Karl Lukens sent in the following report from this morning's "Birding the Meadows" walk. This weekly jaunt will meet through the spring on Monday mornings, at 7:30am in The Meadows parking lot along Sunset Boulevard.
"...We had 17 total including leaders, and saw 1 Piping Plover, 1 Oystercatcher, 5 Blue-winged Teal, 1 Merlin, and dozens of Gannets."
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/31/08
Number of species: 54
Canada Goose 15
Mute Swan 5
Gadwall 10
Mallard 10
Blue-winged Teal 5
Northern Shoveler 10
Northern Pintail 2
Ring-necked Duck 2
Surf Scoter 15
White-winged Scoter 1
Black Scoter 10
Red-throated Loon 1
Northern Gannet 30
Double-crested Cormorant 6
Great Egret 2
Turkey Vulture 2
Osprey 3
Merlin 1
American Coot 2
Piping Plover 1
Killdeer 3
American Oystercatcher 1
Greater Yellowlegs 2
Sanderling 50
Wilson's Snipe 3
Laughing Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 10
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 2
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 10
Tree Swallow 5
Barn Swallow 1
Carolina Wren 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
American Robin 5
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 15
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 15
Eastern Towhee 1
Savannah Sparrow 15
Song Sparrow 10
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 4
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Common Grackle 5
Boat-tailed Grackle 1
Brown-headed Cowbird 5
House Finch 3
House Sparrow 5
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Monday, March 31, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Sun. 3/30: CMP State Park, The Meadows, Magnesite Plant
I did some birding with a rather distinguished group of familiar Cape May faces this afternoon, including: 1) Chris Brown, the 2006 Avalon Seawatch counter and 2007 "swing" counter,
2) Sam Galick, the 2007 Morning Flight counter, and 3) Steve Bauer, the now-famous discoverer of New Jersey's first Lesser Nighthawk last November at the State Park.
The weather around the point this afternoon was, in a word, raw. Temperatures were in the 40s, but felt much colder when coupled with a stiff breeze off the ocean. We poked around the State Park first, with highlights including 15-20 Pine Warblers, 5-6 Chipping Sparrows, 3 Eastern Phoebes, a dozen Yellow-rumped Warblers, 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets and a Red-breasted Nuthatch along the "back" portion of the yellow trail. Many of these were feeding right on the path, sometimes less than 6 feet from us, affording superb looks. A single Ruby-crowned Kinglet was singing in the cedars at the beginning of the Yellow Trail, the first any of us had heard doing so this year. 4 Ring-necked Ducks were nice, as was the vocal but naturally invisible Winter Wren along the first bend in the Red Trail.
A brief tour around the Meadows only seemed to reinforce the fact that the weather was less than ideal for birding purposes, but we still put together a decent collection of birds, including an uncooperative Wilson's Snipe along the west path, a few Shovelers and Gadwall in the center impoundments, 5 Forster's Terns offshore and 2 American Coots along the east path.
We ended at the old Magnesite Plant and Davey's Lake, accessed via the Wildlife Management Area parking lot off of Sunset Boulevard, on the right just before you reach the parking lot at Sunset Beach. Davey's Lake itself was devoid of birds, and most of the action was offshore, including great looks at several close Northern Gannets and some very fine-looking Forster's Terns that have just attained their sharp black caps and flashy silver upperparts. A few Savannah Sparrows were skulking around between the parking area and the lake as well.
Lists included-
Location: Cape May Point SP
Observation date: 3/30/08
Number of species: 46
Snow Goose 2
Canada Goose 2
Mute Swan 2
Mallard 8
Northern Shoveler 5
Green-winged Teal 2
Ring-necked Duck 4
Northern Gannet 15
Great Blue Heron 1
Black Vulture 1
Turkey Vulture 3
Osprey 2
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull 12
Great Black-backed Gull 2
Mourning Dove 3
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 2
Eastern Phoebe 3
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 12
Fish Crow 6
Tree Swallow 2
Carolina Chickadee 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
American Robin 12
Gray Catbird 3
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling 25
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 25
Pine Warbler 20
Chipping Sparrow 6
Field Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 3
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 2
Northern Cardinal 4
Red-winged Blackbird 9
Common Grackle 4
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
House Finch 3
American Goldfinch 1
House Sparrow 6
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/30/08
Number of species: 24
Canada Goose 6
Mute Swan 2
Gadwall 4
Mallard 6
Northern Shoveler 10
dark-winged scoter sp. 15
Red-throated Loon 4
Northern Gannet 9
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 1
Turkey Vulture 1
Wilson's Snipe 1
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull 25
Great Black-backed Gull 9
Forster's Tern 5
Rock Pigeon 1
Mourning Dove 2
American Crow 3
Fish Crow 1
European Starling 6
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Song Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Location: Cape May - Magnesite Plant
Observation date: 3/30/08
Number of species: 23
Mallard 2
Green-winged Teal 30
Red-breasted Merganser 2
Red-throated Loon 1
Common Loon 1
Northern Gannet 50
Great Egret 1
Black Vulture 2
Turkey Vulture 6
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Sanderling 10
Wilson's Snipe 1
Herring Gull 10
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Forster's Tern 12
Mourning Dove 2
American Crow 3
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Savannah Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 2
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
2) Sam Galick, the 2007 Morning Flight counter, and 3) Steve Bauer, the now-famous discoverer of New Jersey's first Lesser Nighthawk last November at the State Park.
The weather around the point this afternoon was, in a word, raw. Temperatures were in the 40s, but felt much colder when coupled with a stiff breeze off the ocean. We poked around the State Park first, with highlights including 15-20 Pine Warblers, 5-6 Chipping Sparrows, 3 Eastern Phoebes, a dozen Yellow-rumped Warblers, 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets and a Red-breasted Nuthatch along the "back" portion of the yellow trail. Many of these were feeding right on the path, sometimes less than 6 feet from us, affording superb looks. A single Ruby-crowned Kinglet was singing in the cedars at the beginning of the Yellow Trail, the first any of us had heard doing so this year. 4 Ring-necked Ducks were nice, as was the vocal but naturally invisible Winter Wren along the first bend in the Red Trail.
A brief tour around the Meadows only seemed to reinforce the fact that the weather was less than ideal for birding purposes, but we still put together a decent collection of birds, including an uncooperative Wilson's Snipe along the west path, a few Shovelers and Gadwall in the center impoundments, 5 Forster's Terns offshore and 2 American Coots along the east path.
We ended at the old Magnesite Plant and Davey's Lake, accessed via the Wildlife Management Area parking lot off of Sunset Boulevard, on the right just before you reach the parking lot at Sunset Beach. Davey's Lake itself was devoid of birds, and most of the action was offshore, including great looks at several close Northern Gannets and some very fine-looking Forster's Terns that have just attained their sharp black caps and flashy silver upperparts. A few Savannah Sparrows were skulking around between the parking area and the lake as well.
Lists included-
Location: Cape May Point SP
Observation date: 3/30/08
Number of species: 46
Snow Goose 2
Canada Goose 2
Mute Swan 2
Mallard 8
Northern Shoveler 5
Green-winged Teal 2
Ring-necked Duck 4
Northern Gannet 15
Great Blue Heron 1
Black Vulture 1
Turkey Vulture 3
Osprey 2
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull 12
Great Black-backed Gull 2
Mourning Dove 3
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 2
Eastern Phoebe 3
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 12
Fish Crow 6
Tree Swallow 2
Carolina Chickadee 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
American Robin 12
Gray Catbird 3
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling 25
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 25
Pine Warbler 20
Chipping Sparrow 6
Field Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 3
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 2
Northern Cardinal 4
Red-winged Blackbird 9
Common Grackle 4
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
House Finch 3
American Goldfinch 1
House Sparrow 6
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/30/08
Number of species: 24
Canada Goose 6
Mute Swan 2
Gadwall 4
Mallard 6
Northern Shoveler 10
dark-winged scoter sp. 15
Red-throated Loon 4
Northern Gannet 9
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 1
Turkey Vulture 1
Wilson's Snipe 1
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull 25
Great Black-backed Gull 9
Forster's Tern 5
Rock Pigeon 1
Mourning Dove 2
American Crow 3
Fish Crow 1
European Starling 6
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Song Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Location: Cape May - Magnesite Plant
Observation date: 3/30/08
Number of species: 23
Mallard 2
Green-winged Teal 30
Red-breasted Merganser 2
Red-throated Loon 1
Common Loon 1
Northern Gannet 50
Great Egret 1
Black Vulture 2
Turkey Vulture 6
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Sanderling 10
Wilson's Snipe 1
Herring Gull 10
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Forster's Tern 12
Mourning Dove 2
American Crow 3
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Savannah Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 2
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Sat. 3/29: A visit to Salem County
Given the news regarding a possible Prairie Falcon and the fact that I hadn't been to Salem County yet this year, I decided to make the trip this afternoon- roughly an hour and change from the Cape May area. To get to Salem, take Route 47 north to Millville, and then take Route 49 west. About five miles of Route 49 are currently closed-off just south of the city of Salem, and an easy-to-follow detour is required. There also seems to be quite a bit of roadwork occurring during week days in the city of Bridgeton (which you'll pass through if coming from the south).
Access-wise, Salem isn't at all like Cape May, and often most of the birding here is from the roadside. If you're not familiar with the area, I highly recommend reading the Salem County sections in Bill Boyle's A Guide to Bird Finding in New Jersey, pages 327-333. You can also check out NJ Audubon's own Delaware Bayshore Birding & Wildlife Trails Guide, which features information on Salem County from pages 8-29.
Multiple checks of the Freas Road area, just north of the town of Salem, failed to reveal any falcons, or Brewer's Blackbirds. As Jason mentioned earlier, this is a large area of farmfields and there are plenty of places for a Prairie Falcon to hide. I did a pretty thorough drive-through of the rest of the surrounding area to the north and east (including better-known spots like Featherbed Lane and Compromise Road), and the only other raptors I came across were 2 American Kestrels and a close male Northern Harrier.
I was hoping that I'd find a few lingering flocks of Snow Geese (to check for Ross's) and blackbird flocks (to check for Yellow-headed or Brewer's), but I had little luck finding either of these. There were a few hundred Snow Geese along Featherbed Lane, but they were distant and behind a hill from most viewing points. Tree Swallows were probably one of the most numerous birds around, with at least 30-40 seen in my travels. Salem also usually hosts the largest numbers of Cattle Egrets in the state, but no dice in that department either, today (it's still a tad-bit early).
