Phoebe

This little phoebe greets us at Allaire State Park every time we visit.  The NJ state bird may be the goldfinch but the phoebe is very prominent in the spring.  We watched him carry nesting materials to a nest under the bridge today. 

We looked for warblers and other spring migrants but saw mostly the old winter standbys.  We did catch a glimpse of a common yellow-throat and we heard both Towhees and white eyed vireos.  The yellow rump warblers were in fine feather and quite showy today.

Hooked!

 Today we landed in Sandy Hook for a drive around the park.   We often land at our birding spots by total accident but today we had a plan.  We have been spotting the pine warblers around our usual haunts for a week or so. They are often accompanied by the palm warbler.  That little guy has been eluding us until today.  We caught wind of his presence at Sandy Hook so we took a drive and we were rewarded by this little palm warbler( pictured above). (Click on the pic for a larger image.)

The park must have been giving free ants to every flicker who showed up because there were lots and lots of flickers in the park today.  This one seemed to find an endless supply of ants in a sidewalk crack.










We can almost always catch a few killdeer this time of year.  They are always a favorite with their two necklaces.  They were not afraid of us but when a dog passed by they were feigning.

Our first thrush of the season (well of course if you do not count robins) was this hermit thrush perched just in front of our Jeep.  He was either tired or very tame because he stuck around for quite a while.

We left the park around noon capping off a morning of sun and relaxation.  This gull seems to be following our example.

Into the Woods

We are starting our real all out birding this week.  The martins have returned to our backyard and the phlox are blooming.  Both of these events signal it is time for a daily outing.  This morning was beautiful.  There was not a cloud in the sky and it was perfect "sweater weather".  Birds were not the only thing we noticed today.  We even caught a glimpse of the Easter Bunny.

We enjoyed seeing some of the winter birds and year round residents.

 This Blue Jay wanted to be sure to make my post.  He even smiled for the camera.

 The cardinal and the titmouse are always sure to welcome us to the woods.