BirdCapeMay.org

The list of birds below was just emailed to me from one of the walk leaders. Looks like heading out on a CMBO walk might be a good idea.

Good walk this morning. "Good" birds were;
1 Black Tern
2 Gull-billed Terns at Bunker pond,
Peregrine Falcon
1 Mississippi Kite- JG note-very good bird this time of year!
2-3 Yellow Warblers
1 Blue Grosbeak
3 Orchard Orioles.

First, I'd like to say sorry if anyone had any issues with the map I photo shopped yesterday. I anticipated that the photo would be displayed at a larger size. I guess you can chalk it up to a new website in it infancy. As with all sites there is constant tweaking to be done and bugs to be worked out.

That leads me to ponder; where did we get the phrase "bugs to be worked out"? Anyone have any ideas? Feel free to email if you know.

Today is one of those days......it's so gorgeous outside that hate to think of having to be inside at work all day. Even worse I had a hard time deciding where to go birding. With the passage of a cool front (fall's here!) I thought, maybe Higbee would be good to try for a few of the early passerine migrants. But, since I had predicted that shorebirds would be showing up in numbers I figured that I'd try the CMMBR again.

I still maintain that the property needs a good bit more water to be truly a great shorebirding spot. Though, there were slightly inflated numbers of some species in comparison to my visit there last week. Least sandpiper numbers certainly have grown at the CMMBR. Just a note for anyone who is planning on birding this location. Most all of the shorebirds I encountered were seen from the east trail (the one closer to town) and all on the east side of the trail. Most who are not familiar with the geography of the Cape would think that what I am calling east is north, just something to keep in mind.

So following in Don Freiday's footsteps, I have decide to use e-Bird to keep track of my sightings as well as make posting a list in it's entirety easier. In fact, I would encourage all of you to use e-Bird for keeping record of your sightings. Not only does it do most of the work for you, you are contributing to science as well. For those whom are unfamiliar with e-Bird, check it out at https://ebird.org/content/ebird/index.html

My most exciting observations of the morning were 3 Northern gannets flying south over the ocean. By the way there were big numbers of birds moving around out there today. Mostly Laughing gulls and various terns but all in pretty good numbers. The second was hearing the resident Northern bobwhite calling in the distance. Bobwhite is a good bird on the island with only a pair or two left. I was lucky enough to see a male with three chicks at the back feeders of the Northwood Center last summer.


This time my list is in a particular order. An "X" by a species mean that there were numbers present and I did not make note of exact counts. More than 100 would probably be a good bench mark.

Location: Cape May County, NJ, US
Observation date: 7/21/07
Notes: Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge
Number of species: 39

Canada Goose 66
Mute Swan 15
Mallard 26
Northern Bobwhite 1
Northern Gannet 3
Great Blue Heron 2
Green Heron 1
Black Vulture 3
Turkey Vulture 5
Osprey 3
Semipalmated Plover 27
Killdeer 15
American Oystercatcher 2
Lesser Yellowlegs 1
Solitary Sandpiper 1
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Sanderling 72
Semipalmated Sandpiper 2
Least Sandpiper 87
Pectoral Sandpiper 3
Laughing Gull X
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull 15
Forster's Tern X
Least Tern X
Tree Swallow 5
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 2
Barn Swallow 3
Northern Mockingbird 6
Cedar Waxwing 2
Yellow Warbler 3
Song Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 1
Bobolink 2
Red-winged Blackbird 5
Common Grackle 25
House Finch 2
American Goldfinch 1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

You have reached the Cape May Birding Hotline, a service of New Jersey Audubon Societys Cape May Bird Observatory. This weeks message was prepared on Friday July 20, 2007. Highlights this week include sightings of ROSEATE SPOONBILL, GULL-BILLED TERN and CURLEW SANDPIPER.

ANNOUNCEMENT:

We are pleased to announce the launch of CMBOs new, dynamic website; http://www.birdcapemay.org/. This site promises to be a virtual Cape May if you will. With daily to semi-daily sightings reports you can log on to see what is happening in Cape May in real time. Now, you can bird Cape May every day.