All in all, it was certainly not as "bird-y" as I was hoping it would be, but even without great sightings, it's always refreshing to visit this portion of the state with all of its undeveloped land and wide open spaces. If you've never been, you owe it to yourself to go- and spring is a great time to do it.
Access-wise, Salem isn't at all like Cape May, and often most of the birding here is from the roadside. If you're not familiar with the area, I highly recommend reading the Salem County sections in Bill Boyle's A Guide to Bird Finding in New Jersey, pages 327-333. You can also check out NJ Audubon's own Delaware Bayshore Birding & Wildlife Trails Guide, which features information on Salem County from pages 8-29.
Multiple checks of the Freas Road area, just north of the town of Salem, failed to reveal any falcons, or Brewer's Blackbirds. As Jason mentioned earlier, this is a large area of farmfields and there are plenty of places for a Prairie Falcon to hide. I did a pretty thorough drive-through of the rest of the surrounding area to the north and east (including better-known spots like Featherbed Lane and Compromise Road), and the only other raptors I came across were 2 American Kestrels and a close male Northern Harrier.
I was hoping that I'd find a few lingering flocks of Snow Geese (to check for Ross's) and blackbird flocks (to check for Yellow-headed or Brewer's), but I had little luck finding either of these. There were a few hundred Snow Geese along Featherbed Lane, but they were distant and behind a hill from most viewing points. Tree Swallows were probably one of the most numerous birds around, with at least 30-40 seen in my travels. Salem also usually hosts the largest numbers of Cattle Egrets in the state, but no dice in that department either, today (it's still a tad-bit early).
All in all, it was certainly not as "bird-y" as I was hoping it would be, but even without great sightings, it's always refreshing to visit this portion of the state with all of its undeveloped land and wide open spaces. If you've never been, you owe it to yourself to go- and spring is a great time to do it.
CMBO Cape May Point Walk- 3/29/08
Also, Karl's report on the sightings from today's CMBO Cape May Point walk.
"A nice clear, cold, and windy CMBO Walk at Cape May Point this morning produced a good number of species. A number of ducks still are present on the various ponds, including a Blue-winged Teal drake, and 4 Ring-necked Ducks. We also enjoyed a fly-over Glossy Ibis, and 2 Snowy Egrets. The Gannet show still goes on but this morning was further off shore. Yesterday we estimated well over 2000 off the Concrete Ship! Of interest was a Purple Martin female that visited one of the Martin houses at the State Park as a Tree Swallow flew overhead. We finished up back at the Hawk Watch platform area with a Hermit Thrush and Purple Finch."]
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/29/08
Number of species: 61
Brant 6
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 5
Gadwall 2
American Wigeon 2
Mallard 10
Blue-winged Teal 1
Northern Shoveler 10
Green-winged Teal 15
Ring-necked Duck 4
dark-winged scoter sp. 30
Ruddy Duck 5
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 400
Double-crested Cormorant 5
Great Blue Heron 2
Snowy Egret 2
Glossy Ibis 1
Black Vulture 5
Turkey Vulture 10
Osprey 2
American Coot 20
Killdeer 1
Ruddy Turnstone 2
Sanderling 2
Purple Sandpiper 5
Laughing Gull 2
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 15
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 5
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 10
Purple Martin 1
Tree Swallow 1
Carolina Chickadee 1
Tufted Titmouse 1
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 2
Hermit Thrush 1
American Robin 25
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 20
Cedar Waxwing 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Chipping Sparrow 2
Field Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 2
White-throated Sparrow 10
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Common Grackle 20
Brown-headed Cowbird 15
Purple Finch 1
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2
"A nice clear, cold, and windy CMBO Walk at Cape May Point this morning produced a good number of species. A number of ducks still are present on the various ponds, including a Blue-winged Teal drake, and 4 Ring-necked Ducks. We also enjoyed a fly-over Glossy Ibis, and 2 Snowy Egrets. The Gannet show still goes on but this morning was further off shore. Yesterday we estimated well over 2000 off the Concrete Ship! Of interest was a Purple Martin female that visited one of the Martin houses at the State Park as a Tree Swallow flew overhead. We finished up back at the Hawk Watch platform area with a Hermit Thrush and Purple Finch."]
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/29/08
Number of species: 61
Brant 6
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 5
Gadwall 2
American Wigeon 2
Mallard 10
Blue-winged Teal 1
Northern Shoveler 10
Green-winged Teal 15
Ring-necked Duck 4
dark-winged scoter sp. 30
Ruddy Duck 5
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 400
Double-crested Cormorant 5
Great Blue Heron 2
Snowy Egret 2
Glossy Ibis 1
Black Vulture 5
Turkey Vulture 10
Osprey 2
American Coot 20
Killdeer 1
Ruddy Turnstone 2
Sanderling 2
Purple Sandpiper 5
Laughing Gull 2
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 15
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 5
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 10
Purple Martin 1
Tree Swallow 1
Carolina Chickadee 1
Tufted Titmouse 1
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 2
Hermit Thrush 1
American Robin 25
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 20
Cedar Waxwing 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Chipping Sparrow 2
Field Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 2
White-throated Sparrow 10
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Common Grackle 20
Brown-headed Cowbird 15
Purple Finch 1
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2
Final CMBO Evening at the Meadows walk
The final CMBO Evening at the Meadows walk has been walked! Karl Lukens shares the observations of the evening below.
"Results of the final Friday Evening CMBO Walk at the "Meadows" are listed below. Highlights were the 5 Piping Plover and 4 Am. Oystercatchers on the beach apparently engaging in some sort of courting maneuvers. A try for woodcock as the end of the evening consisted of a couple of "peents" heard only by a few."
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/28/08
Number of species: 35
Canada Goose 50
Mute Swan 11
Gadwall 2
Mallard 8
Northern Shoveler 2
Northern Gannet 5
Double-crested Cormorant 2
Great Egret 6
Turkey Vulture 1
American Coot 2
Piping Plover 5
Killdeer 1
American Oystercatcher 4
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Sanderling 20
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 5
Mourning Dove 5
American Crow 5
Carolina Wren 1
American Robin 2
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 10
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Palm Warbler (Western) 1
Savannah Sparrow 12
Song Sparrow 2
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Common Grackle 10
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 5
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2
"Results of the final Friday Evening CMBO Walk at the "Meadows" are listed below. Highlights were the 5 Piping Plover and 4 Am. Oystercatchers on the beach apparently engaging in some sort of courting maneuvers. A try for woodcock as the end of the evening consisted of a couple of "peents" heard only by a few."
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/28/08
Number of species: 35
Canada Goose 50
Mute Swan 11
Gadwall 2
Mallard 8
Northern Shoveler 2
Northern Gannet 5
Double-crested Cormorant 2
Great Egret 6
Turkey Vulture 1
American Coot 2
Piping Plover 5
Killdeer 1
American Oystercatcher 4
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Sanderling 20
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 5
Mourning Dove 5
American Crow 5
Carolina Wren 1
American Robin 2
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 10
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Palm Warbler (Western) 1
Savannah Sparrow 12
Song Sparrow 2
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Common Grackle 10
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 5
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2
Possible Prairie Falcon?....In New Jersey?...
I just received a call from a DVOC member who was calling to report a possible Prairie Falcon seen flying north as their group was birding along Frieze Road, near the town of Salem in Salem County (an area that is known to many as the location to look for Brewer's Blackbird in the recent past.) This is in a location of expansive farm fields and very much the sort of place you might expect a Prairie Falcon to decide to hang out if one were in the area. The observation was made at about 11:45 am today, I received the call just before noon.
The bird was observed by several individuals and the verbal description that I heard sounded good, including views of obvious dark axillaries seen as the bird was flying away from the group. The thing to remember is that Prairie Falcon would be a new bird for the state of New Jersey so anyone claiming an observation of this species should submit a detailed write up to the NJ Bird Records Committee.
My intention with posting this information is to not verify the sighting, rather to simply to get the word out so that anyone who might be birding this area in the near future keep the sighting in mind. At this point there is no verification of the sighting through any written means or a photograph (that I know of.)
Good luck to anyone trying to relocate this potential state first. Please keep us informed on any further developments.
The bird was observed by several individuals and the verbal description that I heard sounded good, including views of obvious dark axillaries seen as the bird was flying away from the group. The thing to remember is that Prairie Falcon would be a new bird for the state of New Jersey so anyone claiming an observation of this species should submit a detailed write up to the NJ Bird Records Committee.
My intention with posting this information is to not verify the sighting, rather to simply to get the word out so that anyone who might be birding this area in the near future keep the sighting in mind. At this point there is no verification of the sighting through any written means or a photograph (that I know of.)
Good luck to anyone trying to relocate this potential state first. Please keep us informed on any further developments.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Fri. 3/28: Reed's Beach notes; spring notes
It was downright warm in southern New Jersey today. Looks like we got a bit more sunshine than was originally predicted, which allowed temperatures to soar into the 70s in the area. The Atlantic City International Airport recorded a high of 76 degrees this afternoon; Wildwood and Millville reached 73. A cold front swept across the area during the afternoon, switching the winds to the northwest and batting back all that warm air. In fact, temperatures tomorrow night are expected to be in the 20s...
A tour around the neighborhood (Reed's Beach) this evening produced a fair mix of early spring birds. The ibis pond was a happening place, with 15 Great Egrets (my highest count so far), 9 Northern Shovelers, 4 Greater Yellowlegs and a handful of Green-winged Teal. The pair of Ospreys that nest along the west end of Bidwell Creek have arrived, which for this pair, is rather early. Since the nesting platform here was erected back around 2001 or 2002, my earliest arrival date is April 3, with an average arrival of April 4 to April 6 over the years. Both birds are usually present by April 8 to April 10. I haven't been out much in the past few days, so it's quite possible that one or both birds have been here for the better part of the week...
Diving ducks were almost completely absent this evening, and it seems quite likely that many have just simply moved out. A single male Greater Scaup prevented a total shut-out. A few hundred Snow Geese were present along the waterfront and in the marshes to the north of the creek, probably about 400 total. I was hoping to find an increase in Forster's Terns and Laughing Gulls along this portion of the bay, but there were no terns to be found, and just one "LAGU" flying about offshore. Gull numbers have dwindled since the Menhaden run of a few weeks back, and American Black Ducks have become decidedly less common over the past two weeks. Clapper Rails are becoming increasingly vocal during the evenings, approaching a "chorus" tonight.
