A Tribute to The Master

Cape May is all about the birds, as anyone who has been here will testify. And yet it's also all about the people. The people who visit from just down the road; the people who stop over for weekend visits from New York or Philadelphia, or Washington DC; the people who come a couple of times a season from every corner of North America - and the people who head to the point from Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia...

We know why they come, they come for the awesome birdwatching. But how do they know to come to Cape May? Simple - because Pete Dunne told them to come. And if Pete Dunne tells you a place is good for birds, it's good for birds. I write this as an all too brief tribute to Pete, since he made the anouncement today that we all will make one day. Pete is stepping into new shoes next summer, not stepping down, or even aside, but fulfilling a different role that will allow him to continue to be the amazing ambassador that he has always been for Cape May Bird Observatory.

And one thing is for sure; the man who first snuck a picnic table into a corner of the state park and started counting raptors at Cape May Point way back in 1976 will be back at the platform, weaving his magic and reminding us all why we are here - and who got us here in the first place.

To read Pete's statement, released by New Jersey Audubon today, follow this link: http://www.njaudubon.org/SectionAboutNJAS/FromthePresident.aspx

In the mean time, the hawks paid their own tribute to The Master today, for it was a truly spectacular Cape May morning that greeted the final Cape May Point walk of the season. Northwest winds rattled the window frames this morning and the temperature was set firmly on 32F as I left home, but the effort was worth it. American Goldfinches, American Robins, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds and American Pipits all featured strongly in a great flight over the point, while Northern Gannets and Ring-billed Gulls flooded into the bay. Smaller numbers of Killdeer were on the move and the odd Bonaparte's Gull joined forces with lingering Forster's Terns. Purple Finches and Fox Sparrows filtered into the area quietly and flocks of mixed sparrows and juncos graced many a side yard in the streets of Cape May Point.

But the real spectacle today came from the Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks that swept effortlessly across the state park and tilted a wing toward The Master.

When Red-tailed Hawks are queueing up to be photographed it's only polite to oblige! Red-tails, like many Buteo species, are notoriously variable in plumage and not many have such a clear and obvious belly-band of streaks as this one [photo by Mike Crewe]

Who can resist a CMBO walk around Cape May Point when spectacularly-marked Red-shouldered Hawks are riding the wind right across Lighthouse Avenue... [photo by Mike Crewe].

Red-shouldered Hawks are pretty special above too, though you don't often get the chance to see the upper side [photo by Mike Crewe]

Huddling up against the cold, the now expected arrival of November Cave Swallows from the southwestern USA has seen a slow trickle of birds so far this year. But that's OK with us as these birds really seem to struggle here this late in the year and just what the species gets out of these late-season movements is hard to understand. Over the last few days, one or two birds have been resting under anything that might vaguely resemble a bridge it seems [photo by Mike Crewe].

And some Cave Swallows just seem to stop where ever they can. This tired individual literally curled up and went to sleep on the grass right in front of the Hawkwatch Platform today. Though it clearly was cold and very tired, ten minutes later it was hawking insects with Tree Swallows over Bunker Pond and the rest seemed to have done it some good. Though perhaps it's a good job there are no feral cats at the state park... [photo by Mike Crewe]

There's birds to be seen at Cape May, with a significant increase in duck numbers over the last 48 hours, like these really spiffy American Wigeon. What would Pete Dunne do tomorrow? He'd go birding... [photo by Mike Crewe]

Evening-primrose brings life to the beach

Cape May's beautiful sandy beaches are much in demand by just about everyone, from sunworshippers to surfers to fishermen; we all want our time on the beach - and there's an awful lot of us, which puts a lot of pressure on the native wildlife which eeks out a living on the Atlantic shore.

One of the many plant species that is officially listed by NJDEP as imperiled in New Jersey because of its rarity, is Seaside Evening-primrose (Oenothera humifusa) but it's a plant that - thankfully - seems to be bucking the downward trend. Seaside Evening-primrose is actually quite widespread along the Cape May coastline, and this year seems to have been a particularly good year for this plant. So why am I mentioning it now? Well this unassuming little plant has really taken off on the South Cape May Beach this year and has provided some great wildlife viewing opportunities. This is a plant that is adapted to growing on coastal sands where, as well as providing us with attractive washes of pale yellow flowers through the late summer and fall months, it also provides food for a whole range of wildlife.

