Sea Watch Count - 10/31/08

Observer: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 105
Canada Goose - 33
Wood Duck - 114
Gadwall - 6
American Wigeon - 162
American Black Duck - 53
Mallard - 8
Northern Pintail - 76
Green-winged Teal - 398
Ring-necked Duck - 7
Greater Scaup - 27
Lesser Scaup - 98
Surf Scoter - 9,631
White-winged Scoter - 17
Black Scoter - 12,473
scoter sp. - 2,513
Long-tailed Duck - 13
Bufflehead - 62
Hooded Merganser - 2
Red-breasted Merganser - 16
Red-throated Loon - 350
Common Loon - 125
Horned Grebe - 4
Red-necked Grebe - 1
Northern Gannet - 3,099
Brown Pelican - 3
Double-crested Cormorant - 1,844
Great Cormorant - 5
Laughing Gull - 60
Bonaparte's Gull - 2
Ring-billed Gull - 49
Common Tern - 1
Forster's Tern - 214
Royal Tern - 2
Parasitic Jaeger - 1
Killdeer - 1

Total: 31,575
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-31-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 40

Happy Halloween from the Hawk Watch Interpretative Naturalists!!! So while the raptor count will continue until the end of November, this is the final day for all the interpretative naturalists (Ashley, Melissa, Lizzie, and Jon). We've had an AMAZING season this fall on many different levels. Not only was the platform a perfect place to see a wide array of migrating raptors, we also got to expand our knowledge on many other types of birds, insects, butterflies, reptiles, and plants!! We would like to give a special thanks to everyone who gave us their warmth and kindness. The locals and visitors were always supportive and gladly answered any questions we had. You guys are AWESOME!!! No ifs, ands, or buts about it!! The season would be nothing without you. So again, thank you so much for everything. We will miss you guys!!!
-Melissa, Ashley, Lizzie, and Jon

Snow Goose 20
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 2
Mallard 7
Northern Pintail 1
Green-winged Teal 38
Ring-necked Duck 1
Bufflehead 2
Hooded Merganser 1
Ruddy Duck 18
Common Loon 1
Double-crested Cormorant 100
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 1
Snowy Egret 2
Greater Yellowlegs 3
Lesser Yellowlegs 7
Semipalmated Sandpiper 1
Western Sandpiper 3
Least Sandpiper 1
Ring-billed Gull 13
Herring Gull 2
Mourning Dove 2
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Tree Swallow X
Carolina Chickadee 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
American Pipit 9
Cedar Waxwing 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Palm Warbler 5
Savannah Sparrow 2
Song Sparrow 5
White-throated Sparrow 1
Dark-eyed Junco 4
Red-winged Blackbird 52
House Finch 4
House Sparrow X
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-31-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture               0            446            446
Osprey                       0            588            989
Bald Eagle                   0            102            249
Northern Harrier            17            374            531
Sharp-shinned Hawk          75           6495          10419
Cooper's Hawk               16           2766           4167
Northern Goshawk             0              2              2
Red-shouldered Hawk          4             55             64
Broad-winged Hawk            0            387            526
Red-tailed Hawk             10            168            259
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 1              8              8
American Kestrel             3            985           2992
Merlin                       1            550           1254
Peregrine Falcon             0            936           1400
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                     127          13918          23378
Posted by Anonymous at

View from the Platform 10-30-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 32

Snow Goose 5
Canada Goose 70
Mute Swan 1
American Wigeon 15
Mallard 7
Northern Pintail 3
Green-winged Teal 51
Bufflehead 2
Ruddy Duck 12
Double-crested Cormorant 5
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 1
Snowy Egret 1
American Coot 1
Greater Yellowlegs 9
Lesser Yellowlegs 1
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1
Mourning Dove 1
Northern Flicker 1
Blue Jay 2
Tree Swallow X
Eastern Bluebird X
American Robin X
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Palm Warbler (Western) 1
Palm Warbler (Yellow) 1
Savannah Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 1
Red-winged Blackbird 75
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-30-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture              60            446            446
Osprey                       0            588            989
Bald Eagle                   1            102            249
Northern Harrier            18            357            514
Sharp-shinned Hawk         148           6420          10344
Cooper's Hawk               27           2750           4151
Northern Goshawk             0              2              2
Red-shouldered Hawk          8             51             60
Broad-winged Hawk            2            387            526
Red-tailed Hawk             14            158            249
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 2              7              7
American Kestrel             9            982           2989
Merlin                       3            549           1253
Peregrine Falcon             0            936           1400
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                     292          13791          23251
Posted by Anonymous at

Sea Watch Count - 10/30/08

Counter: Dan Berard

Brant - 583
Canada Goose - 95
Wood Duck - 44
American Black Duck - 35
Mallard - 3
Northern Shoveler - 2
Green-winged Teal - 159
Lesser Scaup - 1
Surf Scoter - 639
White-winged Scoter - 6
Black Scoter - 579
dark-winged scoter - 910
Long-tailed Duck - 13
Bufflehead - 6
Red-breasted Merganser - 4
Red-throated Loon - 59
Common Loon - 11
Horned Grebe - 1
Northern Gannet - 133
Double-crested Cormorant - 5627
Great Blue Heron - 7
Great Egret - 19
Forster's Tern - 37
Royal Tern - 12
Black-headed Gull - 1

