Birds and Other Nature Sightings

     Just a few days after returning from a Bahamas cruise, I headed down to Cape May for a 24-hour pelagic trip aboard the American Star .  We left the dock at nine in the evening to make our way out about 90 miles offshore.  After about an hour I decided to turn in for the rest of the night.  The boat is set up for daytime whale and dolphin watching tours, so there are no real sleeping quarters on board.  I enveloped myself in a sleeping bag on a metal bench on the upper deck.  The bench was only as wide as me, so it was not a comfortable night.  The sea conditions were not bad, but I catnapped through the night ride trying not to roll off the bench.  Around five o’clock, daylight started to break up the night sky and people began emerging from their makeshift beds.  I’m sure those who brought beanbag cushions slept much better than I did.  Either way I survived the night and the day ahead turned out to be well worth the ride.  We saw the expected pelagic birds for this season, plus

     This past week my wife and I took a cruise from New Jersey to the Bahamas.  Our ports of call were Port Canaveral, FL, Nassau and the cruise line’s private island in the Bahamas.  Prior to leaving I made a list of new birds I would like to see on the trip.  The list constituted new life birds that could be seen at those locations at this time of year.  In reality it was more of a wish list as I knew I would never get all 35 birds.  I would have been satisfied with one new bird, but I got three and happy. We left Bayonne on Friday and arrived at central Florida on Sunday afternoon.  Before we left I became aware of a wayward Large-billed Tern that showed up in Brevard County.  Large-billed terns are a South American species and look kind of like our Royal Terns , but (of course) with an exceptionally large bill.  This mega rarity would have been a great score, but I had to take a pass.  It seemed too convenient as Port Canaveral is also located in Brevard County.  Unfortunately, a

     On Wednesday I went to walk and explore two local spots away from the beach to fill in some time until shorebirds return to  the area.  I headed over to Double Trouble State Park in Bayville (Berkeley Township) and the old cranberry bogs off of Dover Road in Beachwood, both only about a 15 minute drive from each other.  I walked over five miles combined at the two spots despite the worsening smoke haze coming from the Canadian wildfires. My first stop was at the old cranberry bogs where I spent just a little over an hour and the birding was light, as I expected.  I did find a new moth and dragonfly for my other nature lists.  A small, but somewhat colorful moth caught my eye as it fluttered from one leafy plant to another.  It was a Pondside Crambid Moth ,   a common species that lives in aquatic habitats.  I spotted the new dragonfly nearby.  Its color pattern and size got my attention, and it turned out to be a Double-ringed Pennant , mostly a Pine Barrens species.  Two other dr