This last week, Seaside Evening-primrose has provided a link between the end of fall and the start of winter. Fall has not been in a hurry to depart Cape May this year, as brief waves of chilly weather have failed so far to get a real grip and sunny weather has prevailed. So much so that butterflies still feature on many of our late season walks and many plants have continued flowering well beyond the dates given for them in most flower books. A single, slender white spike of Nodding Ladies'-tresses, a late-flowering orchid, can still be seen at the Plover Ponds, while our friend the Seaside Evening-primrose continues to flower on the beach. Perhaps this extended season will also give a much needed boost to the worryingly low Monarch population this year and allow just a few more to make it through pupation and head south to Mexico.

The late flowering of the evening-primrose ties in with the late fall, as well as with the lateness of many insects this year, since quite a number of White-lined Sphinx caterpillars have been feeding on the succulent leaves and seed pods. And this brings us to the link with the start of winter, because my late lunchtime stroll on the beach found the evening-primrose center stage again as its pods were providing seeds for a party of Snow Buntings to eat. Connections like this are always interesting and help to show just how important the most insignificant species can turn out to be - lose the evening-primroses and the birds and insects might disappear too.

Though we still await November's traditional 'goody' in the bird line, there's still plenty of good birding to be had around Cape May. Another Golden Eagle showed up at The Beanery on Saturday, continuing an excellent fall for the species; small numbers of Snow Buntings are performing daily on the beaches at the point and the impressive scoter flight of the past couple of weeks still continues. Up at Avalon, the seawatch has been producing some excellent counts of Parasitic Jaegers and Northern Gannets, while a juvenile Brown Booby was reported from there on the morning of November 9th. Keep an eye out for Tundra Swans passing through now in small numbers and, with a northwesterly bringing a prediction of wintery rain on Tuesday, expect cold weather birding to be just around the corner.

Seaside Evening-primrose is marvelously adapted to a life on the beach; its low, spreading habit resists wind in open, exposed places, while the thick covering of silky hairs on its leaves and stems protects it from dessication in a hot, windy, salt-laden environment [photo by Mike Crewe].

My plant survey work over the past two years has shown Seaside Evening-primrose to be widespread along the beachfronts and dunes of Cape May County. However, it remains vulnerable and could all too easily be lost if we don't remember to share our beaches. Notice the gaps in distribution along the barrier islands in what should be suitable habitat for the species; these are all places where beach raking is carried out from the low tide mark all the way back to the dunes.

Caterpillars of most of the sphinx moths can be told by the prominent, hook-like spike on the rear end. White-lined Sphinxes are typical southern chancers, that head north in late summer and lay eggs on suitable larval host plants whenever and where ever the opportunity offers itself. The poor caterpillars on South Cape May Beach are eating plants so small that they can't even climb onto them and have to tolerate being sand-blasted while they munch. Some of these guys probably won't make it this late in the year, but a fresh influx of moths will arrive from the south next year [photo by Mike Crewe].

The first blizzard of winter - a party of Snow Buntings, hunkered down in footprints on the beach. Snow Buntings are highly active birds and flocks regularly erupt suddenly for no apparent reason. This is a defense strategy against predators, along the lines of 'a moving target is harder to hit'. In between feeding bouts, Snow Buntings often hunker down like this in open and exposed locations. They seem to do this during rest periods from eating, during which they spend time preening and probably digesting what they have just eaten. It is likely that resting in open areas like this gives them a good 360 degree view to keep an eye out for predators [photo by Mike Crewe].

Snow Buntings can be hard to approach during their 'sitting out in the open' spells and if you want good views, it is always better to wait until they go back into feeding mode. Snow Buntings have very complex and variable plumage patterns and telling the age and sex of individual birds in the field can often be tricky. However, a bird with this much white in the wing is likely to be a male [photo by Mike Crewe].

Snow Buntings have wonderful color tones in their faces, often carrying the burnished browns and buffs of fall well into the winter - and all topped off by that amazing orangey yellow bill [photo by Mike Crewe].

The crouching style and cryptic colors of Snow Buntings are typical of birds that spend time in open, exposed places and help to reduce the chance of detection by potential predators - and photographers too unfortunately! [Photo by Mike Crewe]

Week in review: 1 - 8 November, 2013

CMBO is pleased to provide weekly summaries of the Cape's birding highlights. Coverage is limited to sightings in Cape May County. Readers should keep in mind that some reports may not be confirmed. Information and photos that may be of use for weekly summaries should be emailed to compiler Tom Reed (coturnicops at gmail dot com). 

