January 30 - Razorbill

I took some time this morning to make a trip to Allaire State Park to search for a Western Tanager seen this weekend. After an hour or so I left. No luck with the tanager, but a good variety of other birds were seen. I then made a trip to Manasquan Inlet to get a few new sea birds for the year. Upon arrival I found a Razorbill diving in the inlet. 80+ Dunlin, Common Loon, Red-throated Loon and Oldsquaw were new birds for the year seen in the inlet or the ocean within binocular distance.

January 29 - Snow Bunting

After spending a day working a local Baseball Card Show, I stopped by DeKorte Park in The Meadowlands. Yesterday an American Bittern was spotted, so that was today's target. No luck finding the bird with the wind picking up. Pintails, Shovelers, Green-winged Teals and Black Ducks were all around the impoundment. A Lesser Yellowlegs was also seen there. I decided to try the Kingsland Landfill area for Snow Buntings that I've seen a few times this year. With no construction going on, the Snow Buntings were seen near the construction road on the landfill and probably visible from Disposal Rd. About 40-50 birds total were seen in a flock flying from the lower landfill road to the top of the landfill.

January 28 - Rusty Blackbird

We made a trip today to The Celery Farm in Allendale. We went to see a Great Horned Owl or Virginia Rail. No luck on either bird. We found a couple new birds for the year and county with Winter Wren and Golden-crowned Kinglet. While making a walk around the preserve we spotted 3 Rusty Blackbirds preening in a tree. A nice bird for the day and a nice bird-a-day bird.

January 27 - American Pipit

The weather was pretty bad today with rain and wind expected most of the morning. I made a trip to Liberty State Park in the rain. Warming temperatures and rain over the Hudson River caused lots of fog, but interesting scenes. 25 Horned Larks were spotted on the grass field at the south end of the park. American Pipit was spotted in this field as well. Hundreds of Brant, 50+ Greater Scaup, a few Horned Grebes and Red-breasted Mergansers were the highlights.

January 26 - Glaucous Gull

I started this morning with a brief trip to Kearny Marsh, but nothing special was seen as more open water was available. Still lots of Coots, 30+ were seen. I made a trip form there to Edison Boat Ramp in search of a Glaucous Gull which had been spotted there in recent weeks. Shortly after I arrived the Glaucous Gull was walking around the ramp. Hundreds of gulls were around with it. Photograph was pretty easy to come by.

January 25 - Common Raven

Today I received a phone call from a Meadowlands friend. He had just seen an Iceland Gull on Keegan Landfill. This is closed to the public. I met him at the entrance and we went onto the landfill by truck. Lots of Gulls, Crows and a couple of Ravens were seen. Mallards were using the puddles and a Tree Sparrow was spotted. When the gulls got chased up we spotted the Iceland Gull flying around. He put down on a part of the landfill we couldn't see. It seems that we misidentified the Iceland Gull. After having some photos reviewed by some quality birders, it's been determined that this gull is nay be either a leucistic Herring Gull or 2nd Cycle Glaucous Gull. The jury is still out. This will mean my bird-a-day will change to Common Raven. Raven photo was taken a few days before in The Meadowlands. Photo of the gull is courtesy of Jim Wright from The NJ Meadowlands Commission. See his blog by clicking here Meadowlands Blog

January 24 - Green-winged Teal (Eurasian)

Today I spent some time this morning at Kearny Marsh in The Meadowlands, with a few new birds for my Meadowlands year list, Coot and Ring-neck Duck. A lunchtime trip to Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus to look for the Green-winged Teal (Eurasian) or the Orange-crowned Warbler. No luck with the warbler, but the Teal were all around the area. We had nice looks at the Common Teal. The photo is from today.

January 23 - American Tree Sparrow

Today was a catch up day at home after the long weekend working. Tree Sparrows and a Song Sparrow made their first appearance in the yard today. I didn't have much time to go to The Meadowlands to look for birds today, so American Tree Sparrow, a bird I should use in the winter is today's birds. Photo is from the Christmas Count in The Meadowlands.

January 22 - Red-breasted Merganser

Well today I made the trip back to Grass Island, CT to look for Bonaparte's Gull. Another day, no gull. More Scaup and Bufflehead around today. Many Gulls on the docks and a few Red-breasted Mergansers swimming around. A pretty common bird here, but tough in The Meadowlands. Using it here is probably a good choice today.

January 21 - Bufflehead

Continuing with the weekend to White Plains, today is birding in a snowstorm. I made my trip to Rye Playland in Westchester County, NY. Difficulty seeing birds through the snow was the biggest problem. I walked about 1/2 mile checking the water at the beach area, but only Bufflehead were birds worth the trip. I will probably make a trip back to Grass Island tomorrow. The photo is from another location about a week ago.

January 20 - Greater Scaup

The next few days will be a challenge to find something good, birdwise. I'm working the weekend in White Plains, NY. A few locations are close and can hold some interesting gulls and ducks. I made a trip to Grass Island in Fairfield County, Connecticut, 15 minutes from White Plains. Bonaparte's Gulls have been reported here, but on a very windy morning, birds are somewhat scarce and distant. No luck with the Bonaparte's Gulls. A handful of Greater Scaup and Bufflehead were in the harbor area and will be used this weekend.