Now for the hotline;

The ROSEATE SPOONBILL, found on 7/12, continues to be seen at Brigantine NWR as of yesterday 7/19. Most observations are in the early morning and late evening; all came from the freshwater wetlands around the gull pond tower. Occasionally the bird is viewed in the west pool roosting in shrubs early/late in the day or in trees west of gull pond. Please continue to report sightings of this bird.

Also at Brigantine NWR during the week were: LEAST BITTERN, CATTLE EGRET, GULL-BILLED TERN (many), CASPIAN TERN and WHIMBREL.

A CURLEW SANDPIPER was found at Stone Harbor Point on the evening of 7/18 at low tide. The bird was again viewed on 7/19 in the vicinity at high tide. It is assumed that one might have a good chance to see this bird from the free bridge to Nummy Island at low tide.

Up to four GULL-BILLED TERNS have been frequenting the Cape May Point State Park at Bunker pond. Look for the birds roosting with other terns on the sandbar near the new non-public board walk.


CMBO Bookstore hours are as follows; Northwood Center on East Lake Drive in Cape May Point; summer hours, Wednesday- Monday 9:30-4:30. The Northwood Center will be closed on Tuesdays. The Center for Research and Education on Rt. 47 in Goshen is open Tuesday- Sunday 9:30- 4:30. At least one CMBO center will be open everyday to serve our members needs.


The Cape May Birding Hotline is a service of the New Jersey Audubon Societys 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 $35 per year; $45 for families. You can call either center to become a member or visit. Become a member in person and youll receive your choice of a FREE gift (in addition to member discount in the stores).

Good Luck and Good Birding!

. . . in the form of the, or a, breeding plumaged Stilt Sandpiper that dropped into the same spot at the same time it did exactly one week ago. The spot is the little tern/shorebird island in Bunker Pond at Cape May Point State Park, and once again our Thursday morning walk participants enjoyed nice comparisons between the Stilt Sandpiper and a nearby Short-billed Dowitcher. Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs also offered side-side views, as did multiple Common and Forster's Terns. There is no better way to learn to distinguish similar species than to see them this way, side by side.



Purple Martin chicks are sitting visible in the martin house holes at the state park, and the Least Tern chicks in the South Cape May colony continue to grow and continue to be urged to fly by their parents to fly. It's a funny time of year, really - all this "baby stuff," and yet the shorebirds migrate on.



As do some others. Prior to the walk, I heard two Yellow Warblers "seep" overhead, as well as two Indigo Buntings with their distinctive "zzeep", buzzier than than the warblers'. Bobolinks contiue to fly over as well - "boink" is the best I can do to describe the overhead note of this species.

The full list for today's walk follows:

Location: Cape May Point SP
Observation date: 7/19/07
Notes: CMBO's Thursday "Bird Walk for All People," co-led by Bert Hixon. Hot, clear/hazy, light south wind.
Number of species: 45
Canada Goose 1
Mute Swan 25
Great Blue Heron 2
Great Egret 5
Snowy Egret 15
Glossy Ibis 10
Osprey 2
Piping Plover 1 1 juv in Bunker Pond
Killdeer 1
Greater Yellowlegs 5
Lesser Yellowlegs 10
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Sanderling 10
Semipalmated Sandpiper 1
Least Sandpiper 10
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Stilt Sandpiper 1
Short-billed Dowitcher 10
Laughing Gull 50
Herring Gull 10
Great Black-backed Gull 2
Gull-billed Tern 1
Royal Tern 3
Common Tern 50
Forster's Tern 30
Least Tern 75
Black Skimmer 2
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 5
Eastern Kingbird 2 Female now sitting on nest (construction observed 1 wk ago)
Fish Crow 5
Purple Martin 50
Tree Swallow 5
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 2
Barn Swallow 10
Carolina Wren 1
Gray Catbird 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 15
Yellow Warbler 2 flyover
Northern Cardinal 1
Indigo Bunting 2
Bobolink 6 flyover
Red-winged Blackbird 5
House Sparrow 5
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

All,

Just a quick post to let you know we received a call this morning to the Northwood Center (less than 20 min. ago) that the ROSEATE SPOONBILL is still being seen at the Gull Pond Tower area at the Brigantine NWR.

Karl Lukens reports that the CMBO morning walk at Cape May Point State Park had good numbers of shorebirds, especially Short-billed Dowitchers, with 75+. Also a couple of Gull-billed Terns, both of these were sitting with the Forster's and Commons on a sand bar in Bunker Pond. Later one flying over Lighthouse pond may have been a third bird.