Total - 8986
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-29-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 31

Snow Goose 20
Canada Goose 30
Mute Swan 3
Gadwall 3
Mallard 4
Green-winged Teal 43
Bufflehead 3
Ruddy Duck 11
Double-crested Cormorant 3
Great Blue Heron 10
Great Egret 4
American Coot 5
Black-bellied Plover 1
Killdeer 13
Greater Yellowlegs 1
White-rumped Sandpiper 15
Dunlin 10
Bonaparte's Gull 11
Ring-billed Gull 3
Herring Gull 2
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Mourning Dove 3
American Crow 1
Tree Swallow X
Carolina Wren 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 3
Palm Warbler (Western) 1
Palm Warbler (Yellow) 1
Red-winged Blackbird 4
House Sparrow X
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/29/08

Observer: Dan Berard

Brant - 228
Canada Goose - 24
Wood Duck - 31
American Black Duck - 16
Northern Shoveler - 7
Northern Pintail - 17
Green-winged Teal - 130
Greater Scaup - 27
Lesser Scaup - 9
Surf Scoter - 16
White-winged Scoter - 10
Black Scoter - 248
dark-winged scoter - 67
Long-tailed Duck - 33
Bufflehead - 27
Red-throated Loon - 25
Common Loon - 22
Northern Gannet - 1619
Double-crested Cormorant - 600
Great Cormorant - 4
Great Blue Heron - 2
Laughing Gull - 63
Forster's Tern - 30
Royal Tern - 5

Total: 3262
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-29-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture               0            386            386
Osprey                       4            588            989
Bald Eagle                   0            101            248
Northern Harrier             4            339            496
Sharp-shinned Hawk          16           6272          10196
Cooper's Hawk                3           2723           4124
Northern Goshawk             0              2              2
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             43             52
Broad-winged Hawk            0            385            524
Red-tailed Hawk              1            144            235
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              5              5
American Kestrel             0            973           2980
Merlin                       2            546           1250
Peregrine Falcon             2            936           1400
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                      32          13499          22959
Posted by Anonymous at

Hawk Watch Count 10-28-2008

Official Observer: Dan Berard


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture               0            386            386
Osprey                       0            584            985
Bald Eagle                   0            101            248
Northern Harrier             0            335            492
Sharp-shinned Hawk           0           6256          10180
Cooper's Hawk                0           2720           4121
Northern Goshawk             0              2              2
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             43             52
Broad-winged Hawk            0            385            524
Red-tailed Hawk              0            143            234
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              5              5
American Kestrel             0            973           2980
Merlin                       0            544           1248
Peregrine Falcon             0            934           1398
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                       0          13467          22927
Posted by Anonymous at

Monarch Monitoring Project 10/28/08


Sadly, the sun is setting on Cape May's monarch migration season. Surveys from this past week reflect this, and we averaged just 12.11 monarchs/hour. It's getting colder, the days are getting shorter, and the monarchs must hurry to Mexico. There will be a few stragglers left in Cape May, but in general our part in monarch migration is over. Later this week I will have more information about the amount of monarchs tagged, and general reflections on the season. For this blog I would like to talk about something else all together...

Monarchs are already dressed up for Halloween. They proudly wear their orange and black, which many associate with the spooky holiday. In Mexico, however, monarchs are associated with a different holiday entirely:

The Day of the Dead
(Dia de los Muertos)

Day of the Dead celebrators looking up for monarchs...


Monarchs begin arriving in the Michoacan region of Mexico around the beginning of November. This corresponds directly with the Mexican "Day of the Dead" on November 1st and 2nd. The main focus of this holiday is the gathering together of friends and relatives to honor and remember family and friends who have died. There are private alters built and gifts brought to the grave sites of the deceased. So, very interesting yes...but what does it have to do with monarchs?




more Day of the Dead participants waiting patiently for monarchs


Well, since the monarchs being arriving at their roosting grounds around the same time, they have become associated with the Day of the Dead. Many "Day of the Dead" participants in the Michoacan region believe that the monarchs are the souls of their ancestors. The souls return once a year to earth in the form of mariposa monarca, aka monarch butterflies. Whether or not you believe this, it's still wonderful to see monarchs revered and respected.

Very cool kids book about monarchs and the Day of the Dead



Even in their roosting grounds, monarchs are (mostly) welcomed visitors. So perhaps if on November 1st you happen to see a monarch, or even just a butterfly, give it a respectful nod. You never know who it might be.


Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/28/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

American Wigeon - 1
Northern Pintail - 8
Green-winged Teal - 4
Greater Scaup - 2
Lesser Scaup - 37
Surf Scoter - 70
Black Scoter - 14
Bufflehead - 3
Red-throated Loon - 3
Common Loon - 5
Double-crested Cormorant - 11
Laughing Gull - 63
Ring-billed Gull - 3
Caspian Tern - 1
Forster's Tern - 1
Royal Tern - 3
American Golden-Plover - 6

Total: 235
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-28-2008

Morning Flight: 15-30 W wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick


Total Birds: 0

Non-morning Flight Birds- 2 Morning Dove
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/27/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 46
American Wigeon - 8
American Black Duck - 3
Northern Pintail - 1
Lesser Scaup - 4
Surf Scoter - 66
White-winged Scoter - 1
Black Scoter - 6
Red-throated Loon - 13
Common Loon - 13
Northern Gannet - 899
Double-crested Cormorant - 3,083
Great Cormorant - 2
Great Blue Heron - 7
Laughing Gull - 440
Bonaparte's Gull - 1
Ring-billed Gull - 45
Herring Gull - 9
Forster's Tern - 74
Royal Tern - 30

Total: 4,751

Monarch: 3
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-27-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 36

Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 3
Mallard 12
Northern Pintail 1
Green-winged Teal 54
Ruddy Duck 7
Double-crested Cormorant 12
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 1
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Ring-billed Gull 2
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Royal Tern 1
Rock Pigeon 10
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 23
American Crow 10
Fish Crow 4
Tree Swallow X
Barn Swallow 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 2
Eastern Bluebird 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
American Pipit 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Palm Warbler 1
White-throated Sparrow 1
Bobolink 1
Red-winged Blackbird 3
Eastern Meadowlark 1
Rusty Blackbird 2
Brown-headed Cowbird 12
American Goldfinch 2
House Sparrow X
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-27-2008

Official Observer: Dan Berard


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture              39            386            386
Osprey                       2            584            985
Bald Eagle                   1            101            248
Northern Harrier            12            335            492
Sharp-shinned Hawk         179           6256          10180
Cooper's Hawk               29           2720           4121
Northern Goshawk             1              2              2
Red-shouldered Hawk          5             43             52
Broad-winged Hawk            1            385            524
Red-tailed Hawk              0            143            234
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 1              5              5
American Kestrel            58            973           2980
Merlin                      15            544           1248
Peregrine Falcon             6            934           1398
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                     349          13467          22927
Posted by Anonymous at

Hawk Watch Count 10-26-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture               0            347            347
Osprey                       1            582            983
Bald Eagle                   4            100            247
Northern Harrier             7            323            480
Sharp-shinned Hawk          41           6077          10001
Cooper's Hawk                8           2691           4092
Northern Goshawk             0              1              1
Red-shouldered Hawk          2             38             47
Broad-winged Hawk            0            384            523
Red-tailed Hawk              5            143            234
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              4              4
American Kestrel             6            915           2922
Merlin                       6            529           1233
Peregrine Falcon             3            928           1392
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                      83          13118          22578
Posted by Anonymous at

View from Jake's Landing/Jon's Car

10-26-08

This evening, interpretive naturalists Lizzie Condon, Jon Kauffman and Ashley Green, along with hawk counter Seth Cutright, visited Jake's Landing for some birdwatching. Out hunting were Red-tailed Hawks, and over 15 Northern Harriers! As the sun set, we heard Black-bellied Plovers, Yellowlegs, Savannah Sparrows, a Woodcock and plenty of rowdy Clapper Rails! Also seen were Black-crowned Night Herons, Green-winged Teal, Eastern Meadowlarks and the main objective for our trip; a Short-eared Owl flying low over the marsh! On our drive out, we stopped the car in the woods and heard two Eastern Screech owls and a Great Horned Owl! A great time was had by all!
Ashley Green
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-26-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site

Today marked the end of Autumn Weekend here at Cape May. Highlights at the platform included a Black-headed Gull, Cliff Swallow, and Northern Rough-winged Swallow. Also, a juvenile Red-shouldered Hawk was caught this morning. Banders Arthur and John brought the bird over to the east shelter and 30+ people on the platform were treated to an impromptu raptor demonstration!
Ashley Green

Number of species: 28

Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 6
American Black Duck 1
Mallard 6
Northern Pintail 1
Green-winged Teal 18
Ruddy Duck 7
Common Loon 1
Double-crested Cormorant 2
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 1
Snowy Egret 3
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Black-headed Gull 1
Ring-billed Gull 1
Great Black-backed Gull X
Rock Pigeon 7
Northern Flicker 1
Blue Jay 2
crow sp. 6
Tree Swallow X
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 1
Cliff Swallow 1
Carolina Wren 2
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 10
Red-winged Blackbird 26
House Sparrow X
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/26/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 324
Wood Duck - 1
American Black Duck - 9
Green-winged Teal - 1
Surf Scoter - 155
Black Scoter - 34
scoter sp. - 10
Red-throated Loon - 28
Common Loon - 30
Northern Gannet - 959
Brown Pelican - 7
Double-crested Cormorant - 3,352
Great Cormorant - 1
Great Blue Heron - 8
Laughing Gull - 8
Herring Gull - 6
Forster's Tern - 1
Royal Tern - 5
American Oystercatcher - 11

