Pomarine Jaeger & Manx Shearwater - Cape May Point

A large flock of gulls and terns was feeding in the rips off Cape May Point mid-morning today, and scanning for a while turned up a few nice surprises. The first was an immature Pomarine Jaeger that was beating up on Laughing Gulls fairly close to shore (photos below). Later, Chris Vogel found a Manx Shearwater that played hide and seek for a little while before disappearing. Other uncommon birds in the area included 1 Wilson's Storm-Petrel, 2 Gull-billed Terns, 1 Caspian Tern, and 1 Parasitic Jaeger.

The Pomarine Jaeger was fairly large and slow in level flight, with a chesty build, noticeable white flash in the upperwing, and a "double flash" in the underwing. This "double flash" is caused by the bases of both the primaries and the underwing primary coverts being white, and is a good cue to look for to help identify young Pomarines. Pomarine Jaeger is considerably rarer from shore in Cape May than Parasitic Jaeger, but is probably the most common jaeger species in the pelagic zone off the mid-Atlantic at this time of year.

Pomarine Jaeger off Coral Ave., Cape May Point (photo by Tom Johnson)

Pomarine Jaeger off Coral Ave., Cape May Point (photo by Tom Johnson)