A low-tide walk at Norbury's Landing, on the Delaware Bayshore about 10 miles north of Cape May Point, yielded the first Brown Pelican of the summer at this location for me. Even more exciting, a tight migrating flock of 26 Willets (distant and in the sun, but based on shape and thick bill structure I believe Eastern) flew south along the bayshore and then dispersed, coalesced, and crossed the bay. Eastern Willets get out of town early, any willet after July is likely a Western. Something to pay attention to, since Eastern and Western Willet are a very likely future "split."

Also exciting were several juvenile Least Terns of this year's brood, flying well and being fed by attending parents. These birds were farther along than those we saw at the meadows just yesterday - I wonder where they are from.

Least Sandpipers, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper were all new since spring. I was expecting Sanderlings, but none appeared. Perhaps next time.
Complete list is below.

Location: Norbury's Landing
Observation date: 7/17/07
Notes: Walked north from the landing ~ 1 mile, low tide, incoming on return.
Number of species: 28
Mallard 1
Brown Pelican 1 First I've seen at Norbury's.
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 1
Snowy Egret 10
Osprey 2
Clapper Rail 8 Several calling in slow series of keks that make you want to say it's a King, haven't heard this call pattern until today.
Willet 30 Includes a flock of 26 flying south along the beach, then heading out across the bay, in the sun and silouetted but pretty sure Eastern.
Spotted Sandpiper 4
Semipalmated Sandpiper 1 first since may
Least Sandpiper 30 first since may
Laughing Gull 50
Herring Gull 10
Great Black-backed Gull 5
Forster's Tern 4
Least Tern 10 There were 1-2 fledglings with the adults, begging and being fed but flying well
Black Skimmer 7
Eastern Kingbird 3
Purple Martin 3
Barn Swallow 25 a big increase from last visit, includes new fledglings no doubt
Carolina Wren 1
American Robin 1
Northern Mockingbird 2
Common Yellowthroat 3
Northern Cardinal 1
Red-winged Blackbird 8
Common Grackle 2
House Sparrow 2
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

This morning's walk at the Nature Conservancy's Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge, a.k.a. the Meadows, produced many flyby shorebirds and some on the ground (complete list below.) The highlight was a breeding plumage Stilt Sandpiper, which could be the same individual found at Bunker Pond last Thursday. If it was, it seemed to have less red-orange on the ear coverts than it did only 4 days ago, so I'm not sure.

The fledgling Least Terns were another highlight. They are beginning to take their maiden flights, stretching to 20 yards or so before they crash-land, still staying within the roped-off colony. The adults entice their offspring to fly by carrying fish nearly to the barred-backed young, then flying up and away again. We saw both spearing and sand eels brought to the colony.

Of note were two recently fledged juvenile Herring Gulls, very fresh and neat on the back and with noticeably shorter bills than the adults. I've heard that Herring Gulls have been nesting on top of some of the buildings along Ocean Drive, this could be the closest place they are nesting to Cape May Point and the origin of these birds, but there is no way to be sure.

Today's list:

Location: South Cape May Meadows
Observation date: 7/16/07
Notes: CMBO's Monday walk. Counts ending in 5 or 0 are estimates, not actual. Not all birds were seen by all people.
Number of species: 55
Canada Goose 30
Gadwall 2
Mallard 40
Northern Bobwhite 1
Double-crested Cormorant 2
Great Blue Heron 2
Great Egret 5
Snowy Egret 10 Increased from previous weeks, have more fish moved into the meadows?
Black-crowned Night-Heron 3
Turkey Vulture 1
Osprey 3
Semipalmated Plover 1
Piping Plover 3
Killdeer 5
American Oystercatcher 3
Greater Yellowlegs 12
Lesser Yellowlegs 7
Solitary Sandpiper 1
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Sanderling 8
Least Sandpiper 15
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Stilt Sandpiper 1
Short-billed Dowitcher 20 Many flybys, 3 on ground
Laughing Gull 200
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull 50
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 1st summer
Great Black-backed Gull 50
Common Tern 10
Forster's Tern 20
Least Tern 40 We observed some of the chicks making their first flights, crash-landing again within the colony.
Black Skimmer 3
Rock Pigeon 10
Mourning Dove 1
Eastern Kingbird 1
Fish Crow 4
Purple Martin 10
Tree Swallow 3
Barn Swallow 15
Carolina Wren 1
American Robin 10
Gray Catbird 1
European Starling 60
Yellow Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 4
Song Sparrow 3
Northern Cardinal 1
Indigo Bunting 1
Bobolink 14 mostly high overhead
Red-winged Blackbird 8
Common Grackle 1
Brown-headed Cowbird 1
House Finch 2
House Sparrow 4
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

