BirdCapeMay.org

[Karl Lukens tracked down the Black-headed Gull in Villas yesterday, click to enlarge. Black-headed's supposed to average 2.5 inches greater in total length than Bonaparte's, clearly this one is a small one. The paler mantle shows well here.]

A report just came in of 5-10 Tree Swallows at Supawna Meadows NWR up in Salem County.

A lunchtime walk at Beaver Swamp yielded a female Common Goldeneye. Here's a revealing gem from Stone (1937): "Raymond Otter considers that the Whistler (Goldeneye) along with the Shelldrake (Red-breasted Merganser) are the most common of the diving ducks today." The "Whistler" is not nearly so common today.

The Bald Eagle nest at Beaver Swamp failed during the storms, but the nest itself is still there and was occupied by an eagle sitting low in it - but not an adult! The bird was positioned with only head visible, just like it was incubating, which it clearly was not, and another young eagle sat on a hummock in front of the nest.

I've been remiss in reporting non-bird critters of interest. New Jersey Chorus Frogs have been calling for several days now, e.g. at the David Douglas Park near the Ferry Terminal and Villas WMA. Their voice sounds like someone running a thumb across a comb, slowly when it's cold, faster when it's warm. Spring Peepers have been calling on Turkey Point Road. Red Bats have been out, e.g. I saw 10+ while driving from Dennisville north to Mauricetown last night. Dave Lord noted the Turkey Point butterfly on Sunday was an anglewing, probably a Eastern Comma.

[This Great Egret enjoyed soaking up the sun as much as I did this morning. It has been favoring the little pond on the left hand side of Kimble's Beach Road since it appeared there February 24.]

Ospreys have been on the Maurice River for 4 days or more, apparently, and Karen Johnson had one on Tarkiln Lake in Belleplain yesterday.

Two dozen Forster's Terns and 2 Laughing Gulls were reported at Miami Beach in the Villas this morning.

Dave Lord's report from Sunday's Turkey Point walk is now up on Field Trip Reports, and includes an immature Golden Eagle there, a different bird than the adult that has been seen by the lucky on and off this winter.

This just in: Scott Whittle and Sam Galick just now had a Laughing Gull from the Cape May-Lewes Ferry headed towards Villas. They claim to have been in NJ waters, and so can also claim the coveted LAGU award, though which of them gets it remains to be determined. . .

Looks like Forster's Terns beat Laughing Gull back to Cape May this year, with a dozen resting on the flats off Villas this morning near a marvelous flock of 170 (actual count) Bonaparte's Gulls, which chattered and fed actively in a pool left by the tide. The Black-headed Gull was nearby, fraternizing with Ring-billed Gulls a quarter mile south of the rest. I was viewing from the end of Hudson in the Villas, but the composition of birds there changed continuously as the gulls and terns arrived and departed, so the only way to properly work this area is to, well, work it, from the ferry northward as far as time allows you. Two American Oystercatchers, 100's of Dunlin, and dozens of Sanderlings and Black-bellied Plovers fed on the flats as well.

A few Forster's Terns occasionally winter around Cape May, but not this year that I am aware of. I have to believe someone will get the LAGU award today - it's another nice day, with an obvious movement of Canada Geese northward along the bayshore and Northern Cardinals singing everywhere.

[The grass at the ferry terminal is littered by feathers from gulls in pre-alternate molt. Gulls often roost here during the day, especially at high tide. Click to enlarge photos.]

Had the Black-headed Gull twice on Saturday, once at 7:00 a.m. on the bay opposite Elwood Ave., about a mile north of the ferry, and again at 11:30 a.m. on the Gull Workshop, feeding with Bonaparte's Gulls behind the churning props of a ferry about to leave. When the ferry left, the gulls left too, heading south towards the concrete ship.

Tom Reed reported the immature male King Eider at Poverty Beach on Saturday afternoon, "relatively close." We had an adult male Common Eider off St. Mary's on Saturdays while looking at gulls, after this eider-rich winter one forgets what a nice sighting that is.

Results from Saturday's Cape May Point walk and Woodcock Dance are up on Field Trip Reports. The former included the two male Eurasian Wigeon and drake Redhead on Lighthouse Pond.

