Hawkwatch Officially Over

It's always a sad day at Cape May. The first of December that is. Why? Because that is the first day since the end of August that you can go to the Hawkwatch Platform at Cape May Point State Park and see - well, no-one. I went down to the platform lunchtime under a chilly but sunny sky and was greeted by a telling sight. A car with Wisconsin plates, loaded to the brim with gear. This could mean only one thing - the last of our wonderful team of seasonal staff was heading out of town.

All packed up and ready to go. The time to head out of town is here.

If you only ever come to Cape May during the peak of migration, this is certainly a sight you are unlikely to ever see - a lunchtime hawkwatch looking like the poop deck of the Marie Celeste...

So how has the season been? Well, expert statisticians will do a better job than I, but you can make your own minds up by casting an eye down the seasonal totals for this year and comparing them with those of previous years. Most obvious to me are the figures for American Kestrel. This year's total for the whole season was not that much more than the record one-day count, set back in 1999. Not that long ago and a very worrying trend for this species. Compare too the seasonal totals (left hand column) with record totals (far right column) for Osprey, Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk and Merlin...

Seasonal totals at the Hawkwatch (click on picture to enlarge)

Of course, one cannot draw conclusions from a single set of data - it might just have been a poor year weather-wise this year for drifting birds to the coast. But there are figures here that should at least have us all asking questions and seeking out more data for answers. Once duly processed and analyized, it is data such as these that allow important environmental and conservation decisions to be made which benefit not only wildlife, but the planet we live on - and therefore us...

Long term projects such as the Cape May Hawkwatch and Avalon Seawatch form part of the very backbone of what Cape May Bird Observatory is all about. And none of this would be possible without the help and cooperation from our neighbors and sponsors. We thank the Cape May Point State Park and their staff for allowing us to operate the Hawkwatch within their boundaries and we especially thank our sponsors - this year Swarovski Optik - for their greatly appreciated support.

But wait....

It's not over for all of us though; don't forget that birding continues year-round at Cape May and you can bet we are looking forward to the forthcoming Chrsitmas Bird Count (give us a call if you want to help!) and the excitement of the winter season. See you in the field!!