Location Abbreviations: ASW (Avalon Seawatch), CMHW (Cape May Hawk Watch), CMPSP (Cape May Pt. State Park), SCMM (South Cape May Meadows)  


--The period began with strong southerly winds ahead of a cold front that arrived 2 Nov. Winds became westerly for about 36 hours and produced good songbird and hawk flights 3-4 Nov. High pressure built over the Cape 5-6 Nov, with light easterly winds and little migration. A cold front with associated rain showers arrived 7 Nov and brought strong NW winds 8 Nov. Notable birds included American White Pelican, White-winged Dove, (possible) Black-chinned Hummingbird, Rufous/Allen's Hummingbird, Western Kingbird, and Red Crossbill.--

WATERFOWL THROUGH RAPTORS
Two Eurasian Wigeon remained at CMPSP/SCMM through 8 Nov (m. ob.). A strong scoter flight occurred 4 Nov, when over 40,000 were recorded at ASW (CB). Unfortunately, most data from ASW was unavailable. Four Common Eiders were reported from the 2nd Avenue Jetty 6 Nov (AMM). Four American White Pelicans were seen soaring east of the Rea Farm/Beanery 3 Nov (CS), and ten American White Pelicans flew south past CMPSP 4 Nov (RC et al.). A lingering Brown Pelican was seen offshore CMPSP 6 Nov (TR). Large hawk flights occurred 3 Nov (1,865 individuals) and 4 Nov (1,005 individuals) [TR]. Noteworthy single-day species totals included 10 Golden Eagles, 403 Red-tailed Hawks, and 152 Red-shouldered Hawks 3 Nov (TR).

American White Pelicans over Cape May Point, 4 Nov. [Photo by Tom Reed]

RAILS THROUGH WOODPECKERS

Multiple Virginia Rails were heard at SCMM throughout the period (m. ob.). A late American Golden-Plover flew over CMHW 7 Nov (TR). Pectoral Sandpipers were still on the move, with sightings from CMHW through 8 Nov (TR). Lesser Black-backed Gulls continue to be found regularly on beaches around Cape May Point (m. ob.). A White-winged Dove flew past CMHW 4 Nov, the first of the season (TR). Two Eurasian Collared-Doves remained in Cape May Point, with the latest sighting 1 Nov (KL). Multiple Long-eared and Short-eared Owls were observed lifting off from SCMM and CMPSP at dusk 3-4 Nov (v. ob.). Small numbers of Northern Saw-whet Owls were banded at SCMM during the period (fide AH). A possible Black-chinned Hummingbird was photographed in a Del Haven backyard 7 Nov (HT). A Rufous/Allen's Hummingbird visited a North Cape May backyard throughout much of the period (BP). 


FLYCATCHERS THROUGH FINCHES 
A Western Kingbird flew past CMHW 4 Nov (TR). Cave Swallows were seen at CMHW Nov 3, 4, and 8 (TR), with a peak of 15 on Nov 3. Barn Swallow sightings continued at CMHW through 8 Nov, and Northern Rough-winged Swallows were observed through 3 Nov. Two Bank Swallows were seen at CMHW 3 Nov, and a Cliff Swallow made an appearance 7 Nov (TR, m. ob.). Largely absent this fall, a small influx of Red-breasted Nuthatches was noticeable around Cape May Point 3 Nov (v. ob.). Also noticeably scarce on Cape Island this fall, a White-breasted Nuthatch flew past CMHW 3 Nov (TR). A huge movement of Eastern Bluebirds (600+) graced the skies over CMHW 8 Nov (TR). An impressive morning flight over Cape May Point 3 Nov was highlighted by approximately 200,000 American Robins (TR, DG, TJ). Over 200 American Pipits migrated past CMHW 8 Nov (TR). Single Lapland Longspurs flew past CMHW Nov 3, 4, 7, and 8 (TR et al.). Snow Buntings have been seen along the Cape May Point beachfront in recent days (v. ob.). An Orange-crowned Warbler was at CMHW 4 Nov (TR). An influx of Vesper Sparrows 3 Nov was headlined by a total of 9 at the Magnesite Plant (SG et al.). Single Grasshopper Sparrows were discovered at CMPSP (MC, MeC) and Cape Island Creek Preserve (DG, TJ) 3 Nov. Multiple Seaside, Saltmarsh, and Nelson's Sparrows were observed at Nummy Island during high tide 7 Nov (AH). Two Red Crossbills flew over CMHW 4 Nov (TR). Very small numbers of Purple Finch and Pine Siskin were recorded throughout the period (v. ob.).