It certainly appears that there was a decent little movement of birds last night, as evidenced by the superb report from Belleplain. A little time spent outside at Stockton College (in the middle of Atlantic County) provided the first Pine Warblers (5+), Chipping Sparrows (2) and Tree Swallows (6) I've encountered on campus this year.
List from Reed's Beach included-
Location: Reed's Beach
Observation date: 3/28/08
Number of species: 42
Snow Goose 400
Canada Goose 2
American Black Duck 18
Mallard 2
Northern Shoveler 9
Green-winged Teal 4
Greater Scaup 1
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 15
Turkey Vulture 1
Osprey 2
Northern Harrier 1
Clapper Rail 15
Ruddy Turnstone 1
Dunlin 5
Laughing Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull 5
Herring Gull 30
Great Black-backed Gull 18
Rock Pigeon 2
Mourning Dove 10
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 2
Fish Crow 2
Tree Swallow 2
Carolina Chickadee 2
Carolina Wren 2
American Robin 15
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling 10
Cedar Waxwing 8
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Eastern Towhee 1
Song Sparrow 3
White-throated Sparrow 6
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 15
House Finch 4
House Sparrow 9
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
A tour around the neighborhood (Reed's Beach) this evening produced a fair mix of early spring birds. The ibis pond was a happening place, with 15 Great Egrets (my highest count so far), 9 Northern Shovelers, 4 Greater Yellowlegs and a handful of Green-winged Teal. The pair of Ospreys that nest along the west end of Bidwell Creek have arrived, which for this pair, is rather early. Since the nesting platform here was erected back around 2001 or 2002, my earliest arrival date is April 3, with an average arrival of April 4 to April 6 over the years. Both birds are usually present by April 8 to April 10. I haven't been out much in the past few days, so it's quite possible that one or both birds have been here for the better part of the week...
Diving ducks were almost completely absent this evening, and it seems quite likely that many have just simply moved out. A single male Greater Scaup prevented a total shut-out. A few hundred Snow Geese were present along the waterfront and in the marshes to the north of the creek, probably about 400 total. I was hoping to find an increase in Forster's Terns and Laughing Gulls along this portion of the bay, but there were no terns to be found, and just one "LAGU" flying about offshore. Gull numbers have dwindled since the Menhaden run of a few weeks back, and American Black Ducks have become decidedly less common over the past two weeks. Clapper Rails are becoming increasingly vocal during the evenings, approaching a "chorus" tonight.
It certainly appears that there was a decent little movement of birds last night, as evidenced by the superb report from Belleplain. A little time spent outside at Stockton College (in the middle of Atlantic County) provided the first Pine Warblers (5+), Chipping Sparrows (2) and Tree Swallows (6) I've encountered on campus this year.
List from Reed's Beach included-
Location: Reed's Beach
Observation date: 3/28/08
Number of species: 42
Snow Goose 400
Canada Goose 2
American Black Duck 18
Mallard 2
Northern Shoveler 9
Green-winged Teal 4
Greater Scaup 1
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 15
Turkey Vulture 1
Osprey 2
Northern Harrier 1
Clapper Rail 15
Ruddy Turnstone 1
Dunlin 5
Laughing Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull 5
Herring Gull 30
Great Black-backed Gull 18
Rock Pigeon 2
Mourning Dove 10
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 2
Fish Crow 2
Tree Swallow 2
Carolina Chickadee 2
Carolina Wren 2
American Robin 15
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling 10
Cedar Waxwing 8
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Eastern Towhee 1
Song Sparrow 3
White-throated Sparrow 6
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 15
House Finch 4
House Sparrow 9
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Yellow-throated Warblers, Louisiana Waterthrush Return!
And the warbler show begins. . . this just in from Janet Crawford:
"Karen [Johnson] and I did Belleplain this morning. There were 2 Louisiana Waterthrushes, one at the bridge on Sunset, and one down toward the other bridge. Yellow-throated Warblers were everywhere - we counted 16 - but were particularly thick at the White Pine Plantation. We got great looks at one there. Janet"
"The bridge at Sunset" is of course the famous one on Sunset Road in Belleplain, near the "triangle."
Pete Dunne also told me Yellow-throated Warblers were in at Bevan WMA this morning.
Given the popularity of warblers (and the profusion of warbler species that appear in Cape May Point, Villas WMA, Belleplain, etc. in spring) we're offering a double dose of warbler workshops this spring as part of CMBO's Cape May School of Birding. Warblers by Sight and Sound I will be led by Louise Zemaitis and Michael O'Brien May 5-6, and Mark Garland will lead a second session of this workshop May 5-6.
Another migration event of note is a very obvious surge of Tree Swallows this morning - they're all over the sky at CMBO-CRE in Goshen, and prospecting for nest sites already. These birds weren't here just yesterday.
"Karen [Johnson] and I did Belleplain this morning. There were 2 Louisiana Waterthrushes, one at the bridge on Sunset, and one down toward the other bridge. Yellow-throated Warblers were everywhere - we counted 16 - but were particularly thick at the White Pine Plantation. We got great looks at one there. Janet"
"The bridge at Sunset" is of course the famous one on Sunset Road in Belleplain, near the "triangle."
Pete Dunne also told me Yellow-throated Warblers were in at Bevan WMA this morning.
Given the popularity of warblers (and the profusion of warbler species that appear in Cape May Point, Villas WMA, Belleplain, etc. in spring) we're offering a double dose of warbler workshops this spring as part of CMBO's Cape May School of Birding. Warblers by Sight and Sound I will be led by Louise Zemaitis and Michael O'Brien May 5-6, and Mark Garland will lead a second session of this workshop May 5-6.
Another migration event of note is a very obvious surge of Tree Swallows this morning - they're all over the sky at CMBO-CRE in Goshen, and prospecting for nest sites already. These birds weren't here just yesterday.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Knots and Crabs
A reporter asked me today when Red Knots will be returning, a question we'll be hearing more and more of as spring proceeds. The answer is that a few actually winter locally but the first migrants will appear in mid-late April, with a peak in late May.
Happily, they will return to a protected food source, at least in NJ, since Governor Corzine signed the bill banning horseshoe crab harvest in NJ this week. NJAS President Tom Gilmore's remarks at the signing ceremony stressed that this has been a long, long fight, as environmental battles so often are, and involved many organizations - organizations that depend on the support of their members, so this victory belongs to many people - probably including nearly everyone who reads this web site, so thanks! The role of birding and ecotourism in southern NJ also played a very key and specific role in getting legislative support, enabling the bill to reach the Governor's desk.
Happily, they will return to a protected food source, at least in NJ, since Governor Corzine signed the bill banning horseshoe crab harvest in NJ this week. NJAS President Tom Gilmore's remarks at the signing ceremony stressed that this has been a long, long fight, as environmental battles so often are, and involved many organizations - organizations that depend on the support of their members, so this victory belongs to many people - probably including nearly everyone who reads this web site, so thanks! The role of birding and ecotourism in southern NJ also played a very key and specific role in getting legislative support, enabling the bill to reach the Governor's desk.
CAPE MAY BIRDING HOTLINE - March 27, 2008
This is the Cape May Birding Hotline, a service of New Jersey Audubon Society's Cape May Bird Observatory. This week's message was prepared on Thursday, March 27, 2008. Highlights this week include sightings of EURASIAN WIGEON, BLUE-WINGED TEAL, COMMON EIDER, GREAT CORMORANT, AMERICAN BITTERN, TRICOLORED HERON, CATTLE EGRET, GLOSSY IBIS, OSPREY, BALD EAGLE, NORTHERN GOSHAWK, AMERICAN KESTREL, PIPING PLOVER, PECTORAL SANDPIPER, LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, SHORT-EARED OWL, RED-HEADED WOODPECKER, HORNED LARK, BARN SWALLOW, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, AMERICAN PIPIT, PINE WARBLER, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW, and RUSTY BLACKBIRD.
A EURASIAN WIGEON was found in the Coast Guard Ponds along Ocean Drive on 3/24.
A NORTHERN GOSHAWK flew over Lily Lake in Cape May Point on 3/21.
BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS made their first appearances of 2008 at The Beanery/Rea Farm and in North Wildwood on 3/22. A BARN SWALLOW was seen at The Beanery/Rea Farm on 3/21.
A CATTLE EGRET arrived at the South Cape May Meadows/CMMBR on 3/23. BLUE-WINGED TEAL, AMERICAN BITTERN, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW and 6 PIPING PLOVERS were here on 3/24.
Other wading-bird arrivals this week included 2 GLOSSY IBIS along New England Road in West Cape May on 3/22, and a TRICOLORED HERON in the 'ibis pond' along Reed's Beach Road on 3/27.
The season's first PECTORAL SANDPIPER flew over Cape May Point State Park on 3/21. 10 OSPREYS, 4 AMERICAN KESTRELS and 2 BALD EAGLES were seen migrating over the park that day, and HORNED LARK and AMERICAN PIPIT were also noted as flyovers.
A COMMON EIDER and 7 GREAT CORMORANTS were seen in and around Cold Spring Inlet, at the south end of the Two Mile Beach Unit of Cape May NWR, on 3/21. 25 WESTERN SANDPIPERS were at Two Mile Beach on 3/26.
LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were seen in Hereford Inlet at North Wildwood, and near Two Mile Landing along Ocean Drive, on 3/22.
2 RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS and several RUSTY BLACKBIRDS continue to be seen at Villas WMA/Ponderlodge.
2-3 SHORT-EARED OWLS continue to be seen at Jake's Landing through 3/26. 7 PINE WARBLERS were singing here on 3/26.
-- We received no reports this week of the Barnacle Goose on Cape Island. --
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
CMBO's Northwood Center in Cape May Point will be open 7 days a week beginning APRIL 1.
