sighted it. It was the highlight of the day. What a great way to end a wonderful day.

As we returned to our cars, an Osprey flew overhead. Unfortunately, by the time I took the lens cap off my camera and focused on him, he had flown so high the pictures aren't as clear as they could have been had I reacted faster.

Nesting Mute Swans

The other day a friend invited me to see a pair of Mute Swans that have a nest directly across the lagoon from her house. The female never left the nest while I was there, so I didn't get to see the eggs. My friend's husband saw the eggs earlier when Momma left the nest. He said he was surprised at how large the eggs are. At first the male was nowhere to be seen, but then we saw him slowly meandering up the lagoon.

                                                                

Mommaon nest

 

                                                                      Dad arrives

                                                                    Dad showing off

                                                               Dad comes in for a closeup

 

Momma stays on her eggs

 

Cape May and Barnegat Bay Sightings

This newbie birder has seen seventy species so far this year. It's very rewarding that I identified many of these without help. Though I do admit that I still often rely on those more expert. Photographing the birds I see has played a huge role in my ability to identify them. Since I'm learning about both birds and photography at the same time, I'm on a large learning curve. But it's a lot of fun.

                         Yesterday at  Cape May, this Merlin became number seventy on my list.

 

     He must have been waiting for someone. We walked under him before a friend spotted  him.          Then he stayed on his perch long enough for me to snap numerous shots, and was still there when we left.
                              

 

This morning I braved the extremely cold wind on the jetty at the Barnegat Inlet. The only sightings I made there at that time were Long-tailed Ducks. Since I already have many pictures of them, and the wind would have made focusing difficult, I left to see if I could find anything interesting on Barnegat Bay.

What luck! Two Oystercatchers searching for food along a small island opposite a parking lot near Viking Village. It always amazes me how much less wind there is on the bay than at the inlet.These pictures are of two different Oystercatchers, one of them appears to be banded.

He looks intent on finding his lunch.

 

                                  He was walking with a purpose. Did he see something?

                              If you look carefully at his legs, one appears to have a band on it.

                                       Notice his catch. I can't see what it is, though.

                                                              What is he watching?