Total: 4,950

Monarch: 3
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-26-2008

Morning Flight: 5-10 NW wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

American Robin- 38
American Pipit- 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 42
Blackpoll Warbler- 1
Warbler sp.- 343
Eastern Meadowlark- 16
Purple Finch- 5
Pine Siskin- 2

Total Birds: 449

Non-morning Flight Birds- 113 Forster's Terns, 4 Common Loons, 672 Northern Gannet
Posted by at

Monarch Monitoring Project - 10/26/08

The "Insect" of the week

The Jumping Spider

Photo (c) Wayne Madison at the Tree of Life.org

Hello all! Today we have a very special addition of the "insect of the week". As an ode to Dick Walton (naturalist, generalist, and humorist), I've decided to do a blog about Jumping Spiders! Although they are not insects, they are closely related to insects. Below is the taxonomy of jumping spiders:

Kingdom: Animalia (just like insects)
Phylum: Arthropoda (again like insects)
Class: Arachnida (ooh there's the difference! Insects are class Insecta)
Order: Aranae (all spiders)
Family: Salticidae

Dick Walton has done a lot of interesting research on these little guys and they really are quite fascinating. You may not like spiders, but how can one resist the jumping spider? Observe the cute and cuddly Phidippus audax:





This guy, also known as the bold jumping spider, is very common in Cape May but how often do we really pay attention to P. audax or any jumping spider? Jumping spiders are extremely diverse and numerous. There is an estimated 5,000 species of Salticids in the world! The main feature that sets them apart from other spiders is their eyes. They have eight eyes in all, but the front row of four are enlarged and powerful giving them stereoscopic vision. If you find a jumping spider it will often turn and look directly at you. They see us, and quite well!






This advance vision gives Salticids an advantage when hunting for prey that is relatively far away. They have a powerful concentration of muscles in the front of their bodies that gives them the ability to jump more than fifty times their body length. The jumping spider is also one of the few spiders that can actually climb on most surfaces, including glass. Although they don't spin webs in the general sense, salticids do use silk for a variety of reasons. When patrolling territory, whether looking for a mate or hunting, the jumping spider will lay out a line of silk. This works as a kind of a safety line that allows the spider to travel anywhere without fear of falling. They also will weave tent-like shelters out of silk where the female will go to lay eggs. Both sexes will also use the shelter when they need a safe place to molt.




One last thing I want to mention about salticids is their interesting dimorphic appearance and intricate courtship process. Males often have bright coloration or other flashy modifications that females lack. Males will use these attributes in an elaborate courtship dance. This dance is different than most spiders due to to the salticids advanced vision. To see video of this visit this website. Many jumping spiders will also mimic other insects/arthropods, including ants, some beetles, and even pseudoscorpions!






The four spiders that are shown above, Platycryptus undatus, Phidippus audax, Eris flava, and Metacryba taeniola are all very common species of jumping spiders that you can see around Cape May. They are amazing creatures and they are right in our own backyard. Lucky us!

To see more visit Dick Walton's website: www.rkwalton.com
All photographs above provided by Dick Walton




Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-25-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 20

Brant 11
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 2
American Wigeon 10
Mallard X
Northern Pintail 5
Green-winged Teal 22
Great Egret 1
Snowy Egret 1
Greater Yellowlegs 1
White-rumped Sandpiper 1
Laughing Gull X
Herring Gull X
Great Black-backed Gull X
Royal Tern 1
Rock Pigeon 2
Northern Flicker 1
crow sp. 4
Tree Swallow X
Palm Warbler 1
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-25-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture               0            347            347
Osprey                       0            581            982
Bald Eagle                   0             96            243
Northern Harrier             0            316            473
Sharp-shinned Hawk           3           6036           9960
Cooper's Hawk                0           2683           4084
Northern Goshawk             0              1              1
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             36             45
Broad-winged Hawk            0            384            523
Red-tailed Hawk              0            138            229
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              4              4
American Kestrel             1            909           2916
Merlin                       0            523           1227
Peregrine Falcon             3            925           1389
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                       7          13035          22495
Posted by Anonymous at

Sea Watch Count - 10/25/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Green-winged Teal - 1
Lesser Scaup - 1
Common Eider - 1
Surf Scoter - 313
White-winged Scoter - 1
Black Scoter - 113
Red-throated Loon - 12
Common Loon - 9
Northern Gannet - 981
Laughing Gull - 48
Ring-billed Gull - 3
Royal Tern - 13

Total: 1,496
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-25-2008

Morning Flight: 5-10 ESE wind, rainy conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Yellow-rumped Warbler- 17

