Iceland Gull and An Ill -fated Horned Grebe - 2/11/2026
The miserable winter weather here in New Jersey has not given me much opportunity to get out and about to explore. The sub-freezing temperatures and gusty winds have seemed to be the norm for a while now. The foot or so of snow that blanketed the area back in January had quickly frozen over and only recently began to slowly fade. Any trails that I might walk have been inaccessible; either plowed in or too treacherous to walk on without specialized footwear. There has been very little, if any, open water around either for the birds to drink or the waterfowl to gather. The Barnegat Bay has frozen over from the barrier island to the mainland. Even our ocean beaches are partially eroded and with ice chunks strewn about the sand. The erosion bad enough to force Island Beach State Park authorities to close its beach to sport fishing vehicles.
The past couple days, finally, saw the feels like temperatures climb above freezing. Yesterday the mercury crept into the low forties making it feel a little bit like spring. So, after handling a few morning obligations, I set out for the state park in hopes of releasing some of the cabin fever feeling that had been building inside me. The beach, closed to vehicles, is still open to pedestrians. I drove down to the end of the paved road where I planned to park and walk the beach. On the way down, all the bayside trails I passed were still not looking safe enough to try to walk. The only birds I saw were robins gathering along the roadside where there was melting snow and ice. I even passed a Canada goose on the roadside looking for water and a black duck sipping from a parking lot puddle.
By the time I parked my car the wind had picked up yet again, but my mind was already set to take the mile-and-a-half-plus walk down to the jetty and inlet. Of course, the walk started off by trudging over the dune pathway. The drifts of snow are still present but hidden under a dusting of sand and it didn’t take long for one of my steps to plunge down nearly a foot. Startled, I barely kept my balance. After that the rest of the beach was much easier to traverse. There were not many bird species out on the ocean and none at all on the beach along my walk. The regular winter species were out on the water, and in decent numbers: long tailed ducks, common loons and all three scoters- surf, black and white-winged. No red-throated loons or alcids. Along the walk I picked a few interesting pieces of sea glass for my sister.
Left, handsome white-winged scoters, the largest of the three species. Right, the snow and ice covered north jetty. I don’t know why, but the white mascara look on the face of the scoters always make me think Geisha. © S. Weiss
At the inlet, the open space provided no protection from the increased winds. However, the assortment of wildlife also increased a little. The first different bird I noticed when I scanned the inlet was a nice bright white Iceland gull resting on the water with a couple great black-backed gulls. I was able to get a decent photo before it flew off to parts unknown. A little further behind it, more towards the center of the inlet, I saw the head of a harbor seal poking out above the water. Seals are not uncommon in the park this time of year. There is even a spot further back in the inlet where several seals often haul out on an outcropping of rocks. I have seen a young harp seal on the beach in the past, but harbor and grey seals are the most common ones at the park.
Left, Iceland gull. Right, American widgeon. © S. Weiss
Since the bay froze over, I have seen more waterfowl species on the ocean and in the inlet than I would normally. Though not unusual for greater scaup, red-breasted mergansers and bufflehead to be in the inlet or ocean, I have seen much more lately. I don’t recall many times seeing black ducks beyond the confines of the bay, but there were three out in the inlet on this occasion. Also making a rare appearance along the jetty was my first American widgeon of the year. My presence was pushing most of the water birds out further towards the ocean, so after identifying all that I could on this trip I made my way back up the beach to my car.
Shortly after I left parking area, I came upon a small, dark duck-like bird sitting in the middle of the road that wasn’t there earlier. The bird flew, quickly but low along the road as I neared. All I saw at first was black with white in its wings initially giving me bufflehead vibes. When it landed, I realized it was a horned grebe. I got a quick picture of it through my windshield, then tried to slowly approach it to make sure it was not injured. A few times I tried to creep up on it, but it would low fly away ten or twenty yards and land back on the road. Finally, I was able to pull alongside it and attempted to catch it with a beach towel that I found in my car. I wanted to get it off the road or even back on to the beach, but it again flew down the road a bit and plopped back down. I noticed a car coming down the road from each direction, so I pulled up and as far off on the snow embanked shoulder as I could and put on my four-way flashers. I was hoping that the oncoming car in the same lane as the grebe would slow down and force the little bird to at least move off the shoulder. 
Horned grebe prior to its sad demise. © S. Weiss
My intentions and my hopes were not enough. The vehicle never slowed, and my attempt to warn the driver at the last possible moment by hitting my car horn did not get his attention until it was, well, too late. The grebe, effectively though inhumanely, was put out of any misery it had been suffering. Needless to say, it was not the way I wanted my day out to end.
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