A morning appointment kept me from my usual swing through the Pole Farm, but I was able to get out to John A. Roebling Park and Trenton marsh this afternoon. I was rewarded with the usual assortment of ducks and geese.
I was disappointed by not spotting any Northern shovelers, but I did see a fair number of Northern pintails floating among the mallards. One of the former is shown swimming with the latter in the photo topping this post.
Roebling Park encompasses the marsh and Spring Lake, which at mid-afternoon had fewer waterbirds than I usually see in these cold months. I finally got a glimpse at some ring-necked ducks swimming with mallards at the back end of the lake while I was stalking a belted kingfisher flitting across the marsh.
I didn’t capture the kingfisher on camera, but I was fortunate to spot a blob in a nearby tree that turned out to be a red-tailed hawk, my first sighting of the year.
Light snow is falling as I write just ahead of sunset, and with luck I may have a fluffy white background against which to shoot some birds tomorrow. 🦅
The Jersey Birder 
Hi Dan,
With how cold it’s been lately, do you think it’s worth braving the chill to check out John A. Roebling Park and Trenton Marsh? I’ve never been.
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Yes, by all means give it a go. There’s an Eurasian wigeon out there somewhere, and I hope it sticks around until the weekend when I’ll likely go.
Even with the cold, most of the trails there are wooded, providing a wind break.
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I think I saw the Eurasian Wigeon but the photograph is blurry.
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