See Life Paulagics has rescheduled its pelagic trip out of Cape May to SUNDAY, APRIL 13. The boat is scheduled to leave at 6:00 AM and return around 6:00 PM. For more information, contact them at 215-234-6805 or go to their web site at www.paulagics.com
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 SPRING HOURS are as follows: Northwood Center on East Lake Drive in Cape May Point will be open 7 days a week, APRIL 1 - MAY 31, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Center for Research and Education on Rt. 47 in Goshen is open Tuesday - Sunday, 9:30- 4:30.******
The Cape May Birding Hotline is a service of the New Jersey Audubon Society'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 discount in the stores).
Good Luck and Good Birding!
A EURASIAN WIGEON was found in the Coast Guard Ponds along Ocean Drive on 3/24.
A NORTHERN GOSHAWK flew over Lily Lake in Cape May Point on 3/21.
BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS made their first appearances of 2008 at The Beanery/Rea Farm and in North Wildwood on 3/22. A BARN SWALLOW was seen at The Beanery/Rea Farm on 3/21.
A CATTLE EGRET arrived at the South Cape May Meadows/CMMBR on 3/23. BLUE-WINGED TEAL, AMERICAN BITTERN, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW and 6 PIPING PLOVERS were here on 3/24.
Other wading-bird arrivals this week included 2 GLOSSY IBIS along New England Road in West Cape May on 3/22, and a TRICOLORED HERON in the 'ibis pond' along Reed's Beach Road on 3/27.
The season's first PECTORAL SANDPIPER flew over Cape May Point State Park on 3/21. 10 OSPREYS, 4 AMERICAN KESTRELS and 2 BALD EAGLES were seen migrating over the park that day, and HORNED LARK and AMERICAN PIPIT were also noted as flyovers.
A COMMON EIDER and 7 GREAT CORMORANTS were seen in and around Cold Spring Inlet, at the south end of the Two Mile Beach Unit of Cape May NWR, on 3/21. 25 WESTERN SANDPIPERS were at Two Mile Beach on 3/26.
LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS were seen in Hereford Inlet at North Wildwood, and near Two Mile Landing along Ocean Drive, on 3/22.
2 RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS and several RUSTY BLACKBIRDS continue to be seen at Villas WMA/Ponderlodge.
2-3 SHORT-EARED OWLS continue to be seen at Jake's Landing through 3/26. 7 PINE WARBLERS were singing here on 3/26.
-- We received no reports this week of the Barnacle Goose on Cape Island. --
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
CMBO's Northwood Center in Cape May Point will be open 7 days a week beginning APRIL 1.
See Life Paulagics has rescheduled its pelagic trip out of Cape May to SUNDAY, APRIL 13. The boat is scheduled to leave at 6:00 AM and return around 6:00 PM. For more information, contact them at 215-234-6805 or go to their web site at www.paulagics.com
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 SPRING HOURS are as follows: Northwood Center on East Lake Drive in Cape May Point will be open 7 days a week, APRIL 1 - MAY 31, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Center for Research and Education on Rt. 47 in Goshen is open Tuesday - Sunday, 9:30- 4:30.******
The Cape May Birding Hotline is a service of the New Jersey Audubon Society'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 discount in the stores).
Good Luck and Good Birding!
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Wed. 3/26: Changing of the guard at Jake's Landing
I decided that my impending pile of work was no match for the gorgeous spring weather on the Cape today, so I took an evening stroll at Jake's Landing. There was a nice mix of both "winter-type" birds and "summer-type" birds, as evidenced in the list at the end.
Pine Warblers continue to file in; I counted at least 7 singing between the bend in the road and the marsh edge. However, I couldn't dig up any Yellow-throated Warblers. I bumped into CMBO Associate Naturalist Janet Crawford, who reported that a tour of Belleplain with fellow A.N. Karen Johnson this morning also failed to reveal Yellow-throated Warbler or Louisiana Waterthrush. Light west winds are predicted for tonight with only a small chance for precipitation, so perhaps tomorrow will be the day. Some other highlights in the woods included an Eastern Phoebe calling from the top of a Red Maple, an elusive Winter Wren and an equally elusive Brown Creeper.
I spent a few minutes scanning from the marsh edge, which produced 1 Short-eared Owl hunting on the south side of Dennis Creek. It was neat to see Short-eared Owl and hear Pine Warbler at the same time, a sign of the "changing of the guard" that will continue to unfold over the next several weeks, as wintering birds depart and breeding birds arrive. A silhouette of a Bald Eagle perched in the marsh off to the west, a few Laughing Gulls flying out toward Delaware Bay, and a distant perched Osprey rounded out the other highlights of my marsh-scan.
List included-
Location: Jake's Landing
Observation date: 3/26/08
Number of species: 37
Canada Goose 2
American Black Duck 6
Mallard 2
Green-winged Teal 2
Great Blue Heron 1
Osprey 1
Bald Eagle 1
Northern Harrier 6
Red-tailed Hawk 2
Clapper Rail 2
Laughing Gull 3
Ring-billed Gull 1
Herring Gull 20
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Mourning Dove 2
Short-eared Owl 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 1
Carolina Chickadee 2
Brown Creeper 1
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
Marsh Wren 1
Hermit Thrush 1
American Robin 4
European Starling 6
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 9
Pine Warbler 7
Seaside Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
American Goldfinch 1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Pine Warblers continue to file in; I counted at least 7 singing between the bend in the road and the marsh edge. However, I couldn't dig up any Yellow-throated Warblers. I bumped into CMBO Associate Naturalist Janet Crawford, who reported that a tour of Belleplain with fellow A.N. Karen Johnson this morning also failed to reveal Yellow-throated Warbler or Louisiana Waterthrush. Light west winds are predicted for tonight with only a small chance for precipitation, so perhaps tomorrow will be the day. Some other highlights in the woods included an Eastern Phoebe calling from the top of a Red Maple, an elusive Winter Wren and an equally elusive Brown Creeper.
I spent a few minutes scanning from the marsh edge, which produced 1 Short-eared Owl hunting on the south side of Dennis Creek. It was neat to see Short-eared Owl and hear Pine Warbler at the same time, a sign of the "changing of the guard" that will continue to unfold over the next several weeks, as wintering birds depart and breeding birds arrive. A silhouette of a Bald Eagle perched in the marsh off to the west, a few Laughing Gulls flying out toward Delaware Bay, and a distant perched Osprey rounded out the other highlights of my marsh-scan.
List included-
Location: Jake's Landing
Observation date: 3/26/08
Number of species: 37
Canada Goose 2
American Black Duck 6
Mallard 2
Green-winged Teal 2
Great Blue Heron 1
Osprey 1
Bald Eagle 1
Northern Harrier 6
Red-tailed Hawk 2
Clapper Rail 2
Laughing Gull 3
Ring-billed Gull 1
Herring Gull 20
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Mourning Dove 2
Short-eared Owl 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 1
Carolina Chickadee 2
Brown Creeper 1
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
Marsh Wren 1
Hermit Thrush 1
American Robin 4
European Starling 6
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 9
Pine Warbler 7
Seaside Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
American Goldfinch 1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Grouse News
Karen Johnson sent me this report on Monday:
"I got a call from Brian this morning at 10:30- he had a Ruffed Grouse in Dividing Creek! This is the 3rd report of Ruffed Grouse that I have heard in the past month ." [Brian is Karen's husband - DF]
This is exciting stuff, given that grouse have all but disappeared from southern NJ. In fact, for several years birders in NJ have been talking about the steep decline in Ruffed Grouse statewide. Consider this graph created on Birdsource (the collaborative web site of Cornell and National Audubon.) It is derived from Christmas Bird Count info over the last 30 years:
The decline begs the question, why? My personal opinion is that natural succession is the primary cause, though other factors like overabundant white-tailed deer and invasive non-native plant species also likely play a role. Grouse favor young-age stands of trees, especially during the winter when buds of trees like aspens and birches become extremely important winter food sources. These species disappear as forests mature, which is what has happened in much of NJ as abandoned farm fields first became brushlands, then young forest, then mature second growth forest. Barring intervention, either human (= forestry or other management practices to set back succession,) or natural (=fire), grouse are unlikely to recover to their former numbers in the state.
"I got a call from Brian this morning at 10:30- he had a Ruffed Grouse in Dividing Creek! This is the 3rd report of Ruffed Grouse that I have heard in the past month ." [Brian is Karen's husband - DF]
This is exciting stuff, given that grouse have all but disappeared from southern NJ. In fact, for several years birders in NJ have been talking about the steep decline in Ruffed Grouse statewide. Consider this graph created on Birdsource (the collaborative web site of Cornell and National Audubon.) It is derived from Christmas Bird Count info over the last 30 years:
The decline begs the question, why? My personal opinion is that natural succession is the primary cause, though other factors like overabundant white-tailed deer and invasive non-native plant species also likely play a role. Grouse favor young-age stands of trees, especially during the winter when buds of trees like aspens and birches become extremely important winter food sources. These species disappear as forests mature, which is what has happened in much of NJ as abandoned farm fields first became brushlands, then young forest, then mature second growth forest. Barring intervention, either human (= forestry or other management practices to set back succession,) or natural (=fire), grouse are unlikely to recover to their former numbers in the state.
The First Wednesday CMBO Cape May Point walk
The sightings info below was just sent to me from Karl Lukens. Remember that you can check the Naturalist Calendar to find out all CMBO daily walk, workshop and special programing information. This particular walk continues thru May. If you were hoping to bird Cape May Point and missed today's walk you might try my Test Drive the Optics walk on Sunday afternoon, starting at 3:00 at the Northwood Center.
"The first CMBO Wednesday morning walk at Cape May Point started out with a great, close-up, Northern Gannet show, with a mixture of Black and Surf Scoters, plus 3 White-winged Scoters, and Red-throated Loons. Ducks included both Blue- and Green-winged Teal, Gadwall, and Wigeon. Some of the land birds seen were Wilson's Snipe, numerous Golden-crowned Kinglets, and Red-breasted Nuthatches, plus the usual suspects."
