Imagine My Surprise!

I had "one of those days" today. A Snowy Owl was reported at Sandy Hook NJ yesterday.  Snowy Owl is one of those birds that is mythic. It is rare outside of the arctic. It is regal. It is powerful. It is awesome. I am drawn to it.

Reports were scattered. Some said that they owl was on the beach, others said that the bird was on the move, and still others said that the bird was gone.  I resolved to see the bird this afternoon if anyone reported it. So, at noon I left the office and headed  north on I-95 to Sandy Hook which is the northern most beach in NJ. My friend Harvey called to say that he hadn't heard anything about the bird and that it was pouring rain so I turned around and headed south to the shore  Just then, a text message came in stating that the owl was indeed at Sandy Hook. You guessed it, I turned around again and headed north. I arrived at Sandy Hook 2 hours later and hoofed it a half mile out through the sand dunes to the northern tip of NJ with binoculars, camera, scope and tripod. I emerged from the dunes to see 4 people standing with binoculars. One of them was waving frantically and yelling "There's 2, there's 2! There's 2 owls here!"

You gotta be kidding me. 2 Snowy Owls in NJ in Nov.  Impossible.  Yet there they were - sitting on the beach. My birding friend Alyssa was there too thanking me for having a scope.  We set it up and got great views. I also took some photos.  You can see 1 white spec in the center and another one to the right of that on the horizon. Those are the owls. The day got a little better when the sun appeared and made the owls glow against the sand. 

2 Snowy Owls

We were standing pretty far away from the birds. There was an orange fence on the beach with a sign stating something like "Construction Zone - Keep Out".  As we stood there, a guy with a camera goes walking out past the fence right toward the owls.  I whistled and yelled "YO! Get away from the birds!" (I yelled that a few times and might have had some other choice words mixed in). He stopped and walked toward us. It was only then that I noticed he was wearing a park ranger uniform. Uh-oh.  He came over and said that he was trying to get the birds to come closer. What?!?! Nevermind.

Then I got ballsy and asked the ranger if the rest of us could get closer too. He said he was leaving and we could do whatever we wanted but that Jeanie was still on duty.  We took that to mean "Yes, you can get closer" so we did. We stayed together and walked slowly along the dune stopping every 50 feet to make sure the birds weren't spooked. Then, the guy in the white pickup truck (see photo above) came after us. He isn't a park ranger, he is a security guard for the construction company. We ignored him until he got out of the truck. I told the group that I would handle it (fully expecting to be arrested or something). The security guard said that we were in a restricted area. I immediately said that the ranger gave us permission to go along the dune to see the owls (again, expecting to be escorted off the beach in handcuffs). All he said was "Oh, OK". I asked if he wanted to see the owls through the scope. He was amazed. We were in like Flynn. 

Annie and another guy named Greg showed up met us in the restricted zone too. Then Jeanie showed up (gulp). She is a real park ranger biologist and knows what's what. I thought we were doomed but she was totally cool with us being there. I guess she saw how careful we were being and figured that it was OK for us to bend the rules a bit. She told us that she had a group of Intellectually Challenged kids on the beach to see the owl earlier and it was actually one of them who noticed the second bird.  Way to go! And then, the most amazing thing happened.  Jeanie put us all in her truck and drove us closer to the owls.  Check this out. The first photo is not cropped at all. The blur in the bottom left is the side mirror of the truck.  The owl just sat there and looked at us. They aren't afraid of trucks or cars which allows us to get pretty close. 

Snowy Owl - Sandy Hook NJ

This is the same photo cropped so you can see her markings.  Yes, it's a "her". You can tell that this is female because she has black spots. Males are almost completely white. The other bird also appeared to be a female.  I  wonder if they are sisters.

Snowy Owl

She finally decided to fly to another clump of dune grass. I have a few photos of her in flight but this one is the best because it shows her furry feet. Snowy Owls are one of the few (if only) raptors that have feathers all the way down to their feet which makes sense to keep them warm.