So we decided to head up to Brigantine NWR to look for the Roseate spoonbill that has been hanging around in the gull tower pond area since 7/12/07.


To make a long story short, we arrived and no one had seen the bird since morning. Having read the reports we figured we might have a good chance of seeing the bird since it had been observed the last two nights somewhere between 6:30 and 7:30, if I remember the posts correctly.

Well, it seems that 6:30 is the witching hour for this bird. We were all standing around when I noticed a bird that looked a little odd. It's been a while since I've seen a spoonbill, since last I was home in Fla. As it turns out my search image didn't fail me. It must be that birding by GISS stuff they all keep talking about around here.


We did have a few other nice birds on the rest of the drive around. I've included the list of species and then a few photos (sorry none of the spoonbill). Oh, I almost forgot to mention the new hybrid we observed this evening. My best guess is that this is a Louisiana (or Tricolored) ibis. Interesting bird.


Birds in no particular order;


Roseate spoonbill, Great egret, Snowy egret, Glossy ibis, Gull-billed tern- a very scientific, lots, Laughing gulls, Black-crowned night-heron, Great blue heron, Canad goose, Mallard, Wood duck, Osprey, Peregrine falcon, Greater and Lesser yellowlegs, Spotted sandpiper, 19 Whimbrel, Least and Semi-palmated sandpiper, Pectoral sandpiper, Short-billed dowitcher, Herring and Great black-backed gulls, Caspian and Forster's terns, Eastern meadowlark, Seaside sparrow and probably a few I forgot.


Short-billed dowitchers

Louisiana ibis?



Diamondback terrapin

A post-beach-crowd evening walk today yielded 49 Sanderlings between Cape May Point State Park and 2nd Avenue in Cape May City. This is the first significant accumulation of the little clockwork toys I've seen in Cape May since early June, and an exciting development. Think of where these birds have been since spring - I believe the nearest nesting area for Sanderling is Southhampton Island at the north end of Hudson Bay!

Nearly all were still largely in the lovely orangy breeding dress that can cause the unwary to think they're looking at a Red-necked Stint. Sanderlings behave much differently than stints, or "peep" as we call that group on this side of the Atlantic, and are really much larger, weighing more than twice as much as the average Semi-palmated Sandpiper, for example.

Had time for a small amount of seawatching this morning. After reading all the posts on Jersey Birding and in the sightings log at the Northwood Center about sheawaters (Cory's and Greater) being seen, I had to get out and see if I could add one of these to the year list.

So I headed out to the platform at St. Mary's jetty and spent about 45 min. looking to see what was out on the water today. It was very hazy and there weren't too many birds feeding in the rips. Mostly the feeding birds were Laughing gulls, I had about 240 in one mass at one point. Not a surprising number since the largest colony of nesting laughers in the world is just up the coast in the Stone Harbor area. Well as luck would have it, I have nothing much to report. Birds observed are below.

EDIT: Forgot to mention the three Brown pelicans that flew over this morning. Two adults and one immature bird cruised down the beach while I was looking out over the bay. Wish I had brought my camera along this morning, would have made a nice shot.

One last note, this about the ROSEATE SPOONBILL at Brigantine NWR was gleaned from http://www.birdingonthe.net/, posted to the New Jersey Birding listserv this morning.

"The Spoonbill was seen this morning, 7/15. It flew in from the West Pool at around 6:40am and perched in a tree about 50-75 yards west of the Gull Tower. Another birder told me it was in the same tree last night before heading out to the West Pool."


Birds seen in no particular order;

Common tern
Forster's tern
Least tern
Laughing gull
Great black-backed gull
Herring gull
Purple martin
Barn swallow
Chimney swift
Brown pelican