BirdCapeMay.org

On Saturday, May 10th, eighty-eight teams set out at midnight to compete in the 25th annual World Series of Birding.

The 2008 Finish Line Results, Youth Division Results, Award Winners and Cumulative Checklist can be viewed on BirdCapeMay.org under "World Series of Birding". Please say tuned for photos that capture the big day and the 2008 Award Winners - coming soon!

Congratulations to all who participated!

[Red Knots, Sanderlings and Ruddy Turnstones off the Villas on Saturday. Photo by Don Freiday. Click to enlarge.]

I spent part of the weekend volunteering with a friend for NJDEP's Shorebird Stewards program. NJDEP closes sections of the Delaware Bayshore beaches, and the stewards' job is to explain the closures to visitors and report any violations.

We were stationed in the Villas, where about 1000 shorebirds, primarily Sanderlings but also Ruddy Turnstones and about 80 Red Knots, fed on horseshoe crab eggs left from the recent spawning activity during the new moon earlier in the month. Crab spawning peaks during the new and full moons, due to the exceptionally high tides that occur during these times.


[Red Knots stand out in flight - note for example the bird at the top of this group, slightly left of center. There are several other knots in the photo, mostly across the top. Although they appear quite chunky on the ground, knots have the very long, pointed wings of a long-distance migrant - 10 inch birds with a 23 inch wingspread. Compare this wing shape with the shorter wings of the smaller Sanderlings (the dominant species in the photo). Also in the photo are Ruddy Turnstones, and a few Semipalmated Sandpipiers. Photo by Don Freiday. Click to enlarge.]


Response from the public to these closures is decidely mixed. One wonderful little girl, about 6, came up with her family and spoke up before we could say more than hello: "You can't go out on the beach here because the big crabs are there making baby crabs." She and her family were fine with the closures, which last from May 10 to June 6, and only affect certain areas along the bay.

Then there was the 40ish woman jogging, who came up and said "I hate this. I hate to see our tax dollars spent this way." We tried to explain the short duration and sectional nature of the closure, and why it was in place, but there was no convincing her, perhaps because she just had no real affection or empathy for birds or the natural world in general. That's why nature education and interpretation are so important - we can only protect natural resources if we have an enlightened public.

Regardless, no one entered posted areas while we were there, though plenty of beach combers and dog walkers appeared outside the posted areas, moving the birds around.



[Dog walkers about to flush birds outside the areas closed by DEP.]

If you haven't heard, a truly great bird has been discovered in Delaware: Wood Sandpiper. The following is from the Delaware RBA, May 9:

"A new bird to the Delaware State List was a WOOD SANDPIPER found at theimpoundments at Broadkill Beach, part of Prime Hook NWR . Found by SharonLynn of Rehoboth Beach, that bird was seen for the last three days mostly onthe south side by the second pullout. It has also been seen on the northside. This is the first East Coast record since the Rye, New York bird foundby Tom Burke on October 31, 1990. Related to our Yellowlegs, in flight this Eurasian wader flies like a SPOTTED SANDPIPER. A RUFF was also reported atBroadkill Beach on Wednesday morning.


"To get to the Broadkill Beach impoundments to find the WOOD SANDPIPER, turneast at the light for the Rt 16 and Delaware Rt 1 intersection, east of Milton. The turn is marked by a sign for the Prime Hook NWR. From the turnto the refuge headquarters, go straight down the Broadkill Beach Roadanother 2.2 miles. Drive to the sharp left turn with the dirt road andyellow gate at Island Farms. Check the impoundments and marsh east of thissharp turn. Please sign in at the log book at the second pullout on thesouth side of the road.. Parking may be an issue; you may want to park atthe gate to Island Farms and walk east along the edge of the impoundments."

We just received word here at the Northwood Center, from Karen Johnson a CMBO Associate Naturalist, that there is an adult male CURLEW SANDPIPER currently being seen at the Heislerville WMA.

I do not have specific directions for where on the mud flat the bird has been seen but I am sure it will be found in the first pool where the Ruff had been seen a few weeks prior.

We will post updates and photos as we receive them.

A Ruff was discovered this evening along the east path at the South Cape May Meadows (Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge). This is the second Ruff to appear at this location during the past three days. A female Ruff, aka Reeve, was seen for about 20 minutes in the Meadows on Monday morning.

Karl & Judy Lukens sent along the following summary from this morning's stroll around Cape May Point:

"The CMBO Cape May Point Walk this morning started and ended with sea watching where we found a good number of sea birds including numerous Gannets, Forster's, Common, and Least Terns, many Cormorants, Surf and Black Scoter, a Common Eider and a Parasitic Jaeger. A few warblers were found around Lily Lake as well as a Spotted Sandpiper."

Location: Cape May Point
Observation date: 5/7/08
Number of species: 64
Canada Goose 5
Mute Swan 5
Mallard 5
Common Eider 1
Surf Scoter 1
Black Scoter 1
Red-throated Loon 3
Northern Gannet 30
Double-crested Cormorant 200
Great Blue Heron 2
Great Egret 1
Snowy Egret 1
Turkey Vulture 5
Osprey 3
Cooper's Hawk 1
Killdeer 2
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Willet 1
Laughing Gull 15
Ring-billed Gull 1
Herring Gull 5
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Parasitic Jaeger 1
Rock Pigeon 5
Mourning Dove 15
Chimney Swift 5
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Great Crested Flycatcher 2
Eastern Kingbird 1
Blue-headed Vireo 1
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 5
Fish Crow 5
Purple Martin 50
Tree Swallow 2
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 1
Barn Swallow 5
Carolina Chickadee 2
Tufted Titmouse 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 3
House Wren 8
American Robin 5
Gray Catbird 20
Northern Mockingbird 3
European Starling 15
Cedar Waxwing 10
Northern Parula 1
Yellow Warbler 3
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1
Prairie Warbler 1
Black-and-white Warbler 2
Ovenbird 1
Common Yellowthroat 2
White-throated Sparrow 3
Northern Cardinal 5
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1
Red-winged Blackbird 10
Common Grackle 30
Brown-headed Cowbird 5
Orchard Oriole 1
House Finch 5
House Sparrow 10

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/)