Total Birds: 17

Non-morning Flight Birds- 208 Forster's Terns, 3 Common Loons, 4 Royal Terns
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-24-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             52             64
Turkey Vulture               0            347            347
Osprey                       0            581            982
Bald Eagle                   0             96            243
Northern Harrier             2            316            473
Sharp-shinned Hawk          10           6033           9957
Cooper's Hawk                0           2683           4084
Northern Goshawk             0              1              1
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             36             45
Broad-winged Hawk            0            384            523
Red-tailed Hawk              0            138            229
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              4              4
American Kestrel             1            908           2915
Merlin                       3            523           1227
Peregrine Falcon             2            922           1386
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                      18          13028          22488
Posted by Anonymous at

View from the Platform 10-24-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch
Number of species: 30

Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 3
Mallard X
Northern Pintail 4
Green-winged Teal 21
Ruddy Duck 7
Common Loon 1
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Great Cormorant 1
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 3
Snowy Egret 2
Semipalmated Plover 1
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Semipalmated Sandpiper 1
Western Sandpiper 1
White-rumped Sandpiper 3
Laughing Gull X
Ring-billed Gull 1
Royal Tern 1
Fish Crow 4
Tree Swallow X
Carolina Chickadee 1
Winter Wren 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
Swamp Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 1
Eastern Meadowlark 1
Pine Siskin 1
House Sparrow X
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/24/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 129
Wood Duck - 5
American Wigeon - 16
American Black Duck - 22
Northern Pintail - 21
Green-winged Teal - 388
Greater Scaup - 9
Lesser Scaup - 29
Surf Scoter - 3,654
White-winged Scoter - 4
Black Scoter - 4,033
scoter sp. - 202
Long-tailed Duck - 2
Hooded Merganser - 1
Red-breasted Merganser - 12
Red-throated Loon - 112
Common Loon - 78
Northern Gannet - 1,163
Brown Pelican - 17
Double-crested Cormorant - 2,426
Great Cormorant - 6
Laughing Gull - 87
Ring-billed Gull - 23
Herring Gull - 74
Forster's Tern - 3
Royal Tern - 31

Total: 12,547
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-24-2008

Morning Flight: 5-10 SE wind, clear conditions
Counter: Dan Berard

Yellow-rumped Warbler- 60
Pine Siskin- 7

Total Birds: 67

Non-morning Flight Birds- 1 Great Horned Owl, 1 American Woodcock, 1 Winter Wren
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-23-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                3             52             64
Turkey Vulture              46            347            347
Osprey                       2            581            982
Bald Eagle                   2             96            243
Northern Harrier             6            314            471
Sharp-shinned Hawk          80           6023           9947
Cooper's Hawk               21           2683           4084
Northern Goshawk             0              1              1
Red-shouldered Hawk          5             36             45
Broad-winged Hawk            2            384            523
Red-tailed Hawk             12            138            229
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              4              4
American Kestrel             7            907           2914
Merlin                       1            520           1224
Peregrine Falcon             5            920           1384
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                     192          13010          22470
Posted by Anonymous at

View from the Platform 10-23-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch
Number of species: 25

Brant 10
Canada Goose X
Gadwall 15
American Black Duck 3
Mallard 5
Northern Pintail 3
Ruddy Duck 6
Double-crested Cormorant 17
Great Egret 1
Semipalmated Plover 1
Killdeer 3
Greater Yellowlegs 1
White-rumped Sandpiper 2
Ring-billed Gull 1
Belted Kingfisher 1
Northern Flicker 2
Blue Jay 5
Tree Swallow X
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren X
Eastern Bluebird X
Palm Warbler (Western) 1
Song Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 1
Purple Finch 1
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/23/08

Counter: Dan Berard

Brant - 1398
Wood Duck - 30
American Black Duck - 55
Mallard - 1
Northern Pintail - 17
Green-winged Teal - 285
Ring-necked Duck - 8
Greater Scaup - 7
Lesser Scaup - 10
Common Eider - 3
Surf Scoter - 7322
White-winged Scoter - 19
Black Scoter - 38284
dark-winged scoter - 14134
Red-breasted Merganser - 23
Red-throated Loon - 140
Common Loon - 110
Northern Gannet - 14
Double-crested Cormorant - 11237

Total: 73097
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-22-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             49             61
Turkey Vulture               0            301            301
Osprey                       0            579            980
Bald Eagle                   3             94            241
Northern Harrier            14            308            465
Sharp-shinned Hawk         179           5943           9867
Cooper's Hawk               36           2662           4063
Northern Goshawk             1              1              1
Red-shouldered Hawk          3             31             40
Broad-winged Hawk            2            382            521
Red-tailed Hawk              9            126            217
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 1              4              4
American Kestrel            22            900           2907
Merlin                      10            519           1223
Peregrine Falcon             6            915           1379
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                     286          12818          22278
Posted by Anonymous at

Sea Watch Count - 10/22/08

Counter: Dan Berard

Snow Goose - 9
Brant - 370
Canada Goose - 11
Wood Duck - 1
Gadwall - 26
American Wigeon - 17
American Black Duck - 192
Mallard - 5
Northern Shoveler - 5
Northern Pintail - 76
Green-winged Teal - 275
Surf Scoter - 216
White-winged Scoter - 2
Black Scoter - 459
Long-tailed Duck - 1
Red-breasted Merganser - 8
Red-throated Loon - 19
Common Loon - 127
Northern Gannet - 32
Brown Pelican - 7
Double-crested Cormorant - 4084
Great Egret - 43
Snowy Egret - 3
Parasitic Jaeger - 1

