Colts Neck Natural Resources Inventory Chapter 14 cont'd

14. PLANTS AND WILDLIFE

Section 2 - Wildlife

Birds

The Township is a virtual paradise for the bird watcher. A generally mild climate, adequate feeding grounds with ponds, streams and the Swimming River Reservoir have all encouraged both land and aquatic birds to live here permanently or at least to winter here. Some species visit only in the spring and/or fall on their way to and from nesting grounds, and they are called transients. The list below is the list for Monmouth County (i.e., it is not specific for Colts Neck Township. The key to the letters after each species may be interpreted as follows:

A for abundant (everyday birds)

C for common (may be tallied in habitat in all seasons)

U for uncommon (infrequent but not rare)

O for occasional (near rare)

R for rare

These letters indicate the season of normal occurrence:

Y for year round

S for summer

W for winter

T for transient

The season list is intended only as a general indication and is subject to variation and exceptions in small numbers. The list is based on a list by William F. Sanford, in The Outdoor World, published by Monmouth County.

Local Species:

American Bittern	UY	Great Horned Owl	CY
Redwing Blackbird	AY	Screech Owl	CY
Rusty Blackbird	CW	Saw-whet Owl	UW
Eastern Bluebird	US	Snowy Whet Owl	OW
Bobolink	UT	Wood Pewee	CS
Bobwhite	CY	Phoebe	CS
Indigo Bunting	CS	Ringed-necked Pheasant	CY
Catbird	AS	Semi-palmated Plover	CT
Cardinal	AY	Common Redpoll	OW
Yellow-breasted Chat	US	Redstart	CS
Black-capped Chicadee	UW	Robin	AY
Carolina Chicadee	AY	Sanderling	AW
American Coot	AW	Least Sandpiper	CT
Brown-headed Cowbird	AY	Pectoral Sandpiper	CT
Double-crested Cormorant	CW	Semi-palmated Sandpiper	AT
Great Cormorant	CW	Solitary Sandpiper	CT
Brown Creeper	CW	Spotted Sandpiper	CS
Red Crossbill	OW	Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	CT
Common Crow	AY	White-winged Scoter	CW
Fish Crow	CS	Loggerhead Shrike	OW
Black-billed Cuckoo	CS	Pine Siskin	UW
Yellow-billed Cuckoo	CS	Common Snipe	CT
Mourning Dove	AY	Chipping Snipe	AS
Short-billed Dowitcher	CT	Clay-colored Sparrow	OT
Black Duck	AY	Field Sparrow	CY
Bufflehead Duck	CW	House Sparrow	AY
Canvasback Duck	AW	Fox Sparrow	CW
Gadwall Duck	CW	Grasshopper Sparrow	CS
Common Goldeneye Duck	CW	Henslow's Sparrow	US
Harlequin Duck	OW	Lark Sparrow	OW
Mallard Duck	AY	Savannah Sparrow	CW
Common Merganser	CW	Seaside Sparrow	CS
Hooded Merganser	UW	Sharptailed Sparrow	CS
Red-breasted Merganser	CW	Song Sparrow	AY
Oldsquaw Duck	CW	Swamp Sparrow	CY
Pintail Duck	CW	Vesper Sparrow	US
Redhead Duck	UW	White-throated Sparrow	AW
Ring-necked Duck	CW	Starling	AY
RuTDy Duck	CW	Mute Swan	CS
Greater Scaup Duck	AW	Bank Swallow	US
Lesser Scaup Duck	AW	Barn Swallow	AS
Wood Duck	CS	Rough-winged Swallow	CS
Cattle Egret	UT	Tree Swallow	AS
Common Egret	CS	Chimney Swift	AS
Snowy Egret	CS	Scarlet Tanager	CS
Yellow-shafted Flicker	CY	Blue-winged Teal	CS
House Finch	CY	Green-winged Teal	CW
Purple Finch	CW	Black Tern	CT
Crested Flycatcher	CS	Common Tern	AS
Least Flycatcher	CS	Forster's Tern	CY
Common Gallinule	CT	Least Tern	CS
American Goldfinch	AY	Royal Tern	CT
Blue Goose	UW	Brown Thrasher	CS
Brant Goose	CW	Gray-cheeked Thrush	CS
Canvasback Goose	AW	Hermit Thrush	CT
Canada Goose	CW	Swainson's Thrush	CT
Snow Goose	UW	Wood Thrush	CS
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	CS	Tufted Titmouse	CY
Boat-tailed Grackle	RT	Rufous-sided Towhee	AS
Common Grackle	AY	Veery	CT
Horned Grebe	CW	Red-eyed Vireo	AS
Pied-billed Grebe	CW	Solitary Vireo	CT
Red-necked Grebe	UW	White-eyed Vireo	CS
Red-throated Grebe	CW	Yellow-throated Vireo	CS
Evening Grosbeak	CW	Turkey Vulture	CS
Rose-breasted Grosbeak	CT	Louisiana Waterthrush	CT
Ruffed Grouse	UY	Northern Waterthrush	CT
Bonaparte's Gull	AW	Bay-breasted Warbler	CT
Great Black-backed Gull	AY	Blackburnian Warbler	CT
Lesser Black-backed Gull	RT	Blackpoll Warbler	CT
Herring Gull	AY	Black-throated Green Warbler	CT
Laughing Gull	AS	Black and White Blue Winged Warbler	CS
Ring-billed Gull	CW	Canada Warbler	CT
Broad-winged Hawk	CS	Cape May Warbler	CT
Cooper's Hawk	UY	Cerulean Warbler	OT
Marsh Hawk	CY	Chestnut-sided Warbler	CT
Nighthawk Hawk	US	Hooded Warbler	US
Red-tailed Hawk	CY	Magnolia Warbler	CT
Sharp-shinned Hawk	UY	Myrtle Warbler	AW
Black Crown Night Heron	CY	Nashville Warbler	CT
Great Blue Heron	CY	Palm Warbler	CT
Green Heron	CS	Parula Warbler	CT
Little Blue Heron	CT	Pine Warbler	CS
Louisiana Heron	OT	Prairie Warbler	CS
Ruby-throated Hummingbird	CS	Prothonotary Warbler	UT
Blue Jay	AY	Tennessee Warbler	CT
Oregon Junco	OW	Wilson's Warbler	CT
Slate-colored Junco	AW	Yellow Warbler	CS
Killdeer	CY	Yellow-throated Warbler	RT
Eastern Kingbird	CS	Cedar Waxwing	CY
Belted Kingfisher	CY	Whip-poor-will	CS
Golden-crowned Kinglet	AW	American Woodcock	CS
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	CT	Downy Woodpecker	CY
Horned Lark	CY	Hairy Woodpecker	CY
Lapland Longspur	OW	Carolina Wren	CY
Common Loon	CW	House Wren	CS
Red-throated Loon	CW	Long-billed Marsh Wren	CS
Purple Martin	CS	Greater Yellowlegs	AT
Eastern Meadowlark	CY	Orchard Oriole	OS
Mockingbird	CY	Osprey	CS
White-breasted Nuthatch	CY	Ovenbird	CS
Baltimore Oriole	CS	Barn Owl	UY