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/26/08
Number of species: 53
Brant 6
Canada Goose 2
Mute Swan 5
Gadwall 4
American Wigeon 2
Mallard 10
Blue-winged Teal 2
Green-winged Teal 2
Surf Scoter 40
White-winged Scoter 3
Black Scoter 10
Ruddy Duck 4
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 400
Double-crested Cormorant 4
Turkey Vulture 1
American Coot 25
Killdeer 2
Greater Yellowlegs 2
Ruddy Turnstone 2
Sanderling 10
Wilson's Snipe 1
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull 3
Great Black-backed Gull 5
Rock Pigeon 5
Mourning Dove 10
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 3
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 3
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 10
Tree Swallow 1
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 5
Carolina Wren 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet 10
American Robin 25
Gray Catbird 2
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 15
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 10
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 1
Northern Cardinal 8
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Common Grackle 30
Brown-headed Cowbird 10
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2
"The first CMBO Wednesday morning walk at Cape May Point started out with a great, close-up, Northern Gannet show, with a mixture of Black and Surf Scoters, plus 3 White-winged Scoters, and Red-throated Loons. Ducks included both Blue- and Green-winged Teal, Gadwall, and Wigeon. Some of the land birds seen were Wilson's Snipe, numerous Golden-crowned Kinglets, and Red-breasted Nuthatches, plus the usual suspects."
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/26/08
Number of species: 53
Brant 6
Canada Goose 2
Mute Swan 5
Gadwall 4
American Wigeon 2
Mallard 10
Blue-winged Teal 2
Green-winged Teal 2
Surf Scoter 40
White-winged Scoter 3
Black Scoter 10
Ruddy Duck 4
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 400
Double-crested Cormorant 4
Turkey Vulture 1
American Coot 25
Killdeer 2
Greater Yellowlegs 2
Ruddy Turnstone 2
Sanderling 10
Wilson's Snipe 1
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull 3
Great Black-backed Gull 5
Rock Pigeon 5
Mourning Dove 10
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 3
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 3
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 10
Tree Swallow 1
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 5
Carolina Wren 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet 10
American Robin 25
Gray Catbird 2
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 15
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 10
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 1
Northern Cardinal 8
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Common Grackle 30
Brown-headed Cowbird 10
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2
Monday, March 24, 2008
First Monday Meadows Walk, plus a bit on Barnegat Light
This morning participants in the inaugural CMBO Monday Morning Cape May Meadows Walk (held every Monday at 7:30 a.m. from now through mid-November) enjoyed many signs of spring, despite very chilly temperatures. At least 6 Piping Plovers, arranged more or less in three pairs, were calling and displaying along the beach front, as an easy 500 Northern Gannets, almost all adults, alternately foraged and sat on the water offshore. In the Meadows proper, several Northern Shovelers were joined by a single female Blue-winged Teal; other ducks included Northern Pintail and Gadwall. A single Osprey and a single Laughing Gull reminded us of things to come, while a lingering White-crowned Sparrow told of the winter just past. Two American Coots behaved very much as a "pair;" perhaps they will choose to nest?
This should be a very interesting year for the Meadows, a.k.a. The Nature Conservancy's Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge. In June TNC will mark the one year anniversary of the meadows restoration project. Because of the intense disturbance associated with the restoration, followed by a droughty summer, I believe a healthy invertebrate fauna in the Meadows never developed last year, and of course the vegetation will need several years to mature, and as a result use by birds, shorebirds and ducks in particular, has been less than stellar so far. This year could be very different. We'll publish complete bird lists of each Meadows walk on this web site throughout the year; today's list is below.
Yesterday a few hours at Barnegat Light with some friends were very productive. Harlequins are still there in force, with 35 in ready view along the jetty, and perhaps 50 total could be found in a careful scope-scan from the end of the main jetty - Harlequins were scattered along the jetty north of the inlet, as well as the old 8th street jetty to the south. Whether all the Harlequins wintered there or there were extras from points south is difficult to say; I'm not sure what the peak mid-winter count at Barnegat Light was. With the harlequins were well over 100 Long-tailed Ducks, many displaying and some males nearly fully molted into their lovely black and brown spring plumage. Many Red-breasted Mergs fished in the inlet and bay, and all the other usual good sea ducks excepting eiders were present. Two Great Cormorants in breeding finery perched on the channel marker at the inlet entrance. Large gulls were everywhere, overwhelmingly Herring Gulls, but a lone adult Lesser Black-backed Gull at the tip of the jetty was the only fancy species I could find. I did see a Herring Gull with greenish-yellow legs (rather than the usual pink/flesh color) ; try as I might, I couldn't make it anything but a Herring Gull; the fact that it was clearly paired with a normal Herring Gull was a good clue.
Peregrine Falcon, Harbor Seal, and about a dozen American Oystercatchers (including one color-banded individual) were other highlights at Barnegat.
This morning's Meadows list follows.
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/24/08
Notes: CMBO's first Monday Meadows Walk of spring
Number of species: 49
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 7 3 pairs plus a floater associating with pair at south impoundment
Gadwall 10
Mallard 20
Blue-winged Teal 1
Northern Shoveler 10
Northern Pintail 2
Green-winged Teal 2
dark-winged scoter sp. 200
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 500 almost all adults, many sitting on water, lots of movement around the point
Double-crested Cormorant 1
American Bittern 1 quick flyby
Turkey Vulture 10
Osprey 1
Northern Harrier 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
American Coot 2 Will these be a "pair"
Piping Plover 6 appeared to be 1 pair south of south trail one pair south of north trail and one pair north of north trail
Killdeer 5
American Oystercatcher 2
Sanderling 80
Dunlin 20
Wilson's Snipe 3
Laughing Gull 1
Bonaparte's Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull 25
Great Black-backed Gull 50
Forster's Tern 1
Mourning Dove 5
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 3
Eastern Phoebe 2
American Crow 50
Tree Swallow 1
Carolina Wren 1
European Starling 10
Yellow-rumped Warbler 10
Eastern Towhee 1
Savannah Sparrow 25
Song Sparrow 5
White-throated Sparrow 5
White-crowned Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 25 no females seen
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 10
This should be a very interesting year for the Meadows, a.k.a. The Nature Conservancy's Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge. In June TNC will mark the one year anniversary of the meadows restoration project. Because of the intense disturbance associated with the restoration, followed by a droughty summer, I believe a healthy invertebrate fauna in the Meadows never developed last year, and of course the vegetation will need several years to mature, and as a result use by birds, shorebirds and ducks in particular, has been less than stellar so far. This year could be very different. We'll publish complete bird lists of each Meadows walk on this web site throughout the year; today's list is below.
Yesterday a few hours at Barnegat Light with some friends were very productive. Harlequins are still there in force, with 35 in ready view along the jetty, and perhaps 50 total could be found in a careful scope-scan from the end of the main jetty - Harlequins were scattered along the jetty north of the inlet, as well as the old 8th street jetty to the south. Whether all the Harlequins wintered there or there were extras from points south is difficult to say; I'm not sure what the peak mid-winter count at Barnegat Light was. With the harlequins were well over 100 Long-tailed Ducks, many displaying and some males nearly fully molted into their lovely black and brown spring plumage. Many Red-breasted Mergs fished in the inlet and bay, and all the other usual good sea ducks excepting eiders were present. Two Great Cormorants in breeding finery perched on the channel marker at the inlet entrance. Large gulls were everywhere, overwhelmingly Herring Gulls, but a lone adult Lesser Black-backed Gull at the tip of the jetty was the only fancy species I could find. I did see a Herring Gull with greenish-yellow legs (rather than the usual pink/flesh color) ; try as I might, I couldn't make it anything but a Herring Gull; the fact that it was clearly paired with a normal Herring Gull was a good clue.
Peregrine Falcon, Harbor Seal, and about a dozen American Oystercatchers (including one color-banded individual) were other highlights at Barnegat.
This morning's Meadows list follows.
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/24/08
Notes: CMBO's first Monday Meadows Walk of spring
Number of species: 49
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 7 3 pairs plus a floater associating with pair at south impoundment
Gadwall 10
Mallard 20
Blue-winged Teal 1
Northern Shoveler 10
Northern Pintail 2
Green-winged Teal 2
dark-winged scoter sp. 200
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 500 almost all adults, many sitting on water, lots of movement around the point
Double-crested Cormorant 1
American Bittern 1 quick flyby
Turkey Vulture 10
Osprey 1
Northern Harrier 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
American Coot 2 Will these be a "pair"
Piping Plover 6 appeared to be 1 pair south of south trail one pair south of north trail and one pair north of north trail
Killdeer 5
American Oystercatcher 2
Sanderling 80
Dunlin 20
Wilson's Snipe 3
Laughing Gull 1
Bonaparte's Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull 25
Great Black-backed Gull 50
Forster's Tern 1
Mourning Dove 5
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 3
Eastern Phoebe 2
American Crow 50
Tree Swallow 1
Carolina Wren 1
European Starling 10
Yellow-rumped Warbler 10
Eastern Towhee 1
Savannah Sparrow 25
Song Sparrow 5
White-throated Sparrow 5
White-crowned Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 25 no females seen
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 10
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Ducks in the Harbor
Several hundred diving ducks accumulated in Cape May Harbor yesterday during a lowish tide (though they were pushed around a bit by boats), including very fun to watch Red-breasted Mergansers that were busy courting as well as a collection of scaup to study - almost all Lessers. E-bird balked at my entry of 70 Ruddy Ducks, which surprised me because a) it is prime duck migration time and b) that was an actual count. I was viewing from the Nature Center of Cape May's deck, primarily, which provides a great overview of the harbor.
Other highlights included a pair of American Oystercatchers right in front of NCCM, and my first Laughing Gulls of the year. I also noted a marked increase in Fish Crows, apparently newly arrived from points south. The full list is below.
Location: Cape May Harbor
Observation date: 3/22/08
Number of species: 25
Brant 50
Greater Scaup 4
Lesser Scaup 50
Long-tailed Duck 1
Bufflehead 75
Common Goldeneye 1
Red-breasted Merganser 150
Ruddy Duck 70
Red-throated Loon 1
Horned Grebe 1
Double-crested Cormorant 2
Turkey Vulture 5
American Oystercatcher 2
Laughing Gull 5
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull 10
Great Black-backed Gull 5
Rock Pigeon 25
American Crow 5
Fish Crow 25
Cedar Waxwing 10
Song Sparrow 5
White-throated Sparrow 5
Red-winged Blackbird 5
House Sparrow 10
Other highlights included a pair of American Oystercatchers right in front of NCCM, and my first Laughing Gulls of the year. I also noted a marked increase in Fish Crows, apparently newly arrived from points south. The full list is below.