Total: 5969

Other birds: 

Purple Sandpiper - 7
Pine Siskin - 1
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-22-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site

Fall has finally arrived in Cape May this week, bringing along cool crisp air and blustery winds to the hawk watch platform. Though our migration numbers were not as high today (286) as they have been, visitors to the platform sighted 15 of the 19 (most) possible raptor species today! Highlights included our first Northern Goshawk of the season, an immature Golden Eagle and several close looks at Red-shouldered Hawks. A variety non-raptor species were also seen - see list below:
Ashley Green

Number of species: 27

Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 2
Gadwall 2
Mallard X
Northern Pintail 1
Green-winged Teal 29
Ruddy Duck 6
Northern Gannet X
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Great Egret 2
Ruddy Turnstone 5
White-rumped Sandpiper 3
Great Black-backed Gull 20
Belted Kingfisher 1
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 10
crow sp. X
Tree Swallow X
Cliff Swallow 1
Barn Swallow 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Palm Warbler 1
Red-winged Blackbird 20
Rusty Blackbird 2
Pine Siskin X
House Sparrow X
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-22-08

Morning Flight: 5-10 NW wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

American Robin- 47
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 177
Pine Siskin- 1

Total Birds: 225
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/21/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 9
Wood Duck - 2
American Wigeon - 1
American Black Duck - 3
Mallard - 3
Northern Pintail - 29
Green-winged Teal - 34
Ring-necked Duck - 1
Greater Scaup - 2
Surf Scoter - 413
White-winged Scoter - 1
Black Scoter - 162
scoter sp. - 77
Red-breasted Merganser - 3
Red-throated Loon - 22
Common Loon - 21
Northern Gannet - 975
Brown Pelican - 25
Double-crested Cormorant - 177
Great Cormorant - 2
Laughing Gull - 29
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1
Royal Tern - 36

Total: 2,028

Monarch: 17
Posted by at

Monarch Monitoring Project - 10/21/2008

Greetings everyone! This past week was our second best week to date for the season. Surveys average 53.87 monarchs/hour. That puts the cumulative average for the whole season at 38.01 monarchs/hour. In spite of cold temperatures, monarch numbers remained high. There were a few "mini-roosts" around the point containing groups of 5-20 monarchs. Although these roosts were small, it was a welcomed site for the volunteers at the MMP.

We are now done giving our tagging demonstrations at Cape May Point State Park. There will be three more given specifically for the upcoming Autumn Weekend. Look for us at the picnic table area at the state park this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 2pm. Head coordinator Louise Zemaitis, will also be giving a special monarch presentation this Friday (Oct 24th) at 1pm in the Interpretive Center Classroom at the state park. Be sure to check her presentation out, you are bound to learn something new about monarchs!


Louise Zemaitis(above) and some new monarch fans

Here at the MMP we are often asked the question "why do you tag monarchs?" Well, there are many reasons. We want to know where our monarchs go. Do they make it all the way to the roosting grounds? What route do they take? How long does it take them? Tagging allows us to answer many of these questions. Just recently we had a monarch recovered that illustrates why we tag very well. I give you:

Speedy: The story of one determined Monarch

Speedy was tagged in Cape May on October 9, 2008 by Patsy Eickelburg, one of our most beloved volunteers. It was given the tag "LAA962". Patsy noted that LAA962 was a male in average condition, with a fat content of 4 (out of 5). It was feeding on aster when caught, and after tagging the monarch, and taking some measurements, Patsy set LAA962 free. Just three days later on October 12th a Mr. Hatfield of Harlem, GA notified Chip Taylor of Monarch Watch that he had spotted LAA962! Below is a map of the distance traveled (made by Dick Walton):




What an amazing feat! Winds on the 9th were from the S and SW, these are not ideal for crossing the bay. The next day winds shifted to the N and NW which makes us think that LAA962 didn't even leave the point until the morning of the 10th. So to fly 558 miles in about two days is incredible! This goes to show that when wind conditions are ideal (coming from the northwest) monarchs will travel great distances rather quickly. Hopefully LAA962 will continue on his way and make it to the roosting grounds in Mexico. Maybe we will hear from him again as he continues on his journey. No matter happens though, this example once again shows us why tagging monarchs is so important.
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-21-2008

Official Observer: Dan Berard


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             49             61
Turkey Vulture               0            301            301
Osprey                       0            579            980
Bald Eagle                   0             91            238
Northern Harrier             2            294            451
Sharp-shinned Hawk           7           5764           9688
Cooper's Hawk                6           2626           4027
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             28             37
Broad-winged Hawk            0            380            519
Red-tailed Hawk              0            117            208
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              3              3
American Kestrel             3            878           2885
Merlin                       1            509           1213
Peregrine Falcon             1            909           1373
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                      20          12532          21992
Posted by Anonymous at