Grasshopper Sparrow at CMPSP, 3 Nov. [Photo by Mike Crewe]

Contributors:
Calvin Brennan, Megan Crewe (MeC), Mike Crewe, Richard Crossley, Sam Galick, Doug Gochfeld, Alec Humann, Tom Johnson, Karl Lukens, Ann Marie Morrison, Beth Polvino, Tom Reed, Clay Sutton, Harvey Tomlinson.

Much Duckage...

Come November, come the ducks and with them, a whole new season of birding at Cape May. While the start of the build-up of ducks begins in late September, there's so much else going on at that time, that the arrival of the early birds almost goes un-noticed. Perhaps this is at least in part because many of these early season arrivals are still in their annoyingly boring, non-breeding plumages. A disheveled assemblage of motley ducks creeps into the area under cover of darkness and struggles to make its presence felt. Until, one day, they all seem to have thrown off their brown attire and replaced it with a multicolored coat of breeding finery.

Ducks are very much in evidence right now and will remain so for the next few months. And ducks have certainly featured in many a Cape May walk of late, so here's a few duck-related pictures to get you all fired up...

Ducks can and do turn up in odd places at this time of year, so do keep an eye out, especially during rough weather or foggy conditions if you live away from the coast. Wandering, or temporarily lost individuals can drop in on any convenient body of water, hang out for a while and then be on their way again. Though Cape May is pretty much all coastal, seaducks are still uncommon on bodies of freshwater here, so it was a nice surprise to see this juvenile male Long-tailed Duck drop in on Bunker Pond for a few minutes during this morning's CMBO walk [photo by Mike Crewe].

As I said, it was only a few minutes, then he was scuttling off across the water. Note here the all black wings with no wingbars or white patches - a classic feature of Long-tailed Duck [photo by Mike Crewe].

Ducks can throw you surprises too. This drab, female Eurasian Wigeon had been on the Cape May Point State Park ponds for several days before it started acting strangely. Actually, what it did was to start using the advertising call of a male Eurasian Wigeon! Once the bird came close enough for a really good look, it was possible to see just a single gray feather, right at the back of the flanks - see it? Yep, it's a young male, not in a hurry - it seems - to be coloring up just yet [photo by Mike Crewe].

Talking of ducks throwing us surprises, three 1st-winter male Ruddy Ducks were hurling themselves full on into their bizarre courtship display, despite the lack of breeding plumage and a decided absence of bright blue bill. Ruddy Ducks are different to most other ducks in that they acquire breeding plumage - and thus do their courtship - in the spring, not the fall or winter. While still wearing their stripy-faced juvenile plumage we were certainly struck by the impression that they were wearing chipmunks as hats!!! [Photo by Sam Galick]

 

But if its migration spectacles that you still hanker for during the duck season, you could do little better than to head up to CMBO's Swarovski Optik-sponsored Seawatch at 7th Street in Avalon. Here, the duck watching really can be truly spectacular. Staring out across the water, the first sign of movement that you get is of squiggly lines in the sky, right in front of the Atlantic City casinos [photo by Mike Crewe].

As the birds come closer, they pass the familiar backdrop of Sea Isle City [photo by Mike Crewe].

Closer still, waves of ducks - now identifiable as scoter by their all black appearance - swing to their left to hurl themselves around the jetty at Townsend's Inlet [photo by Mike Crewe].

And now the ducks are passing right in front of you, sometimes seeming to fill the whole sky with their numbers [photo by Mike Crewe].

And now the real identification can be made - here males and females of both Surf and Black Scoters cluster together for point blank identifications. Compare the long head profile of the patchy-faced male Surfs with the ping pong ball heads of the male Blacks. Now see if you can match up the females with the males... [photo by Mike Crewe].

And if you miss the first line of ducks, there'll be another along in a minute. Indeed, day counts of over 20,000 scoter have been made on a number of days already this season at Avalon so if you haven't enjoyed the spectacle yet, now is the time - but wrap up warm and take plenty of hot coffee [photo by Mike Crewe].

Just in case you need a little more help - and who doesn't?! The latest in the ever-growng line of Peterson Reference Guides is available now at our stores. If you can't get here to buy one, just pick up the phone and we can dispatch a copy to you. And if you are still not convinced at the wonders of a seawatch at Avalon, just flick through this book and see how many of the photos were taken right here at the Avalon Seawatch - and those who put in amazing amounts of volunteer time are rightfully recognized in the dedication...