Location: Cape May Harbor
Observation date: 3/22/08
Number of species: 25
Brant 50
Greater Scaup 4
Lesser Scaup 50
Long-tailed Duck 1
Bufflehead 75
Common Goldeneye 1
Red-breasted Merganser 150
Ruddy Duck 70
Red-throated Loon 1
Horned Grebe 1
Double-crested Cormorant 2
Turkey Vulture 5
American Oystercatcher 2
Laughing Gull 5
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull 10
Great Black-backed Gull 5
Rock Pigeon 25
American Crow 5
Fish Crow 25
Cedar Waxwing 10
Song Sparrow 5
White-throated Sparrow 5
Red-winged Blackbird 5
House Sparrow 10
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Report: CMBO South Cape May Meadows, Cape May Point walks
Karl & Judy Lukens sent along the following reports from Friday evening's walk at The Meadows, and this morning's walk in Cape May Point. Now that we're rolling full speed ahead into the spring season, CMBO will be offering walks every day of the week. Make sure you check out the Naturalist Calendar to take a look at all the superb walks that are offered this spring.
"Twelve people, including leaders, enjoyed the CMBO Evening Walk at the TNC "Meadows". Ducks were scarce, but we did manage to pickup 3 fly-by Wood Ducks and a few Shovelers and Gadwalls in the ponds, Scoters Gannets and RT Loons were off shore. Nice look at a Wilson's Snipe along the trail."
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/21/08
Number of species: 35
Snow Goose 1
Canada Goose 30
Mute Swan 6
Wood Duck 3
Gadwall 2
Mallard 5
Northern Shoveler 6
Black Scoter 10
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 5
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Great Egret 1
Turkey Vulture 5
American Coot 3
American Oystercatcher 2
Sanderling 10
Wilson's Snipe 1
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Forster's Tern 10
Rock Pigeon 5
Mourning Dove 10
Northern Flicker 1
American Crow 5
American Robin 5
European Starling 10
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 5
Savannah Sparrow 4
Song Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Common Grackle 10
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 5
--------------------------------------------------------------
"Some continuing wind and dark clouds did not dissuade 10 folks from the CMBO Cape May Point Walk this morning. We viewed the beach and ocean, did the Red Trail, and went around Lily Lake. Fairly close Gannets and Scoters, Loons and Long-tails, and a lone Laughing Gull were enjoyed by all. Land birding was also good with 2 Phoebes, a Kingfisher (heard), many Golden-crowned Kinglets, and 2 Brown Creepers, along with many of the usual suspects."
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/22/08
Number of species: 58
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 6
Gadwall 10
American Wigeon 4
Mallard 10
Northern Shoveler 10
Surf Scoter 10
Black Scoter 20
Long-tailed Duck 2
Ruddy Duck 8
Red-throated Loon 6
Northern Gannet 20
Double-crested Cormorant 30
Black Vulture 6
Turkey Vulture 10
American Coot 10
Killdeer 1
American Oystercatcher 3
Greater Yellowlegs 3
Sanderling 2
Dunlin 25
Wilson's Snipe 1
Laughing Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 15
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Downy Woodpecker 2
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 3
Eastern Phoebe 2
Blue Jay 5
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 10
Purple Martin 2
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 3
Brown Creeper 2
Carolina Wren 3
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 20
American Robin 30
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling 25
Cedar Waxwing 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Song Sparrow 2
White-throated Sparrow 10
Dark-eyed Junco 15
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Common Grackle 20
House Finch 10
American Goldfinch 1
House Sparrow 15
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
"Twelve people, including leaders, enjoyed the CMBO Evening Walk at the TNC "Meadows". Ducks were scarce, but we did manage to pickup 3 fly-by Wood Ducks and a few Shovelers and Gadwalls in the ponds, Scoters Gannets and RT Loons were off shore. Nice look at a Wilson's Snipe along the trail."
Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 3/21/08
Number of species: 35
Snow Goose 1
Canada Goose 30
Mute Swan 6
Wood Duck 3
Gadwall 2
Mallard 5
Northern Shoveler 6
Black Scoter 10
Red-throated Loon 5
Northern Gannet 5
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Great Egret 1
Turkey Vulture 5
American Coot 3
American Oystercatcher 2
Sanderling 10
Wilson's Snipe 1
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Forster's Tern 10
Rock Pigeon 5
Mourning Dove 10
Northern Flicker 1
American Crow 5
American Robin 5
European Starling 10
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 5
Savannah Sparrow 4
Song Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Common Grackle 10
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 5
--------------------------------------------------------------
"Some continuing wind and dark clouds did not dissuade 10 folks from the CMBO Cape May Point Walk this morning. We viewed the beach and ocean, did the Red Trail, and went around Lily Lake. Fairly close Gannets and Scoters, Loons and Long-tails, and a lone Laughing Gull were enjoyed by all. Land birding was also good with 2 Phoebes, a Kingfisher (heard), many Golden-crowned Kinglets, and 2 Brown Creepers, along with many of the usual suspects."
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/22/08
Number of species: 58
Canada Goose 10
Mute Swan 6
Gadwall 10
American Wigeon 4
Mallard 10
Northern Shoveler 10
Surf Scoter 10
Black Scoter 20
Long-tailed Duck 2
Ruddy Duck 8
Red-throated Loon 6
Northern Gannet 20
Double-crested Cormorant 30
Black Vulture 6
Turkey Vulture 10
American Coot 10
Killdeer 1
American Oystercatcher 3
Greater Yellowlegs 3
Sanderling 2
Dunlin 25
Wilson's Snipe 1
Laughing Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 15
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Downy Woodpecker 2
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 3
Eastern Phoebe 2
Blue Jay 5
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 10
Purple Martin 2
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 3
Brown Creeper 2
Carolina Wren 3
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 20
American Robin 30
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling 25
Cedar Waxwing 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Song Sparrow 2
White-throated Sparrow 10
Dark-eyed Junco 15
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Common Grackle 20
House Finch 10
American Goldfinch 1
House Sparrow 15
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Friday, March 21, 2008
Fri. 3/21: Pectoral Sandpiper, Horned Lark, raptors and waders on the move
Breezy is once again the word today on the Cape, as a stiff northwest wind continues to buffet the area. CMBO volunteer Steve Rodan joined me to see what was out and about at the State Park this morning.
We spent the majority of our time atop the dune crossover adjacent to the hawk watch platform, hoping to spy some northbound migrants trying to work against the considerable headwind. However, our attention was grabbed first by an almost continuous stream of Bonaparte's Gulls moving west around the point, probably about 200, all said. Another flock was occasionally visible coursing back and forth behind us, at one point just 15 feet over the park trails. Try as we might, we couldn't find any Little or Black-headed Gulls among the Bonies.
Soonafter, I noticed the first Osprey of the morning flapping hard as it made its way across the rips from Delaware...this bird would be the first of 10 we'd tally arriving this morning. 4 American Kestrels and 2 Bald Eagles also passed through- a decent hawk flight by March standards, particularly with a strong headwind. Additionally, there were 2-3 Red-tailed Hawks and 1 Red-shouldered Hawk hanging around, in addition to both vultures.
Singles of Horned Lark and American Pipit flew over, the former giving a decent look as it passed low overhead and continued west along the dunes. A renegade gang of 6 Northern Shovelers flew south toward Delaware, and never seemed to return. The rest of the action offshore wasn't particularly exciting, as you might expect with the winds blowing off the land, but there were 2 Forster's Terns fishing close to shore, a few small flocks of Black Scoters passing by, the odd Red-throated Loon, two's and three's of Red-breasted Megansers, and a few dozen Northern Gannets. A single female Common Goldeneye was winging her way north around the point as well.
A real treat was watching the first Pectoral Sandpiper of the year twist and turn its way through the headwind and arrive over land. It didn't show any signs of stopping; apparently a rather motivated individual. Also on the shorebird front was a flock of about 12 Purple Sandpipers, at least 5 American Oystercatchers, and 4 Killdeer that were causing quite a ruckus. 2 Rusty Blackbirds flew over the parking lot at one point...not a place where I usually expect to see them.
A check of the ibis pond along Reed's Beach Road early this morning revealed 6 Great Egrets and 2 Snowy Egrets. A check of the same pond this afternoon revealed zero wading birds, but instead 35 Green-winged Teal, 3 Hooded Mergansers and a Belted Kingfisher. I also saw my first Barn Swallow of the year while driving past the Beanery this morning.
List from the State Park enclosed-
Location: Cape May Point SP
Observation date: 3/21/08
Number of species: 55
Brant 4
Canada Goose 9
Mute Swan 4
Mallard 6
Northern Shoveler 6
Northern Pintail 7
Green-winged Teal 2
Black Scoter 18
Common Goldeneye 1
Red-breasted Merganser 8
Red-throated Loon 9
Northern Gannet 45
Black Vulture 6
Turkey Vulture 9
Osprey 10
Bald Eagle 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 3
American Kestrel 4
Killdeer 4
American Oystercatcher 5
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Purple Sandpiper 12
Bonaparte's Gull 225
Ring-billed Gull 6
Herring Gull 65
Great Black-backed Gull 20
Forster's Tern 2
Rock Pigeon 3
Mourning Dove 4
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 1
American Crow 6
Fish Crow 3
Horned Lark 1
Tree Swallow 3
Carolina Chickadee 2
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
American Robin 30
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 18
American Pipit 1
Cedar Waxwing 20
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 8
Savannah Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 6
Rusty Blackbird 2
Common Grackle 15
Brown-headed Cowbird 30
House Finch 4
House Sparrow 6
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
We spent the majority of our time atop the dune crossover adjacent to the hawk watch platform, hoping to spy some northbound migrants trying to work against the considerable headwind. However, our attention was grabbed first by an almost continuous stream of Bonaparte's Gulls moving west around the point, probably about 200, all said. Another flock was occasionally visible coursing back and forth behind us, at one point just 15 feet over the park trails. Try as we might, we couldn't find any Little or Black-headed Gulls among the Bonies.
Soonafter, I noticed the first Osprey of the morning flapping hard as it made its way across the rips from Delaware...this bird would be the first of 10 we'd tally arriving this morning. 4 American Kestrels and 2 Bald Eagles also passed through- a decent hawk flight by March standards, particularly with a strong headwind. Additionally, there were 2-3 Red-tailed Hawks and 1 Red-shouldered Hawk hanging around, in addition to both vultures.