I hear from Dave Lord that Turkey Point was pretty special on Sunday morning, including a dark Rough-legged Hawk and, carrying just as much allure, the season's first butterfly (he didn't say which). I found myself thinking yesterday that I'm tired of looking at ducks and gulls, ducks and gulls, ducks and gulls. . .likely by June I'll be longing for them.

Karl Lukens et. al. finished the CMBO Winter Evenings at the Meadows walk last night with a number of American Woodcock peenting and displaying, right from the meadows/TNC Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge parking lot. The full list is up on Field Trip Reports.

Hotline: Cape May Birding Hotline
To Report: call (609) 884-2736, or email sightings@birdcapemay.org
Coverage: Cape May, Cumberland and Atlantic Counties , NJ
Compiler: David Lord, Cape May Bird Observatory with additions by Don Freiday
URL: http://www.njaudubon.org ; http://www.birdcapemay.org

This is the Cape May Birding Hotline, a service of New Jersey Audubon's Cape May Bird Observatory. This week's message was prepared on Thursday, March 4, 2010. Highlights this week include sightings of NORTHERN SHRIKE, RAZORBILL, BLACK-HEADED GULL, KING EIDER, HARLEQUIN DUCK, COMMON EIDERS, SANDHILL CRANES, EURASIAN WIGEON, REDHEAD, ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK, SHORT-EARED OWL, and apparent arrivals of AMERICAN BITTERN, BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON and an announcement about the CMBO annual Optics Sale March 13-14, 2010.

A NORTHERN SHRIKE was seen at the Natural Lands Trust's Peek Preserve in Millville, Cumberland County on Wednesday, March 03, 2010.

A RAZORBILL was seen at the Coast Guard Jetty on Thursday, February 25, 2010. The immature male KING EIDER was seen at the same location on Saturday, February 27, 2010. The Coast Guard Jetty is viewable only by looking north from Poverty Beach, and this bird may be at a great distance.

One of the BLACK-HEADED GULLS was found at the end of Miami Avenue in the Villas on the morning of Wednesday, March 03, 2010. Look for these birds from Cape May Point north along the bay at places like Sunset Beach, the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal, the mouth of Cox Hall Creek, and the end of Miami Ave. in the Villas.

Groups of up to 4 HARLEQUIN DUCKS and 60 or so COMMON EIDERS have been noted in Townsend's Inlet seen from Avalon, reported last on Sunday, February 28th, 2010. Viewing of these birds is best from the end of 3rd Avenue or the 8th Street Jetty.

The two Cape Island wintering SANDHILL CRANES were seen Sunday, February 28, 2010 in the field between St. Mary's Cemetery and The Assembly of God Church along Seashore Rd./Broadway.

Two drake EURASIAN WIGEONS were seen at Lighthouse Pond on Saturday, February, 27, 2010. The drake REDHEAD was reported there Wednesday March 3 2010.

A dark morph ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK was observed at Husted's Landing Road, Cumberland County on Monday, March 1st, 2010.

Three SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen on the morning of Sunday, February 28th, 2010, at the end of Turkey Point Road in Cumberland County.

An AMERICAN BITTERN was seen flying over the Marsh on the west side of Avalon on Sunday February, 28th 2010.

An adult BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON was seen along Ocean Drive on Sunday, February 28th, 2010.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

CMBO's Fifteenth Annual Optics Sale will be Saturday and Sunday, March 13 and 14 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the CMBO Center for Research and Education in Goshen. A large selection of closeout, demo, factory-refurbished, new and used optics will be priced to move. Binoculars and spotting scopes from all major brands will be available. There are no advance or phone orders: first come, first served. You must be a member of NJAS or CMBO to take advantage of these great deals, so join today if you’re not already a member.

CMBO is offering a special to new and upgraded membership renewals. Join CMBO for the first time or upgrade from Individual or Family to The Hundred and receive Charley Harper's Migration Mainline- Cape May lithograph poster, valued at $50. Call either CMBO center to ask an associate about joining today!