 

And finally.... the ultimate duck? All this talk of ducks reminds me that the CMBO Harlequin Romance trip to Barnegat Light will be happening on Saturday, December 7th and still has just a few places left. The Harlequin Ducks at this location are pretty much the most southerly, regularly-wintering birds here and this walk offers the very best opportunity to get up close and personal with this charismatic bird - call us now to reserve a space as numbers are limited [photo by Mike Crewe].

 

When dawn to dusk just isn't enough...

At the risk of sounding repetitive, Cape May is simply the best... The past 24 hours has been truly awesome at Cape May and if you need proof, there can surely be no better testament than when the tired, jaded locals who have seen it all before are out on the streets at 11:30PM birdwatching (yes, truly!!). After such nocturnal activities, you would think that a good lie-in the next day is in order - not a bit of it. For the same tired and jaded birders who had seen it all before were up and out at 6:00AM and doing it all over again. Why? Because radar pictures of Cape May were lit up like a New Year's Day firework display as birds flooded through the area like an avian tsunami.

Everyone will have their own stories of today's events and everyone's stories will be very different, as there were birds throughout the area, no matter where you went. Birds just waiting to be watched and enjoyed, from minuscule, dusky Winter Wrens that played hide and seek in the ivy thickets behind the Northwood Center, to the four enormous American White Pelicans that soared across Cape Island mid-afternoon. No-one could possibly have seen all of the birds that passed our way today, for there was just too much to take in during a single day, so all the beaming faces will have tales of their own to relate; here's mine, in pictures....

As so often happens, it all started in a bar! A hair-brained scheme to go and check if we could see any of the blips on the radar and turn them into birds. So many of our songbirds are nocturnal when it comes to migration and their movements take place unseen by us as we sleep in our beds. But coastal migratory hotspots like Cape May offer some unusual birding opportunities, one of them being the remarkable sight of night time migration, lit up by the street lights in town. A small group of us started with what we thought would be a brief vigil outside the Convention Center (and, perhaps more appropriately, outside Morrow's Nut House!!)... [photo by Mike Crewe].

But before long, the number of watchers was entering double figures - including several passers-by! Timed counts indicated that an average of 20 birds per minute were visible passing over our tiny piece of sky - and this continued throughout the hour or so that we were there. Flight calls indicated that the vast majority were American Robins, Yellow-rumped Warblers and assorted sparrow species, but Killdeer, American Woodcock (announced to everyone within a five mile radius by a certain tall person!!), Red-breasted Merganser, Hermit Thrush, Great Blue Heron and Northern Flicker were also in the mix. The next day was clearly going to produce something special [photo by Mike Crewe].

As today dawned, it was apparent that many thousands of American Robins were spread out from horizon to horizon, in many-layered, moving planes. Large numbers were teeming over our house and along Bayshore Road as we soon headed toward Cape May Point [photo by Mike Crewe].

Cape May Point itself focuses and concentrates birds by its geography. As birds reach land's end, they head west along the tip, until they run out of land again. Then its time to make the decision - to cross the bay, or head back north and wait until dark again... Standing at the point gives a great opportunity to watch this focus of landbirds, while also giving opportunities to watch what is ferrying up and down Delaware Bay. Our arrival at the point was soon marked by these two Great Cormorants that were heading back out toward the open ocean [photo by Mike Crewe].

With increasing daylight came better visibility, better photographic opportunities - and more birds! Red-winged Blackbirds were hurtling past in great wadges and seemed to just keep coming and coming... [photo by Mike Crewe].

The tumbling balls of blackbirds were interspersed with open waves of Yellow-rumped Warblers, some of which even started landing on the platform that we were viewing from... [photo by Mike Crewe].

And as the light improved, the views improved too. Red-winged Blackbirds continued to swoosh past us and better light meant more opportunity to compare the streaky females with the red and black males [photo by Mike Crewe].

And still the birds came... A great gathering of Common Grackles hurtled toward the point and filled the skies with their noisy calls for several minutes [photo by Mike Crewe].

Such large gatherings of blackbirds and grackles need to be sifted through carefully for the ones that look a little different. Picking out Rusty Blackbirds from the feathered throng is not easy, but look for the different combination of structural points - a longer tail than a Red-wing, but shorter than a Common Grackle, a spike-like bill and - just visible on this one - a pale eye [photo by Mike Crewe].

Another species that rushed all too quickly through Cape May Point today was American Pipit. This species finds little habitat to its liking in the county and is most often seen (and heard) as it passes overhead. But birds do pause and even spend much of the winter here and can be looked for in open, grassy areas, such as sod farms and airfields. Note this bird's long-tailed, slender appearance, heavily streaked chest, pale belly and clean eyering [photo by Mike Crewe].