Singles of Horned Lark and American Pipit flew over, the former giving a decent look as it passed low overhead and continued west along the dunes. A renegade gang of 6 Northern Shovelers flew south toward Delaware, and never seemed to return. The rest of the action offshore wasn't particularly exciting, as you might expect with the winds blowing off the land, but there were 2 Forster's Terns fishing close to shore, a few small flocks of Black Scoters passing by, the odd Red-throated Loon, two's and three's of Red-breasted Megansers, and a few dozen Northern Gannets. A single female Common Goldeneye was winging her way north around the point as well.
A real treat was watching the first Pectoral Sandpiper of the year twist and turn its way through the headwind and arrive over land. It didn't show any signs of stopping; apparently a rather motivated individual. Also on the shorebird front was a flock of about 12 Purple Sandpipers, at least 5 American Oystercatchers, and 4 Killdeer that were causing quite a ruckus. 2 Rusty Blackbirds flew over the parking lot at one point...not a place where I usually expect to see them.
A check of the ibis pond along Reed's Beach Road early this morning revealed 6 Great Egrets and 2 Snowy Egrets. A check of the same pond this afternoon revealed zero wading birds, but instead 35 Green-winged Teal, 3 Hooded Mergansers and a Belted Kingfisher. I also saw my first Barn Swallow of the year while driving past the Beanery this morning.
List from the State Park enclosed-
Location: Cape May Point SP
Observation date: 3/21/08
Number of species: 55
Brant 4
Canada Goose 9
Mute Swan 4
Mallard 6
Northern Shoveler 6
Northern Pintail 7
Green-winged Teal 2
Black Scoter 18
Common Goldeneye 1
Red-breasted Merganser 8
Red-throated Loon 9
Northern Gannet 45
Black Vulture 6
Turkey Vulture 9
Osprey 10
Bald Eagle 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 3
American Kestrel 4
Killdeer 4
American Oystercatcher 5
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Purple Sandpiper 12
Bonaparte's Gull 225
Ring-billed Gull 6
Herring Gull 65
Great Black-backed Gull 20
Forster's Tern 2
Rock Pigeon 3
Mourning Dove 4
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 1
American Crow 6
Fish Crow 3
Horned Lark 1
Tree Swallow 3
Carolina Chickadee 2
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
American Robin 30
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 18
American Pipit 1
Cedar Waxwing 20
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 8
Savannah Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 2
Red-winged Blackbird 6
Rusty Blackbird 2
Common Grackle 15
Brown-headed Cowbird 30
House Finch 4
House Sparrow 6
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Trill Practice
CMBO Associate Naturalist Kathy Horn pointed out to me the other day that Villas WMA, besides the draw of its Red-headeded Woodpeckers, is an excellent place to practice identifying trilled bird songs, with Chipping Sparrows, Pine Warblers, Dark-eyed Juncoes, and (in the back) Swamp Sparrows all present. Chipping Sparrows will become a lot thicker there in the next couple weeks, while juncos have already begun fading away to the north.
CMBO devotes a fair amount of the Cape May School of Birding to identifying birds by sound, including several workshops devoted to just that. In particular, check out Birding By Ear - South (May 1-2), Warblers by Sight and Sound (May 3-4 or May 5-6) and Birding by Ear - North (May 30-31); more info here.
A trill, by the way, is a very rapid series of notes, usually too fast to count easily, and usually staying on the same pitch for most of the song but often rising or falling at the end. Chipping Sparrow's song is kind of the trill reference standard. Trills can have different qualities – some are musical, some are dry, some are buzzy, etc. - and also vary in volume and length. In North America, it's pretty much only certain sparrows and warblers that sing simple trills, although some wrens have trills or trill-like calls, and a few other birds sing songs with mutliple trills on different pitches and/or combined with other sounds.
One important trick in learning bird songs is to group species by similar songs in your mind and on the tapes or cd's you practice with. The "Birding by Ear" cd's do a reasonable job of this, but in this digital age it is fairly simple to load bird song cd's onto computers or i-pods and then create play lists in whatever order you want. For trillers in our region, I'd put together such a play list in the following order:
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Worm-eating Warbler
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Palm Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Tennesee Warbler
CMBO devotes a fair amount of the Cape May School of Birding to identifying birds by sound, including several workshops devoted to just that. In particular, check out Birding By Ear - South (May 1-2), Warblers by Sight and Sound (May 3-4 or May 5-6) and Birding by Ear - North (May 30-31); more info here.
A trill, by the way, is a very rapid series of notes, usually too fast to count easily, and usually staying on the same pitch for most of the song but often rising or falling at the end. Chipping Sparrow's song is kind of the trill reference standard. Trills can have different qualities – some are musical, some are dry, some are buzzy, etc. - and also vary in volume and length. In North America, it's pretty much only certain sparrows and warblers that sing simple trills, although some wrens have trills or trill-like calls, and a few other birds sing songs with mutliple trills on different pitches and/or combined with other sounds.
One important trick in learning bird songs is to group species by similar songs in your mind and on the tapes or cd's you practice with. The "Birding by Ear" cd's do a reasonable job of this, but in this digital age it is fairly simple to load bird song cd's onto computers or i-pods and then create play lists in whatever order you want. For trillers in our region, I'd put together such a play list in the following order:
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Worm-eating Warbler
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Palm Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Tennesee Warbler
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Some additional sightings.....
Karl Lukens reports the following and included a very nice photo of a Piping Plover near Bunker Pond for me to share.
"1-Tues. 3/18 - YB Chat on Red Trail CMP State Park.
2-Wed. 3/19 - Piping Plover near bunker
3- " " - Red-headed Woodpecker plus 8 Phoebes and Rusty Blackbirds at Villas WMA
4- Thurs 3/20 - 4 Canvasbacks, 6 Lesser Scaup on parkway pond at 3.5 mile mark."
CAPE MAY BIRDING HOTLINE - March 20, 2008
This is the Cape May Birding Hotline, a service of New Jersey Audubon Society's Cape May Bird Observatory. This week's message was prepared on Thursday, March 20, 2008. Highlights this week include sightings of BARNACLE GOOSE, EURASIAN WIGEON, BLUE-WINGED TEAL, 'EURASIAN' GREEN-WINGED TEAL, CANVASBACK, COMMON EIDER, RED-NECKED GREBE, NORTHERN GANNET, SNOWY EGRET, LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, SHORT-EARED OWL, PURPLE MARTIN, BARN SWALLOW, NASHVILLE WARBLER, and YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT.
The long-staying BARNACLE GOOSE on Cape Island was last seen in the field across from Hidden Valley, along New England Road, on 3/18.
A NASHVILLE WARBLER was seen along the yellow trail at Cape May Point State Park on 3/14. A YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT was seen along 6th Avenue in West Cape May on 3/19.
A EURASIAN WIGEON and a 'EURASIAN' GREEN-WINGED TEAL were observed at Brig/Forsythe NWR on 3/15.
A LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was seen at the end of Miami Avenue in the Villas on 3/16. 2 RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS continue at Ponderlodge/Villas WMA this week.
New arrivals this week included BLUE-WINGED TEAL at The Beanery/Rea Farm on 3/14, 6 PURPLE MARTINS in Cape May Point on 3/15, and BARN SWALLOWS at Turkey Point and Brig/Forsythe NWR on 3/16. Cape May's first SNOWY EGRET was seen at Lily Lake on 3/20.
RED-NECKED GREBES were seen from Cape May Point State Park and the Cape May-Lewes Ferry on 3/15.
A COMMON EIDER was seen from Stone Harbor Point on 3/15. CANVASBACKS were noted this week in Cape May Point and Heislerville.
2 SHORT-EARED OWLS continued at Jake's Landing through 3/17; 1 was seen at Brig/Forsythe NWR through 3/18. Large numbers of NORTHERN GANNETS continue to be seen in the mouth of Delaware Bay this week.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Both CMBO Centers will be CLOSED on SUNDAY, MARCH 23 for the Easter holiday.
CMBO's Northwood Center in Cape May Point will be open 7 days a week beginning APRIL 1.
See Life Paulagics has rescheduled its pelagic trip out of Cape May to SUNDAY, APRIL 13. The boat is scheduled to leave at 6:00 AM and return around 6:00 PM. For more information, contact them at 215-234-6805 or go to their web site at http://www.paulagics.com/.
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 hours are as follows: Northwood Center on East Lake Drive in Cape May Point will be closed on Tuesdays until APRIL 1. The center will be open Wednesday-Monday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Center for Research and Education on Rt. 47 in Goshen is open Tuesday-Sunday, 9:30- 4:30.******
The Cape May Birding Hotline is a service of the New Jersey Audubon Society'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 discount in the stores).
Good Luck and Good Birding!
The long-staying BARNACLE GOOSE on Cape Island was last seen in the field across from Hidden Valley, along New England Road, on 3/18.
A NASHVILLE WARBLER was seen along the yellow trail at Cape May Point State Park on 3/14. A YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT was seen along 6th Avenue in West Cape May on 3/19.
A EURASIAN WIGEON and a 'EURASIAN' GREEN-WINGED TEAL were observed at Brig/Forsythe NWR on 3/15.
A LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was seen at the end of Miami Avenue in the Villas on 3/16. 2 RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS continue at Ponderlodge/Villas WMA this week.
New arrivals this week included BLUE-WINGED TEAL at The Beanery/Rea Farm on 3/14, 6 PURPLE MARTINS in Cape May Point on 3/15, and BARN SWALLOWS at Turkey Point and Brig/Forsythe NWR on 3/16. Cape May's first SNOWY EGRET was seen at Lily Lake on 3/20.
RED-NECKED GREBES were seen from Cape May Point State Park and the Cape May-Lewes Ferry on 3/15.
A COMMON EIDER was seen from Stone Harbor Point on 3/15. CANVASBACKS were noted this week in Cape May Point and Heislerville.
2 SHORT-EARED OWLS continued at Jake's Landing through 3/17; 1 was seen at Brig/Forsythe NWR through 3/18. Large numbers of NORTHERN GANNETS continue to be seen in the mouth of Delaware Bay this week.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Both CMBO Centers will be CLOSED on SUNDAY, MARCH 23 for the Easter holiday.
CMBO's Northwood Center in Cape May Point will be open 7 days a week beginning APRIL 1.