Mammals, Reptiles and Amphibians

Small animals of many types abound in the Township. An occasional deer is seen in the wooded areas and at streams and ponds, but the smaller animals may be found in backyards and nearby fields almost anywhere in the Township. One formerly endangered species, the beaver, has returned to the area. While a wide variety of snakes exist in the Township, no poisonous varieties have been seen in many years. However, the timber rattlesnake does exist elsewhere in Monmouth County. The Monmouth County list below has been provided by K.T. Kellars, Monmouth County Park System:

Mammals

Big Brown Bat	White-footed Mouse
Eastern Pipistrel	Muskrat
Hoary Bat	Opossum
Keen's Myotis	Raccoon
Little Brown Bat	Eastern Cottontail Rabbit
Red Bat	New England Cottontail Rabbit
Small-footed Bat	Norway Rat
Silverhaired Bat	Least Shrew
Beaver	Short-tail Shrew
Eastern Chipmunk	Smokey Shrew
Virginia Whitetailed Deer	Striped Skunk
Gray Fox	Eastern Gray Squirrel
Red Fox	Red Squirrel
European Hare	Southern Flying Squirrel
Southern Bog Lemming	Boreal Redback Vole
Eastern Mole	Meadow Vole
Starnose Mole	Pine Vole
House Mouse	Longtail Weasel
Meadow Jumping Mouse	Woodchuck

Reptiles

Lizards

Northern Fence

Five-lined Skink

Turtles

Bog Turtle	Musk Turtle
Diamond-backed Terrapin	Common Snapping Turtle
Eastern Box Turtle	Spotted Turtle
Eastern Mud Turtle	Red-earred Turtle
Eastern Painted Turtle	Wood Turtle

Snakes

Black Rat	Northern Black Racer
Corn	Northern Brown
Eastern Garter	Northern Pine
Eastern Hognose	Northern Ringneck
Eastern King	Northern Water
Eastern Milk	Red-bellied
Eastern Ribbon	Rough Green
Eastern Smooth Earth	Scarlet
Eastern Worm

Amphibians

Toads

Eastern Spadefoot

Fowlers

Tree Frogs

Gray Frog	Pine Barrens Tree Frog
New Jersey Chorus Frog	Spring Peeper Frog

True Frogs

Bull Frog	Northern Leopard Frog
Carpenter Frog	Pickerel Frog
Cricket Frog	Wood Frog
Green Frog

15. CONCLUSIONS

This Natural Resources Inventory does not indicate any significant near term problems for Colts Neck Township. It does, however, reveal some potential future problems which can be affected by actions at all levels of government. Among the actual and potential long term problems are: 1. the withdrawal of water from the Township's principal aquifers at rates that exceed the natural recharge rates, 2. the pollution of aquifers by pollution in the recharge areas, 3. air pollution due to high level emissions within New Jersey and neighboring states, 4. septic tank failures due to development density in excess of the absorptive capacity of the soil, and 5. soil erosion and siltation due to improper construction or farming practices.

Colts Neck Township's zoning ordinance and Planning Board requirements, together with State and Federal environmental laws and regulations, if properly enforced, ought to minimize the potential threats to the high quality of Colts Neck Township's environment.

Go back to beginning of Natural Resource Inventory
Return to Colts Neck Home Page