January 19 - Horned Lark

Today I received an invitation to go to the top of the 1-E Landfill in the NJ Meadowlands. 2 Horned Larks were spotted here a month ago when the Christmas Count was conducted. They were still around. Horned Larks have not been common for me here in January. I usually spot them in December somewhere in The Meadowlands.

January 18 - Redhead

I made a trip to western NJ today to check out Round Valley and Spruce Run Reservoirs. A single Redhead was seen with some Coots on Round Valley while we found 3 Cackling Geese at Spruce Run. We also made a trip to see the Common Chaffinch again. We had nice views o the bird, this time in a cedar instead of on the ground. This made for a nicer photo seen below.

January 17 - Dickcissel

This morning started off well with 2 new Bergen County birds, Black-crowned Night Heron and Red-breasted Merganser at DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst. I went to Mill Creek Marsh in search of Orange-crowned Warbler with no luck, but did have a Peregrine Falcon hunting the marsh. After lunch I headed into Manhattan to see the NY Rangers at MSG with a side trip to 200th St. and a chance for a Dickcissel. Within 20 minutes I found 2 flocks of House Sparrows, one with the Dickcissel. I spent a few minutes getting a couple of photographs of this nice sharp bird before heading back downtown. Well worth the 30 minute train ride.

January 16 - Northern Shrike

I took a trip to Mill Creek Marsh this morning hoping for a look at the Orange-crowned Warbler. Within 15 minutes I had some distant looks. Then it came closer for a photo op. That was nice. Lunchtime I received a text that the Northern Shrike from yesterday (Thanks Ivan) was being seen today at a park in Boonton. Well I made the trip up and with a few other birders we located the Shrike and even got a few photographs. First Shrike I've seen in NJ since the the bird that spent 2+ months in The Meadowlands and very briefly in our yard.

January 15 - Long-eared Owl

I spent the day working and had limited time for a bird today. I started out with a Red-tailed Hawk and Bald Eagle, 2 birds I could have used. After the show I went to a location where I believe I flushed an owl a couple of weeks back. This time I saw the owl. It had been a Long-eared Owl that easily flushes, but still likes to roost in these trees. Due to the nature of the owl's behavior and the behavior of local photographers the nature paparazzi, I will not disclose the location. The photo is of a bird seen last year.

January 14 - American Wigeon

I took a quick spin around DeKorte Park in The Meadowlands in the late morning. 3 Bald Eagles highlighted the trip. I did find the reported Brown Creeper, Ruby-crowned Kinglets and the female Common Goldeneye. After lunch I made a trip to northern Bergen County to Darlington Park in Mahwah. The lake had more open water than earlier in the week and more ducks. 3-4 American Wigeons, a tough winter Bergen County bird, 75 Gadwall and a single drake Ring-necked Duck were on the lake. Since I've used the Ring-necked Duck, I'm using the Wigeon today. Photo is from earlier in the season in Cape May.

January 13 - Cooper's Hawk

Today was very windy and cold, most of the DeKorte Park birds were in hiding. Only the Canvasbacks were out in the wind and white caps on the Saw Mill impoundment. After going back home, I saw a group of birds fly out of my yard and then saw the reason why. An immature Cooper's Hawk caught a House Sparrow. I was able to get a photo through my kitchen window of the Coop mantling today's catch.

January 12 - Ring-necked Duck

With a pretty lousy weather day, I was a bit limited in what bird to use for bird-a-day today. I took a trip to Garret Mountain Reservation and the surrounding areas looking for anything rare. Great Black-backed Gull on Barbour's Pond at Garret Mountain Reservation is rarely seen yet one was there with a Herring Gull and the usual Ringed-bill Gulls. 8 Hooded Mergansers were seen there as well. Ring-necked Ducks were on the New St. Reservoir as well as Levine Reservoir in Paterson. 15+ Bufflehead continue on Levine. Ring-necked Duck is today's bird.

January 11 - Rufous Hummingbird

I made an early morning trip into NYC to look for the Rufous Hummingbird being seen at the Museum of Natural History. As soon as I arrived I found the hummingbird on the new feeder the museum has placed near it's favorite plant, Mahonia. I made this mistake of not having my camera out and ready as I approached the museum. After getting a 20-30 second look, the bird flew out while I was readying my camera. I took a walk through Central Park on my way to a downtown train and found 50+ Blue Jays, 3 Red-tailed Hawks, 1 Cooper's Hawk, 1 immature Red-shouldered Hawk, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and immature Red-headed Woodpecker. When in NYC you never know when you may have a brush with a celebrity. Today's celebrity sighting was The Weather Channel's & NBC's weatherman Al Roker, doing a photo shoot in the park. Photo of the hummingbird is from Cape May.

