The Wildlife At Brick Reservoir in Brick, NJ

My wife, Veronica, and my son, Tom, and I moved to Brick, New Jersey in 1986. The area behind our back yard was a sand pit. Not long after we moved in, we went to a town meeting about a company that wanted to mine the sand pit. There were many opponents to the operation and most opposed it because of the companies past record. They would work the area for a period of time and then go bankrupt. We were led to believe that this could not and would not happen. How surprised are you to know that it happened again. We were not!

The area didn’t change much for a number of years. Children (including my son, Tom) used the sand pit for recreational purposes. I won’t go into what my son, Tom, did in the sand pits but suffice it to say that a lot of my tools disappeared as did extension cords and lights. When I walked our dog in the pits, I did see a skate boarding half pipe.

Over the years, there was a lot of talk about what the pits would become. One of the most frightening scenarios was a landfill. I am not against landfills but I sure don’t want one in my backyard. Fortunately, that did not happen. What happened was a beautiful one billion gallon reservoir. The Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority (BTMUA) bought the 120-acre site in April of 1996. The reservoir was filled by Memorial Day of 2004 and has become one of the most popular places in the area for people to walk with their friends, families and dogs. I believe that it has become more popular than anyone ever anticipated. My family and I are fortunate to have the reservoir in our back yard and we have spent many hours walking around its 1.6 mile length and observing the variety of wildlife that has taken up residence there. Today, I want to show you a sampling of some the neat things that I have seen.

This panoramic photo was taken from the fishing pier on the southwest side of the reservoir. It happens to be right behind my house.

One of the first residents that I remember quite clearly was “Gus”. Gus is an eastern red-bellied turtle. He received his name from the guys that work at the reservoir. He has been here for a few years now and you can see him during the summer when he pulls himself up onto the rocks along the water’s edge to sun himself. If you look at the underside of his shell, it is easy to see how he got his name.

The bird life around the reservoir is very abundant. There are the usual birds like robins, bluejays, finches, wrens, blackbirds, mallard ducks and Canada geese. In May, the mallard ducks should be having their ducklings. The amount that I see varies from year to year and the reservoir has its share of predators that preens the ducking population. But when they are there, they are a joy to behold.

   

I found this mallard mom sitting on her nest of eggs towards the end of July.

 Here is an interesting fact about mallard ducts. The females quack and the males do not. They communicate with whislting and grunting sounds (sounds like a male, doesn’t it). Mallards start to nest in March but it is not unusual to see ducklings as late as July.

 

During the winter months, we are treated with other bird species. Some are seen on a regular bases and others are occasional visitors. There are some species that I would love to photograph but I don’t seem to be there at the right time or they are very shy of humans. A few of these are the mergansers and the bufflehead ducks. I was able to get close enough to some canvasback ducks to get some good photos.

One morning while Veronica and I were heading towards the reservoir from our house, we found an unusual visitor sitting on the reservoir’s fence. I am not sure why I had a camera with me that day but it was lucky for me.

 

 

A turkey vulture also known as a turkey buzzard was sitting on the fence right above a “No Trespassing” sign. I only had the opportunity to take about fourteen photos before the bird flew away. We found out later why he was there. An opossum had been killed by a car and discarded in the brush on the outside of the fence. The turkey vulture was probably pretty annoyed at us for spoiling his snack.

Turkey vultures are pretty common in our area. You can see them soaring on the thermals on most days. It is unusual to see them on the ground near the reservoir but I was glad that I was ready when this one decided to sit on the fence. When you do get close to one of these, you realize how big they are. When this guy took off, he flew right in front of us and we were amazed by its size.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think that the neatest species that we have seen at the reservoir is the American bald eagle. I am not going to post a photo here of one because I have already written in my blog about the eagles. If you want to read about them, click here.

 

 

 

The double-crested cormorant is a common visitor to the reservoir. My wife and I call them the “Mr. Smug” birds. They always have this smug look on their faces while they are swimming along. It is neat to watch them dive down and hunt for fish. Quite often, you will see them surface with a fish in their bills.

The fish and turtles that are found in the reservoir come from the Metedeconk River where the reservoir gets its water. They are unwilling visitors that get caught in the flow of the water and find themselves in a new environment.

 These birds reach a length of 27″ and a windspan of 50″. You will often see them on the shoreline or in a tree with their winds spread out. That is because they don’t have very well developed oil glands and they are not waterproofed well. For a bird that spends so much time below the water, that fact seems unbelievable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have seen great egrets at Barnegat Inlet and in the marshlands around Tuckerton and along Great Bay Boulevard but they are occasional visitors to the reservoir. I think that they are beautiful birds as are the Great Blue Herons which I have seen but not photographed (yet) at the reservoir.

The great egret is very stately looking and Veronica and I love to watch them fish. They can stay motionless for long periods of time and then in the blink of an eye, they grab their meal. It is truly an amazing sight.

 Great egrets are often mistaken for snowy egrets. Bird afficianados know  that the great egret is much larger than the snowy egret. It has a wingspan up to 50″ and its legs and feet are all black where the snowy egret has yellow feet.

In the early 20th century, the feathers of the great egret were sought after for ladies hats and they were almost hunted to extinction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our backyard is always filled with lots of birds. We have a number of feeders that attracts bluejays, mourning doves, gold finches, blackbirds, finches, wrens, robins, cardinals and many other species. There are other birds that don’t miss the opportunities that present themselves with lots of birds around. They are the raptors. We have had hawks “nail” smaller birds against the windows of our house. We don’t always see it happen but you will see the spread out wing prints on the window. One of these raptors is the sharp-shinned hawk.

 The sharp-shinned hawk is a small hawk with a wingspan of about 23″. Adult sharp-shinned hawks feed their young in mid-air. They hover briefly and kick their prey to their youngster as it gets close.

They can be seen in great numbers when they migrate. Over 11,000 of them were seen in one day in Cape May, New Jersey.

 

 

 

 

I made an 11” x 17” print that shows most of the species that I have talked about here and others and I have included the panorama of the brick reservoir. The image below is a scaled down version of that print.

If you live locally, make sure that you come and visit. There are so many great things about the reservoir. It is an extremely safe place to walk or run. Mothers can fell safe bringing their children. Women can feel safe walking alone. You will meet a lot of friendly people and some of the greatest dogs that you can imagine. It in not usual to learn a dog’s name long before you ever learn the owner’s name. The reservoir has been voted the “Best Place to Walk” in Ocean County, New Jersey for the last two years. They are currently plans to increase parking at the reservoir because it can be hard to find a parking spot on a beautiful day. Don’t forget that there are parking lots at the northern and southern ends of the reservoir.

Over time, I have seen many wedding pictures being taken at the reservoir. Tomorrow, on Easter morning, St. Paul’s United Methodist Church is going to hold a sunrise service at the reservoir at 6″:30 am. The reservoir people have allowed them to set up at 6:00 (before opening time at 6:30). It will be held at the fishing pier on the southwest side right behind my house. What a wonderful way to celebrate Easter.

The reservoir is open Tuesday through Sunday from 6:30 am to 9:00 pm from April 1st through December 15th. From December 15th though the end of March, they are open from 6:30 am to 6:00 pm. You can get more information about the reservoir at their website.

I am sure that you can tell by reading this how proud Veronica and I are of the reservoir. I hope to see you all there soon.

© 2009, Herb Segars. All rights reserved.