Skies were now cloudless and blue, giving ideal viewing conditions for the gathered masses [photo by Megan Crewe].

With our vantage point providing views over the bay, we could witness parties of shorebirds scuttling along the coast, including a number of Killdeers, with their distinctive combination of narrow, white wingbars and orange rumps [photo by Mike Crewe].

As an added bonus, at least three adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls were on the beach nearby. Note the heavily streaked head which readily distinguishes this species from Great Black-backed Gull during the non-breeding season [photo by Mike Crewe].

Though we had a certain amount of fun watching this young Herring Gull try to open this beer can up like a clam by dropping it from a great height, it is nevertheless sobering to reflect on just how many birds get injured by people who think that it's OK to litter Cape May simply because of laziness and lack of respect for others [photo by Mike Crewe].

As the morning 'rush-hour' of birds began to subside, we decided to tour the area and see how many bird species we could tally for the day - without going too crazy. We limited ourselves to the area south of the Cape May canal and headed to Higbee Beach, where birds were literally carpeting the ground in places. Here in the parking lot, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Chipping, White-throated and Song Sparrows and Dark-eyed Junco share a watering hole [photo by Mike Crewe].

Perhaps an iconic image of the day - a Yellow-rumped Warbler stocks up on juniper berries in a landscape stained with brilliant scarlet by the leaves of Virginia Creeper [photo by Mike Crewe].

Meanwhile, down at the Hawkwatch Platform - Northern Harriers were queuing up to be counted as they scoured the cattail marsh for lunch [photo by Mike Crewe].

Choosing 'bird of the day' today was nigh on impossible, there was just too many candidates of impeccable quality. For sheer power and presence though, Golden Eagle must surely have been in the top three - especially as a total of 10 birds was counted at the Hawkwatch. This one is the second of two that we found today [photo by Mike Crewe].

Also high on the list of nice finds today was this Lapland Longspur, that did a complete circuit around us at South Cape May beach in the afternoon. Note the chestnut greater wing coverts and dark corners to the ear coverts. These birds are most readily picked up by their distinctive, triple-note flight call, mixed in with a rather sad-sounding 'pleu' note [photo by Mike Crewe].

Perhaps our nicest find of the day was this Grasshopper Sparrow, that showed unusually well in the large brush pile on the south side of Bunker Pond; another was also found today at the TNC's Cape Island Preserve. Note the plain orange face with pale eyering, but no eyestripe [photo by Mike Crewe].

It's from behind that Grasshopper Sparrows truly look spectacular, with an amazing combination of markings and a full palette of colors. This bird is almost always impossibly skulking away from the breeding grounds but, just occasionally, one decides to buck the trend and perform for the crowd [photo by Mike Crewe].

Not a rare bird, but one that can be hard to photograph well, Vesper Sparrows were much in evidence today with up to nine reported from the Magnesite Plant, four at the state park and others at Higbee Beach and The Beanery [photo by Mike Crewe].

As our day began to draw to a close, we finally put in a little more effort to add a few extra birds. Crawling round the streets of Cape May Point looking for Tufted Titmouse (we never did find one!) we chanced across this Red-breasted Nuthatch. This was our first of this species for the fall and was in marked contrast to last year when we had a huge invasion of these birds as they headed south from the northern forests to find food [photo by Mike Crewe].

As well as visitors, we enjoyed the locals too. This adult Cooper's Hawk has become a regular fixture around Cape May Point, where it seems to have become more tolerant of close human presence and often allows close approach. You can bet that it ate well today!! [photo by Mike Crewe].

As if you needed confirmation that birds were pretty much everywhere around Cape May Point today - here's a chirpy American Robin looking both ways before crossing the road [photo by Mike Crewe].

For the perfect day, always finish as you began. The day had actually started very spectacularly with a partial solar eclipse, right after sunrise, but the wonderful sunset that we experienced was well up to standard too, and a fitting backdrop to watch the gulls go to roost at the end of a perfect day. Oh, and our total for our casual jaunt around the point? A respectable 112 species, the grand finale being two Short-eared Owls and a Long-eared Owl heading out to continue their southward journey. [Photo by Mike Crewe].

By the time you read this, tomorrow will be upon us and another day of Cape May Magic will be under way. November is a very special time at Cape May and if you haven't given it a try before, maybe this year is the time...