Birdwatching can be a thrilling pursuit, but it’s usually done at a distance. Until recently, scopes and binoculars were the only way for most people to see birds up close in real time in their natural environment. But advances in digital imaging and wireless technology have led to an explosion of “nest cams” around the country – small, unobtrusive cameras broadcasting video to the web, allowing us to follow the family life of a pair of birds from nest building up through the first flights of chicks.  Successful nest cams usually feature birds of prey, like eagles and osprey. These species’ …

A playful, social animal, the river otter is not an uncommon sight along the Jersey Shore, especially in winter. What they are: Otters are mustelids, belonging to a group of mammals that includes weasels, mink and badgers. They’re specially adapted for life in and near lakes, rivers and estuaries, with long, streamlined bodies, a thick, insulated coat of fur and webbed feet on short legs. The species we see locally, the North American river otter, is light brown to black and can be between 2 and 3.5 feet long, weighing in between 10 and 30 pounds. A long, tapered tail makes up a third of an …

Among the most widespread and recognizable birds in the U.S., the red-winged blackbird is a bold singer whose increased activity carries a promise of warmer weather. What it is: Red-winged blackbirds have a classic leggy songbird shape, and are a little smaller and slimmer than a robin. Males are a solid glossy black with flashy red and yellow epaulets on the shoulders of their wings, which they often puff up when showing off for females and rivals. Adult females look completely different. Dull brown with brown and pale streaks on their heads, they resemble overgrown sparrows. Blackbirds are …

Bird watching can be fascinating and fun, but to get a lot out of it, you need more than a pair of binoculars. But with so many guides competing for your attention, it can be tough to know which books are best. Here are one avid birder's top picks for amateur ornithologists in New Jersey. Every birder has a go-to field guide, a dog-eared, note-filled book trusted above all others. For me, and for many other birders I know, it’s the Sibley Guide to Birds. My more compact Sibley Guide to Birds of Eastern North America has traveled with me on a boat trip 60 miles off the New Jersey coast, been …

Since it kicked off a year ago, this weekly nature column has featured more than a few writeups on sea ducks. And with good reason: Here in New Jersey, we're in a prime spot for otherwise hard-to-spot ocean-going birds to overwinter, and several spots along our shores are internationally known in the birdwatching world as some of the best sites to see certain species. After finishing last week's writeup of the lovely long-tailed duck, I realized we've covered quite a few of these birds that are united by their winter habits and habitat, and I thought a recap was in order.  The common loon is …

Much of coastal and southern New Jersey is truly the land of the pines, but not every conifer in the backyard is a native evergreen. Among our pitch pines and Atlantic white cedars are some common foreigners, and though they’re introduced species, they have lovely characteristics and fascinating histories of their own. What they are: Despite being a West Coast native, Douglas fir is easy to find in all corners of the U.S. because of its popularity as a Christmas tree. Tree farms in New Jersey and elsewhere sprout the stately evergreen by the dozen, and some of those, selected to be live …

If you follow meteorology news closely, you might have noticed the headlines this week about La Niña, the Pacific Ocean cooling phenomenon that can have a major impact on weather around the globe.  The system was probably to blame for the disastrous winter storms we saw in Jersey this time last year, and it's back: experts say La Niña has restrengthened and will likely stick around through the spring. What it is: Like its more well-known brother El Niño, La Niña is an oceanic current phenomenon that occurs in the equatorial Pacific. While El Niño is characterized by warming sea surface …

Winter brings some of the year's best beachcombing to the Jersey Shore, and rougher seas kick up treasures onto the beach. One highly sought-after "shell," the sand dollar is actually the skeleton of a fascinating bottom-dwelling animal related to the sea urchin.   What it is: Sand dollars are tidal and ocean-dwelling invertebrates in the same relatively primitive animal phylum, Echinodermata, as starfish and sea urchins. Different species are found in seas all over the world, but individuals in the family of creatures share a number of characteristics. Like a lot of other echinoderms, sand …

As colder weather arrives at the Jersey Shore, so do a number of migratory birds abandoning the deep freeze of the arctic in favor of our relatively mild coastline. One such species is the ruddy turnstone, a cheerful-looking little bird often seen along rocky jetties. What it is: The ruddy turnstone is a small, slightly stocky shorebird, about 6 to 8 inches long. In the winter, when we usually see it, its wings and head have a reddish-brown “tortoiseshell” appearance, and its underside is bright white. In summer, males sport striking black markings on their heads and breasts. But the birds …

This week, we're re-running this column about the pelagic species found in our waters because the best time of year to see them is once again approaching. Follow the links below to find out how you can get out to see and catch a glimpse of some of these hard-to-find species. When it comes to winter birding, the Jersey Shore is almost unbeatable. But there are some species that even dedicated birdwatchers will almost never get to see unless they give up landlubber status and take to the sea.  What it is: Pelagic trips take birders beyond the shoreline to get up close and personal with birds of…