View from the Platform 10-21-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch
Number of species: 33

Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 9
Gadwall 7
American Wigeon 55
Mallard 3
Northern Pintail 14
Green-winged Teal 3
Ruddy Duck 6
Double-crested Cormorant 6
Great Egret 2
Sanderling 3
White-rumped Sandpiper 1
American Woodcock 1
Royal Tern 1
Northern Flicker 1
Blue Jay 6
American Crow 2
Fish Crow 5
Tree Swallow X
Barn Swallow 1
Carolina Wren 2
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Palm Warbler 2
Song Sparrow 1
Swamp Sparrow 4
White-throated Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 1
Eastern Meadowlark 3
Pine Siskin 21
House Sparrow X
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-21-08

Morning Flight: 5-10 SW wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Eastern Phoebe- 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet- 7
Ruby-crowned Kinglet- 8
Kinglet sp.- 1
American Robin- 1969
Northern Parula- 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 98
Palm Warbler- 1
Blackpoll Warbler- 1
Warbler sp.- 105
Savannah Sparrow- 1
Eastern Meadowlark- 2
Pine Siskin- 87

Total Birds: 2282
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-20-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 36

Mute Swan- 3
Gadwall- 6
American Wigeon- 7
Mallard- 17
Northern Pintail- 2
Green-winged Teal- 40
Black Scoter- 15
Ruddy Duck- 5
Double-crested Cormorant- 264
Great Blue Heron- 1
Great Egret- 1
Lesser Yellowlegs- 10
Herring Gull- X
Great Black-backed Gull- X
Royal Tern- 1
Black Skimmer- 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker- 1
Northern Flicker- 3
Blue Jay- 10
American Crow- 15
Tree Swallow- X
Carolina Wren- 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet- 1
Eastern Bluebird- 1
Northern Mockingbird- 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler- X
Palm Warbler- 1
Blackpoll Warbler- 1
Song Sparrow- 1
White-crowned Sparrow- 1
Red-winged Blackbird- 40
Eastern Meadowlark- 1
Purple Finch- X
Pine Siskin- 1
American Goldfinch- 2
House Sparrow- X
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/20/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 144
American Black Duck - 7
Northern Pintail - 14
Green-winged Teal - 43
Surf Scoter - 2,504
Black Scoter - 889
scoter sp. - 1,301
Red-breasted Merganser - 1
Red-throated Loon - 111
Common Loon - 16
Northern Gannet - 362
Brown Pelican - 5
Double-crested Cormorant - 15,767
Great Cormorant - 3
Laughing Gull - 117
Ring-billed Gull - 135
Herring Gull - 138
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1
Great Black-backed Gull - 5
Caspian Tern - 11
Forster's Tern - 13
Royal Tern - 42
Parasitic Jaeger - 1

Total: 21,630

Monarch: 18
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-20-2008

Official Observer: Dan Berard


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture               22             49             61
Turkey Vulture              50            301            301
Osprey                       1            579            980
Bald Eagle                   0             91            238
Northern Harrier             4            292            449
Sharp-shinned Hawk          98           5757           9681
Cooper's Hawk               56           2620           4021
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          3             28             37
Broad-winged Hawk            1            380            519
Red-tailed Hawk              9            117            208
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              3              3
American Kestrel            11            875           2882
Merlin                      10            508           1212
Peregrine Falcon             5            908           1372
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                     270          12512          21972
Posted by Anonymous at

Morning Flight 10-20-2008

Morning Flight: 5-15 NE wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Northern Flicker- 15
Red-breasted Nuthatch- 1
Kinglet sp.- 1
American Robin- 7001
Cedar Waxwing- 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 275
Palm Warbler- 6
Blackpoll Warbler- 1
Warbler sp.- 283
Savannah Sparrow- 2
Dark-eyed Junco- 8
Rose-breasted Grosbeak- 1
Indigo Bunting- 1
Eastern Meadowlark- 8
Rusty Blackbird- 25
Purple Finch- 17
Pine Siskin- 12
Blue Jay- 34

Total Birds: 7693

Non-Morning Flight Birds- 4 Common Loons, 23 Brants, 106 Crow sp.
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-19-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 29

Canada Goose- X
Mute Swan- 4
Mallard- X
Northern Pintail- 3
Green-winged Teal- 10
Ruddy Duck- 3
Common Loon- 1
Great Egret- 1
Snowy Egret- 2
Lesser Yellowlegs- 15
Least Sandpiper- 1
Laughing Gull- 3
Herring Gull- 4
Royal Tern- 2
Blue-headed Vireo- 1
Tree Swallow- X
Ruby-crowned Kinglet- 2
Eastern Bluebird- 2
American Pipit- 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 5
Palm Warbler (Western)- 1
Palm Warbler (Yellow)- 1
Blackpoll Warbler- 3
Savannah Sparrow- 2
White-throated Sparrow- 1
Rusty Blackbird- 10
House Finch- 16
Pine Siskin- 22
American Goldfinch- 3
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-19-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             27             39
Turkey Vulture              41            251            251
Osprey                       0            578            979
Bald Eagle                   0             91            238
Northern Harrier             5            288            445
Sharp-shinned Hawk         115           5659           9583
Cooper's Hawk               50           2564           3965
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          5             25             34
Broad-winged Hawk            3            379            518
Red-tailed Hawk             12            108            199
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 1              3              3
American Kestrel             6            864           2871
Merlin                      12            498           1202
Peregrine Falcon             2            903           1367
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              1              3