Snowy Owl in flight

Jeanie (who is now known as the best ranger ever) took us back to our starting point and headed out to do her real job. I vowed to send her these photos to post on the Sandy Hook website. We all just stood there in awe for a few minutes and then I just started yelling "I can't believe it, I can't believe it". I almost cried for joy.  2 Snowy Owls. I still can't believe it. 

Seeking White on Black Friday

It is now clear to me that I will never see a Snowy Owl. Until recently, I assumed that Snowy Owls were only found waaaaay up north in the Arctic and that it would be a reeeeaaallly long trip and we would neeevvveeer spend that kind of money to see an owl. Then came the Internet. Postings, reports and photos abound on the Internet about Snowy Owls in New Jersey, New York, and even Delaware. In the past, I would see the posting long after the Owl had left the area and be mad that I didn't check the web sooner. Last year, Connie and I read that there was one at Forsythe so we drove down to see it but didn't see anything. And this week, I tracked the Internet postings of a Snowy Owl at Liberty State Park. It was seen as recently as Wednesday. I figured that the omission of Thursday was due to Thanksgiving.

As of Thursday night, I couldn't decide whether to risk another let down or go chasing the bird. I didn't decide to actually go until 6:30 AM. Maybe that was too late. I got the Google directions, the "gear" and the dogs (yes, I still have Sammy) and headed up the NJ Turnpike to Liberty State Park. I arrived at 8:30 and found no other birders. No scopes of other birders pointed out at the wharf. Nothing but fisherman launching their boats in search of Striped Bass.

I did see the Statue of Liberty from the ferry dock. And, I did find a park ranger. I asked him if he knew anything about where the Snowy Owl was. "What?" "Snowy Owl, you know hoot-hoot." Yes, I said "hoot-hoot". He said that he hadn't heard any hooting. OK. I headed back to the boat launch. I barely parked the car when the ranger pulled up beside me. "There used to be a white owl. Is that what your looking for?" Let's see. . . Snowy Owl, white owl . . . He went on to tell me that he got real close to one - 3 years ago. Thanks for nothing. ( I think it was sweet that he tracked me down to help but the sarcasm sounds better in a blog)

I took the opportunity to explore the north Jersey area and decided to check out Sandy Hook. Another thing that I learned about on the Internet. I have been reading the Rare Bird Alerts for years and read alot about Sandy Hook. Now, thanks to eBird's rare sighting connection to birdcapemay.org, it's even easier to find birds in any state that are deemed "rare" either because they shouldn't be there at all, or not at this time of year. That's how I found the Snowy Owl this time. That's how I knew that it was at Liberty State Park near the boat launch. Lapland Longspurs were reported at Sandy Hook. That's why I decided to check it out today since I was already in north Jersey.

Sandy Hook must get mobbed in summer, but it was pretty empty today. I met another birder, Ken who helped me get the lay of the land out at the end of the hook. Ken grew up around Sandy Hook but lives in New Hampshire now. He was searching for an Orange Crowned Warbler in the brush. I took the dogs and headed for the beach. Ken told me that I had a good chance at Snow Buntings, Horned Larks and the Longspurs. I did see a pretty good swirling flock of little birds. They came pretty close and I could tell be the black and white wing patterns on some of the birds that they were definitely Snow Buntings. That was worth the drive. I also saw plenty of Yellow Rumped Warblers and Horned Larks. Seems like I can't get enough Horned Larks this year.

I stopped at another beach parking lot on the way out and got good looks at Surf Scoters close to shore in the rough surf. One adult male with his big white and orange schnoz and white patch behind the head, and about 8 immature male and females. It was too windy for the camera, so no photos today.

It was alot of driving, but I got gas for $1.69/gallon. I cannot remember the last time that happened.

Oh, did I mention that I ended up down the Parkway at Forsythe again? Third time.