See Life Paulagics has rescheduled its pelagic trip out of Cape May to SUNDAY, APRIL 13. The boat is scheduled to leave at 6:00 AM and return around 6:00 PM. For more information, contact them at 215-234-6805 or go to their web site at http://www.paulagics.com/.
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 hours are as follows: Northwood Center on East Lake Drive in Cape May Point will be closed on Tuesdays until APRIL 1. The center will be open Wednesday-Monday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Center for Research and Education on Rt. 47 in Goshen is open Tuesday-Sunday, 9:30- 4:30.******
The Cape May Birding Hotline is a service of the New Jersey Audubon Society'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 discount in the stores).
Good Luck and Good Birding!
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
World Series of Birding Forum....now LIVE!!!!
I wanted to post this exciting news again given that we are less than two months away from the big event!!!! In fact, according to the WSB Countdown Clock there are 51 days, 22 hours, 19 minutes and 30...29...28...27...26...25.... seconds and counting.Say you are on a team, lets call it Team Zeiss, and you are looking to find out some information on whether or not the Barnacle Goose is still hanging around Cape Island. You have two choices, head to "View from the Cape" and see if Don, Tom or I have posted a sighting in the last few days or.....now you can check the WSB Forum. There are sections for scouting the North, the South and even Cape Island (Zen Zugunruhe don't go hoping I'll give up all the Northwood Nightjars hidden locations!) Other sections deal with rule updates and the Digi Competition.
Click on the following link to get to the Forum directly or the second link to to go directly to the Forum How-To Guide page.
So now, what's keeping you from forming that WSB team you have always wanted? Now you can post in the Miscellaneous section "Looking for team members!" Remember, all the funds raised go to a good cause. So stop sitting around complaining about what's wrong with the world and who's not doing what and raise some monies for your favorite environmental organization (it doesn't even have to be CMBO or NJAS, though we'd be most appreciative if we were your favorite.) Heck, you could even raise pledges for your favorite birding website.....wwwBirdCapeMay.org!!!! That's what my team does.
Birds on the way...
Not to step on David LaPuma's toes, but before he gets the spring migration forecast fired up...
A check of the radars on the National Weather Service website reveals that there is some apparent bird migration occurring tonight, mainly in the southeast. There also appears to be some birds migrating north from Cuba...maybe some of Belleplain's breeding warblers are in that bunch coming across the Strait tonight. If nothing else, it's fun to think about all the different species those little blue dots could represent, or how many of them will wind up in Cape May during the next few weeks.
[Image Courtesy of the National Weather Service]
A check of the radars on the National Weather Service website reveals that there is some apparent bird migration occurring tonight, mainly in the southeast. There also appears to be some birds migrating north from Cuba...maybe some of Belleplain's breeding warblers are in that bunch coming across the Strait tonight. If nothing else, it's fun to think about all the different species those little blue dots could represent, or how many of them will wind up in Cape May during the next few weeks.[Image Courtesy of the National Weather Service]
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Eastern Golden Eagles
Tom Magarian, a familiar name to many of you because he served as a hawk counter here in fall 2004, 2005 and 2006, was in at CRE today, fresh from counting hawks at Tussey Mountain near State College, PA. Tom told me they had over 200 Golden Eagles this month!
I wondered where all those birds breed, and the answer, it turns out, is what you'd expect: eastern Canada. Tom put me onto a very cool web site where you can track the day-by-day migrations of GPS-transmitter equipped Goldens - many of them display migration paths where they elude watches on the Kittatinny Ridge as well as Duluth. I was also surprised to see the variety of wintering ranges these birds used - from New Brunswick, Canada all the way down to Kentucky. It's also interesting to get a sense of the size of a Golden Eagle's winter range - many of which were mapped at well over 20 miles across! This explains why wintering Goldens such as those we see at Jake's Landing can be so elusive - they might be far away from the place they were last reported only a day later.
I wondered where all those birds breed, and the answer, it turns out, is what you'd expect: eastern Canada. Tom put me onto a very cool web site where you can track the day-by-day migrations of GPS-transmitter equipped Goldens - many of them display migration paths where they elude watches on the Kittatinny Ridge as well as Duluth. I was also surprised to see the variety of wintering ranges these birds used - from New Brunswick, Canada all the way down to Kentucky. It's also interesting to get a sense of the size of a Golden Eagle's winter range - many of which were mapped at well over 20 miles across! This explains why wintering Goldens such as those we see at Jake's Landing can be so elusive - they might be far away from the place they were last reported only a day later.
Legislation awaits the signature of the Governor....
The following is a press release which I just received from Eric Stiles (NJAS VP for Conservation) in regards to the efforts to garner NJ legislation that would effectively ban further horseshoe crab harvests. In effort to keep the birding public at large abreast of the situation I figured that I'd share it with you in this forum. Enjoy!
Legislation Bans Horseshoe Crab Harvest in NJ
NJ Legislators Pass Important Act to Save Shorebirds from Extinction
Assemblyman John McKeon - 973.275.1113
Assemblyman Douglas Fisher - 856.455.1011
Senator Robert Gordon - 201.703.9779
Senator Joseph Vitale - 732.855.7441
Eric Stiles, NJ Audubon Society - 908.240.9316
Tim Dillingham, American Littoral Society- 732.245.8332
Jeff Tittel, Sierra Club - 609.558.9100
Maya van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper - 215.801.3053
"
The legislation cleared the Assembly on Thursday, March 10 by a vote of 70 to 6 and the Senate on Monday, March 17 by a vote of 39 to 0.
"
Red Knots, a robin-sized shorebird, come to the Delaware Bay each spring after flying non-stop from
"New Jerseyans are proud of the
Due to the reckless overharvest of horseshoe crabs and a subsequent rapid decline of their eggs, the Red Knot population has plummeted from over 100,000 to only 14,800 currently wintering in Tierra del Fuego, at the southern tip of
"Over twenty leading scientists from four continents agree that the Red Knot is facing imminent extinction unless we take strong measures to secure their food supply," said Assemblyman Douglas Fisher (D). "Conservation is critical to the economy of the
"The
"The legislature has really stepped up to protect the natural resources of the
"We commend the legislature to overturn the outrageous act of the NJ Marine Fisheries Council taking special interests over the public interest," said Jeff Tittel, Executive Director, Sierra Club - New Jersey Chapter. "For a few thousand dollars worth of permits you can no longer destroy an entire species and an ecosystem."
The Delaware Riverkeeper Maya van Rossum commented that "the legislators saw the clear and compelling need to protect this vital natural treasure. I commend the strong bi-partisan support and leadership."
"The action of the
CMBO Cape May Point Walk- 3/15/08
From Karl Lukens; re: the CMBO Cape May Point Walk (held Saturdays, starting at 8:00 a.m., until the end of the month. Meets at the Cape May Point State Park on the Hawk watch platform.
"Nice morning for the CMBO Cape May Point Walk. The great Gannet show
continues around the point along with the usual suspects, Black and Surf
Scoters, Long-tails, RT Loons, Horned Grebe, and RB Merganser. An Eastern
Phoebe near Lily Lake was a new arrival. Other land birds included noisy
Fish Crows, Golden-crowned Kinglets, Cedar Waxwings, and an Eastern
Meadowlark."
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/15/08
Number of species: 55
Snow Goose 5
Brant 10
Canada Goose 5
Mute Swan 4
American Wigeon 2
Mallard 2
Northern Shoveler 1
Green-winged Teal 1
Surf Scoter 25
Black Scoter 25
Long-tailed Duck 5
Red-breasted Merganser 1
Ruddy Duck 10
Red-throated Loon 5
Horned Grebe 1
Northern Gannet 200
Turkey Vulture 8
American Coot 20
Killdeer 2
American Oystercatcher 4
Ruddy Turnstone 2
Sanderling 2
Purple Sandpiper 2
Ring-billed Gull 15
Herring Gull 15
Great Black-backed Gull 5
Rock Pigeon 20
Mourning Dove 10
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Downy Woodpecker 2
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 5
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 5
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
Carolina Wren 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet 5
American Robin 50
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 5
Cedar Waxwing 50
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Fox Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 10
White-throated Sparrow 15
Dark-eyed Junco 15
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Eastern Meadowlark 1
Common Grackle 30
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
House Finch 10
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird
"Nice morning for the CMBO Cape May Point Walk. The great Gannet show
continues around the point along with the usual suspects, Black and Surf
Scoters, Long-tails, RT Loons, Horned Grebe, and RB Merganser. An Eastern
Phoebe near Lily Lake was a new arrival. Other land birds included noisy
Fish Crows, Golden-crowned Kinglets, Cedar Waxwings, and an Eastern
Meadowlark."
Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 3/15/08
Number of species: 55
Snow Goose 5
Brant 10
Canada Goose 5
Mute Swan 4
American Wigeon 2
Mallard 2
Northern Shoveler 1
Green-winged Teal 1
Surf Scoter 25
Black Scoter 25
Long-tailed Duck 5
Red-breasted Merganser 1
Ruddy Duck 10
Red-throated Loon 5
Horned Grebe 1
Northern Gannet 200
Turkey Vulture 8
American Coot 20
Killdeer 2
American Oystercatcher 4
Ruddy Turnstone 2
Sanderling 2
Purple Sandpiper 2
Ring-billed Gull 15
Herring Gull 15
Great Black-backed Gull 5
Rock Pigeon 20
Mourning Dove 10
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Downy Woodpecker 2
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 5
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 5
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
Carolina Wren 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet 5
American Robin 50
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 5
Cedar Waxwing 50
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 10
Fox Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 10
White-throated Sparrow 15
Dark-eyed Junco 15
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Eastern Meadowlark 1
Common Grackle 30
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
House Finch 10
House Sparrow 10
This report was generated automatically by eBird
Good News for Horsehoe Crabs and Red Knots
A bill extending the ban on horseshoe crab harvest in New Jersey was passed 39-0 yesterday in the NJ State senate, and now goes to Governor Corzine for his signature. The bill, if signed, will reverse the ridiculous, science-ignoring decision of the state marine fisheries council, which would have allowed a limited but significant harvest of crabs this year. NJAS conservation and research staff have worked tirelessly on this issue, in Trenton, Washington, and on the Delaware Bay Shore, as have many partner organizations, and with good reason, given the catastrophic decline of the Red Knot in recent years. Thank-you to all our members and supporters, especially those who helped apply political pressure to ensure this bill passed the legislature in a timely fashion - and please keep it up!