******CMBO Bookstore WINTER HOURS are as follows: Northwood Center on East Lake Drive in Cape May Point is open Wednesday through Monday, 9:30am to 4:30pm; closed Tuesdays. The Center for Research and Education on Rt. 47 in Goshen is open Tuesday through Saturday, 9:30am to 4:30pm (but open Sunday March 14 for the Optics Sale); closed Mondays and Tuesdays. ******

The Cape May Birding Hotline is a service of the New Jersey Audubon's Cape May Bird Observatory and details sightings from Cape May, Cumberland and Atlantic Counties. Updates are made weekly. Please report sightings of rare or unusual birds to CMBO at 609-884-2736. Sponsorship for this hotline comes from the support of CMBO members and business members, and should you not be a member, we cordially invite you to join. Individual membership is $39 per year; $49 for families. You can call either center to become a member or visit. Become a member in person and you'll receive a FREE gift (in addition to member discounts in the stores).
Good Luck and Good Birding!

There's a real buzz in the air at the moment; the sun keeps threatening to remember what its daytime duties are and a whole host of birds are toning their vocal chords - Northern Cardinals, Mourning Doves, Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, Northern Mockingbirds - they're all helping to chase away the winter blues.

And the birds of prey are adding to the feeling of spring too. A chunky female Cooper's Hawk was in full display flight right over my house this morning (much to the dismay of the local sparrows!) and - most exciting of all - reports of pairs of Bald Eagles continue to come in. I've added here a picture sent to me this week by Debbie Hudson, who was lucky enough to watch this Bald Eagle bathing in flood water on the Cape May Airport, just off Breakwater Road. Not a bad start to any day and a treat that more and more of us are able to share these days - though the pair that's nesting just one mile from my house has so far failed to appear on my yard list!!

[This Black-headed Gull was at the end of Miami Avenue in the Villas this morning. Note the extensive black visible under the far wing, the easiest way to separate Black-headed from Bonaparte's at a distance. Click to enlarge.]

Karen Johnson reports that her husband Brian had a shrike, probably Northern Shrike, at the Natural Lands Trust's Peek Preserve this morning, near the building (right along the Maurice River.) That's a good bird in south Jersey!

The interesting thing about the Black-headed Gull this morning was that it was not with any Bonaparte's Gulls.

In preparation for this weekend's rescheduled gull workshop (still a few spots open) I've been looking through a lot of gull pictures. One fun learning was that I assumed of the hundreds of gull pictures I've taken over the past couple years, surely I would have images of the common gull species in all their various plumages, but not so Great Black-backed - I only had adults and first cycle birds.

Part of that is simple math - adults and first cycles are what you see most of, because that's what there are most of! Like all wildlife, gulls die, and they start dying their first year. The next year's cohort, now second cycle, will have fewer members in it than in did the first year, and the following year (third cycle) there will be fewer still. Once a gull is an adult, it stays that way, so you've got all the adult Great-black Backeds that are 4, 5, 6, 7 and upwards years old still out there. Hence, mostly adults and first winters.

Another thing I've noticed is that, of the gulls, Great Black-backeds seem to be the shyest. Sure, you see piles of them, but how often do you see them at close range? I must not, since if any gull flies by at close range, I'm probably taking its picture. A few of us were talking about this the other day, and Michael O'Brien observed that in general larger animals are shyer than small ones.

[Over 50 Red-breasted Mergansers were assembled in Cape May Harbor near the Nature Center of Cape May on Sunday, with much courting in evidence. Click to enlarge.]

Scott Whittle and Sam Galick had one of the Black-headed Gulls yesterday, where Racetrack Ave. meets the Delaware Bay in North Cape May.

Turkey Point had some great stuff for the Sunday morning walk there. Dave Lord reports: ". . . Three Short-Eared Owls were seen flying around the Peregrine hacking tower, and the Peregrine even visited the tower when a Short-Eared was flying by. We had five Bald Eagles without leaving the road end, and two Red-Tailed Hawks were seen mixing it up with one Eagle that came too close. The Harriers put in a nice showing after last week's sparser numbers, and the Snow Geese Movement was terrific." Dave also reported a dark morph Rough-legged Hawk along Husted Landing Road in Cumberland County.

The results from last weekend's CMBO Winter Marsh Raptor Survey are up on View from the Field. Interesting - harrier numbers dropped since January, but not everywhere.

An adult Black-crowned Night-heron with lovely long head plumes hunkered along Ocean Drive yesterday. In Cape May Point, many scoters are at the mouth of the bay - I estimated 2,000 but there could be many more, since most are out past the curve of the earth.