If you headed to the beach this weekend in Ocean County, you were likely greeted with the sight of crowds of fishermen and what looked like fleets of fishing boats out beyond the breakers. Their quarry: the much-sought striped bass. But how much do you really know about the big, beautiful fish they're after?   What it is: Striped bass belong to the Moronidae family of fishes, a collection of similar fresh and saltwater species. Individuals have darker upper bodies and light, silvery sides with about half a dozen dark, lateral lines that give the species its common name. Stripers can live as …

As Thanksgiving approaches, turkey may be on your mind. The Butterball on your table might seem like a far cry from the wild birds we sometimes spot stalking through the pines, but they actually belong to the same species – one with some interesting characteristics and a long history with humans. What it is: The wild turkeys that roam our forests and farmlands belong to one of several subspecies found all over the U.S. Our eastern wild turkeys are big birds – males can grow to 4 feet and may weigh more than 20 pounds. The females, or hens, are smaller and slimmer, with relatively dull brown …

As the Jersey shore's winter bird residents return to our waterways for the season, you'll start seeing a lot more of one distinctive-looking avian: the double-crested cormorant. What it is: The double-crested cormorant is a large black diving seabird with a long neck and a slightly hooked beak. The beak and lores – the area around the bird's eyes – are yellow to orange. It can grow to about 35 inches long, with a wingspan of up to 4 feet.  Cormorants are unusual among water birds in that their wings aren’t fully waterproof. Ornithologists used to think this was because they didn’t produce …

With summer crowds gone, now is a great time to explore hundreds of miles of unusual, beautiful Pinelands waterways.   What it is: New Jersey’s Pine Barrens are crossed with numerous streams and small rivers that twist their way through the woods on their way to estuaries and, ultimately, the ocean. Most of the water in these streams is supplied by the vast Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer, a massive groundwater supply that lies very close to the surface in some parts of the Pine Barrens. Water from the aquifer – a precious resource in and of itself – seeps up through the ground into streams in four…

The red-breasted merganser is arriving for the winter breeding season here on the shore. Catching a glimpse of this relatively common but remarkable bird isn’t hard.   What it is: A few merganser species call New Jersey home at different times during the year, but in our coastal waters, the most common of the group of fish-eating ducks is the red-breasted. Red-breasted mergansers are large sea ducks, growing to a good 24 inches long. They’re easily recognizable by their spiky crest, sported by both males and females. When it’s standing straight up, it looks remarkably like a punk rocker’s …

This week's nature column highlights a species that’s locally celebrated, delicious, and making a comeback. Today’s Beach Plum Festival, held by the Friends of Island Beach State Park at the swimming beach gazebo, means we’re taking a look at the small dune-grower known as prunus maritima. What they are: Beach plums are unlike the plums you’d find in the produce aisle during summer. Instead, beach plums are small in comparison: bigger than a blueberry but smaller than a cherry. And while many plums fall from trees, beach plums are often plucked from shorter shrubs growing among the sand dunes…

If you've noticed an unusually large number of dragonflies flitting around the Shore this summer, you're not alone. They and their cousins, the damselflies, have had a good year.   What they are: Dragonflies and damselflies make up the order of insects called Odonata, and the two groups of species share a lot of characteristics. Their basic body structure is similar, with two sets of transparent wings, an elongated abdomen, and strong grasping forelegs. They’re often brightly colored in brilliant, even neon-like hues. Both lay their eggs in and live part of their juvenile lives in water, and …

As summer comes to a close, the most interesting part of a monarch butterfly's life is beginning.   What they are: By any measure, monarchs are extraordinary insects. The strikingly beautiful adult is, perhaps, the world’s most well recognized butterfly. But it’s just as interesting to look at in its other phases of life. As a larva – the caterpillar stage – are bright yellow and black. The chrysalis it wraps itself in during its pupa phase is a brilliant green flecked with shining gold. The captivating adult butterfly may look lovely to us, but those bright orange and black markings are a …

Knowing how to identify some key plant species can make a hike or a walk that much more interesting. Next time you're out and about in the pinelands, keep an eye out for the Blackjack Oak, a common sight in our local forests.    What it is: The Blackjack Oak, Quercus marilandica, is a scrubby deciduous tree that thrives in sandy, acid, well-drained, nutrient-poor soils – so even though it’s not a pine, it’s a perfect example of a Pine Barrens species. Our pinelands are inhospitable places for plants to grow precisely because of the above reasons, but Blackjack Oaks are abundant here. The oak …

Coastal dunes owe their existence to a small portfolio of plant species adapted to one of our area’s most extreme habitats. Wave action and wind will push sand ashore, but it’s the presence of these tough and hardy plant species that allow it to pile up and stay put. What it is: Dune plants are a hardy bunch.  If you’re asked to think of a dune, you’ll probably call to mind the grass-covered mounds you have to climb over – or hopefully through, on a designated path – to get to the ocean at your favorite beach. This “beach ridge” is called the foredune, and it's a tough place to live if you're…