January 10 - Common Goldeneye

After spending some time in the morning looking for Bergen County birds, I was planning on using Great Horned Owl as my bird-a-day. I didn't see a Great Horned Owl last year until December so it seemed a good call. I received a text late in the afternoon about a Common Goldeneye at DeKorte Park in NJ Meadowlands. Arriving around 4:40 PM with the light disappearing I grabbed my scope and headed out to the trail where we saw a Goldeneye last year. A female Goldeneye, a scarce bird here was swimming around by herself. A distant photo clearly shows the gold eye and yellow tip to the bill.

January 9 - Greater White-fronted Goose

Today it was a choice between Greater White-fronted Goose, Snow Goose or Common Teal. Linda and I went to Mill Creek Marsh hoping for the Orange-crowned Warbler, but found the Common Teal. At Overpeck Park, I found the immature Snow Goose, while Linda found the Great White-fronted Goose. Both birds were seen today in the water adjacent to the track. Since the GWFG has been a bit of a problem to find and the Common Teal should be around a while yet, I decided to use the goose for bird-a-day. Photo is from last week when it was found on the field.

January 8- Black-headed Gull

Today we were in the Towson, MD area for my nephew's college graduation. Early in the morning we were off to a nearby mall to check the parking lot for gulls. Reported for about a month in a Best Buy parking lot, was a Black-headed Gull in the company of Ring-billed Gulls. Once we arrived at Hunt Valley Towne Center we saw only Ring-billed Gulls and a handful of Fish and American Crows. After 10 minutes a smaller gull with a white tail flew in, the Black-headed Gull. An adult bird in non-breeding plumage. the bird was very approachable and easy to photograph. Seemed to act just like any other parking lot gull.

January 7 - Lesser Scaup

Today we took a brief trip to Richard DeKorte Park in the NJ Meadowlands. Joining up with John W., Doug M. and Charley we observed a number of ducks including 140 or so Canvasbacks, the season high total I've seen. Lots of the usual ducks were around, but 6-8 Lesser Scaup were a surprise. The were in the company of the Canvasbacks. Other birds of note at DeKorte were 2 Palm Wablers on the Kingsland Overlook. Lesser Scaup, a tough Bergen County bird is today's bird.

January 6 - Fox Sparrow

At a lunchtime trip to Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus hundreds of Green-winged Teal were in the mudflats. At one point a juvenile Peregrine Falcon chased a group of teal around without success. The Peregrine then chose to chase Northern Shovelers. Song Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows and 9 Fox Sparrows were seen as well. The reported Orange-crowned Warbler was around but I didn't find it. A Green-winged Teal (Eurasian), was seen separated from the main group of teal. This is bird for another day since the sub-species list isn't quite ready on the Bird-a-day sight. Other highlights were 4 Great Blue Herons and an immature Bald Eagle.

January 5 - Yellow-breasted Chat

I needed to make a trip to Downtown Manhattan today, so I started by taking a side trip to Mid-town. Yellow-breasted Chat has been reported for at least a month in Bryant Park, 6th Ave. and 42nd St. I spent a half hour searching through House Sparrows to find only some White-throated Sparrows and a Hermit Thrush. I sat down at the New York Public Library's outdoor terrace, 5th Ave. and 42nd St. and within 5 minutes the Chat was at my feet. This bird used the chair and table legs like small tree branches, hopping form one to another. It didn't sit still long. A New Yorker came by with some crackers for a snack and shared them with the House Sparrows only to have the Chat join in. Possibly the easiest I've ever found a Chat.

January 4 - Common Chaffinch

Today a friend and I staked out a rarity in Hunterdon County. 45 minutes we waited in 14 degree temps to spot a Common Chaffinch. The bird obliged us for about a minute and a few quick photos were taken. It's a question whether this will be a NJ accepted record or not, but still a real nice bird to see. I had a couple of other choices for Bird-a-day as we found Greater White-fronted Goose and Snow Goose in Overpeck County Park, much closer to home. They'll be birds for another day.

January 3 - Sandhill Crane

I took a friend to see the Sandhill Cranes in Somerset County, NJ today. We saw them with ease feeding in a corn field along Randolph Rd. It was much easier this time than in 5 previous trips last year. Among other interesting birds seen today were Immature Red-headed Woodpecker and yellow-bellied Sapsucker in Colonial Park a few miles from the Cranes, a male Eastern Towhee on the way to the park and 2 Bald Eagles over DeKorte Park in NJ Meadowlands.

January 2 - Western Kingbird

I took short trip today to Hartshorne Woods Park - Claypit Creek Area, just off Sandy Hook. In December a Western Kingbird was spotted in the park. It's still around today. I shared some nice views of the bird along the water with others looking to add this bird to the year's list. This is a photo of today's sighting. Other birds around the park were Mute Swans, Black Ducks, Crows, Belted Kingfisher and Turkey Vulture.

January 1 - Snowy Owl

This is my 3rd year with the Bird-a-Day Challenge. We made a trip to Merrill Creek Reservoir in western NJ to get a look at the young female Snowy Owl seen there since early November. She was easily seen from the dam. A few other nice birds seen today include 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls at Spruce Run and 40 Snow Buntings atop the Kingland Landfill in NJ Meadowlands.