Birding at the Migration Mainline

I realize that this is a very bold assertion. There are scores of top birding locations. All have merit and all have attributes that set them apart:

Hawk Mountain, PA. Home to an annual pageant of migrating birds of prey, Point Pelee,Ontario or Crane Creek State Park, OH. Every spring, weather systems squeeze migrants out of the sky. The Salton Sea in CA is famous for concentration of wintering shorebirds and waterfowl and oth­ers.

â�–But Cape May, NJ enjoys all these attributes. A hawk migration that is twice as large as that seen at Hawk Mountain; spring and fall migratory fallouts that are as great as those found along the Great Lakes or the Gulf of Mexico. Wintering concen­trations of seabirds in Delaware Bay and waterfowl in the coastal marshes; an autumn seabird migration nearly a million birds strong; and spring shorebird con­centrations that sheath the beaches of Delaware Bay.

â�–In Cape May, migration is nonstop. In June, the last northbound shorebirds are pass­ing the first southbound birds. Come February (even March!) the last of the southbound seabirds are seen from the beaches with newly arrived beach nesting birds.

Approximately 310 species occur annually and well over 400 have been recorded in the county.

Alexander Wilson the “Father of American Ornithology” first paid tribute to Cape May’s phe­nomenal wealth of birds…“If birds are good judges of excellent climate, Cape May has the finest climate in the United States for it has the greatest variety of birds.”

The biggest problem birders face is trying to decide when to visit Cape May not whether.

â�–April and May; September, October and November are generally regarded as the prime months particularly from the standpoint of species diversity. In April, large numbers of winter­ing birds are staging in the bay. In May, tens of thousands of shorebirds gather on the beaches of Delaware Bay to feast on the bounty of horseshoe crab eggs.

�Warblers? May is best in Spring, September in Fall.

â�–The first southbound shore­birds reach Cape May late June!

â�–Yes, autumn migrants before most peo­ple have put the finishing touches on their summer vacation plans. By early July, coastal marshes are filled with dowitchers, and other tundra breeders. If you can, time your visit to catch the full moon tide in July. Forced off marshes by flood tides, shorebirds head for the high ground of Stone Harbor Point. Freshwater ponds on Cape Island, seasonally drawn down by dedicat­ing sun and wind, are a magnet for migrants. Shorebirds drop in to rest and feed.

�Because of the ameliorating effects of surrounding water, autumn lingers in Cape May. In November, straggling insect eating birds get squeezed out of the north by falling temperatures-- many find sanctuary in Cape May.

â�–November is also the month when most of the truly rare birds are found in Cape May. While species diversity is com­pelling and rarities are exciting, most people who come to Cape May want only to witness a massed “fallout” of birds. Fallouts involve hundreds of thou­sands of birds whose southbound passage has been spurred by the pas­sage of a cold front and whose search for dry footing in an otherwise wet portions of this world concentrate them in Cape May.

â�–In late October and early November, middle-distance migrants like American Robin, Eastern Bluebird and Cedar Waxwing are winging south. Massed songbird spectacles notwithstanding, Cape May’s modern fame as a birding hotspot is closely linked to the spectacle of migrating birds of prey -- 16 raptor species. CMBO has con­ducted a hawk census since 1976. Beginning September 1 on the viewing platform in Cape May Point State Park all day every day and it is free. Visiting hawk watchers can sidle up to interpre­tive naturalists sponsored by Leica Optics and be assisted with find­ing and identifying birds of prey.

It really doesn’t matter when you visit Cape May. The seasons and the weather determine what bird species you will see, not whether you will see birds at all. www.BirdCapeMay.org