CAPE MAY BIRDING HOTLINE - THURSDAY, MARCH 25 2010

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

This is the Cape May Birding Hotline, a service of New Jersey Audubon’s Cape May Bird Observatory. This week's message was prepared on Thursday, March 25, 2010. Highlights this week include sightings of BLACK-HEADED GULLS, RED-NECKED GREBE, EURASIAN WIGEON, LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, COMMON EIDER and HARLEQUIN DUCK plus apparent arrivals of SNOWY EGRET, ROYAL TERN, CLIFF SWALLOW, ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW, and BARN SWALLOW; an announcement about a second weekend for the CMBO Optics Sale March 27-28, 2010; and an announcement about CMBO membership.

-For up-to-the-minute Cape May sightings information, photos and downloadable birding maps and checklist of Cape May, visit www.birdcapemay.org . Follow review list sightings and spectacles on www.twitter.com/CMBObirds -

The 3 BLACK-HEADED GULLS continue on the lower Delaware Bay. There is one 1st cycle; an adult which as of March 25 has a nearly full hood; and another adult with a partial hood. Look for these birds from Cape May Point north along the bay at places like Sunset Beach, the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal, the mouth of Cox Hall Creek, and the end of Miami Ave. in the Villas.

A RED-NECKED GREBE was seen in the Great Channel, the body of water flowing under the Stone Harbor free bridge near Nummy Island, most recently on Wednesday, March 24, 2010. The EARED GREBE reported last week has not been reported again.

One drake EURASIAN WIGEON continues on Lighthouse Pond as of Wednesday, March 24, 2010.

A 2nd cycle LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was seen at Stone Harbor Point on Tuesday, March 23, 2010, and an adult was seen on the beach in front of the Cape May Meadows on Monday, March 22, 2010.

3 HARLEQUIN DUCKS, 2 adult males and one immature male, were noted at the 8th Street Jetty in Avalon on Wednesday, March 24, 2010. A female COMMON EIDER was there Thursday, March 25.

Apparent spring arrivals follow. A SNOWY EGRET was seen adjacent to the Cape May Bird Observatory Center in Goshen on Friday, March 19, 2010. An early ROYAL TERN was located on Stone Harbor Point on Tuesday, March 23, 2010. CLIFF SWALLOW, BARN SWALLOW AND ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW all arrived on Cape Island at the Beanery on Wednesday, March 24 2010.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

CMBO’s Optics Sale will be held a second weekend, Saturday and Sunday, March 27 and 28 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the CMBO Center for Research and Education in Goshen. A large selection of closeout, demo, factory-refurbished, new and used optics will be priced to move. Binoculars and spotting scopes from all major brands will be available. There are no advance or phone orders: first come, first served. You must be a member of NJAS or CMBO to take advantage of these great deals, so join today if you’re not already a member.

If you appreciate this hotline service, and care about the birds of Cape May, please consider becoming a member of Cape May Bird Observatory. Join by May 21, 2010 to receive this year’s special edition of CMBO’S annual journal, the Peregrine Observer, featuring accounts and photos of the 2009 Ivory Gull from some of Cape May’s finest birders and photographers; Pete Dunne’s story about his return as Cape May Hawk Counter; 2009 Cape May Migration Count results; and much more! Current members will receive the Peregrine Observer automatically, but please invite your friends to join!

******CMBO SPRING HOURS are as follows: Northwood Center on East Lake Drive in Cape May Point is open daily, 9:30am to 4:30pm. The Center for Research and Education on Rt. 47 in Goshen is open Tuesday through Saturday, 9:30am to 4:30pm; closed Sundays and Mondays (but open Sunday March 28 for the Optics Sale). ******

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 discounts in the stores).

Good Luck and Good Birding!