Total:                     252          12242          21702
Posted by Anonymous at

Sea Watch Count - 10/19/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 95
Gadwall - 4
American Wigeon - 12
American Black Duck - 50
Blue-winged Teal - 1
Northern Shoveler - 1
Northern Pintail - 2
Green-winged Teal - 101
Ring-necked Duck - 4
Greater Scaup - 1
Lesser Scaup - 14
Common Eider - 2
Surf Scoter - 8,606
White-winged Scoter - 5
Black Scoter - 10,864
scoter sp. - 2,865
Bufflehead - 3
Red-breasted Merganser - 1
Red-throated Loon - 115
Common Loon - 23
Northern Gannet - 188
Brown Pelican - 3
Double-crested Cormorant - 5,856
Great Cormorant - 2
Great Blue Heron - 8
Great Egret - 49
Snowy Egret - 12
Little Blue Heron - 2
Laughing Gull - 52
Ring-billed Gull - 86
Herring Gull - 259
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1
Great Black-backed Gull - 46
Forster's Tern - 51
Royal Tern - 4

Total: 29,388

Monarch: 4
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-19-2008

Morning Flight: 10-20 NNE wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Golden-crowned Kinglet- 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet- 1
American Robin- 16
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 328
Eastern Meadowlark- 1
Rusty Blackbird- 4
Pine Siskin- 6

Total Birds: 357
Posted by at

View from the Platform 10-18-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 30

The cold, northeast winds may not have blown in a huge number of raptors today, but the Hawkwatch Platform was fortunate enough to have a few rare treats. There was an impressive flock of Northern gannets that were feeding just past the rip tides along with a couple of parasitic jaegers looking to find a free meal. An estimated 10,000-20,000 scoters were seen making their way down the ocean. Pine siskin could be heard all around the platform, and a small flock did eventually make an appearance.

Now strictly speaking raptors, visitors had the chance of seeing 3 special treats today. A juvenile swainson's hawk was spotted through the scope and could been skimming the tree line. Shortly after, an immature golden eagle gave the platform a fantastic view as it flew RIGHT OVER!! This bird surely had Delaware on its mind because it went straight on through; it didn't linger like most of the other raptors. Last, but not least, the banding project brought a variety of live birds throughout the day including a female kestrel, an immature sharp-shinned hawk, 2 immature cooper's hawk, an immature red-tailed hawk, AND an adult female cooper's hawk. It was a certified raptor-palooza!!

Brant-18
Canada Goose-X
Mute Swan -2
Wood Duck-2
Gadwall-15
American Wigeon-6
American Black Duck-1
Mallard-X
Northern Shoveler-7
Northern Pintail-3
Green-winged Teal-20
Ruddy Duck-2
Common Loon-1
Northern Gannet-600
Double-crested Cormorant-57
Great Blue Heron-8
American Coot-1
Killdeer-1
Lesser Yellowlegs-30
Pectoral Sandpiper-1
Royal Tern-2
Rock Pigeon-X
Belted Kingfisher-2
Blue Jay-25
crow sp.-25
Tree Swallow-X
Palm Warbler (Yellow)-1
Eastern Meadowlark-1
Pine Siskin-X
House Sparrow-X
Posted by at

Sea Watch Count - 10/18/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Snow Goose - 5
Brant - 932
Wood Duck - 30
Gadwall - 35
American Wigeon - 65
American Black Duck - 30
Mallard - 2
Northern Pintail - 175
Green-winged Teal - 640
Ring-necked Duck - 9
Greater Scaup - 12
Lesser Scaup - 14
King Eider - 1
Surf Scoter - 29,017
White-winged Scoter - 28
Black Scoter - 35,087
dark-winged scoter - 22,542
Hooded Merganser - 7
Red-breasted Merganser - 14
Red-throated Loon - 66
Common Loon - 46
Northern Gannet - 107
Double-crested Cormorant - 8,590
Great Cormorant - 8
Great Blue Heron - 8
Great Egret - 136
Snowy Egret - 76
Laughing Gull - 112
Ring-billed Gull - 36
Herring Gull - 66
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 2
Great Black-backed Gull - 1
Forster's Tern - 20
Royal Tern - 15
Black Skimmer - 48
American Oystercatcher - 13

Total: 98,019

Monarch - 1

Non-waterbird highlight: Pine Siskin - 100+
Posted by at

Hawk Watch Count 10-18-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             27             39
Turkey Vulture              15            210            210
Osprey                       0            578            979
Bald Eagle                   3             91            238
Northern Harrier            14            283            440
Sharp-shinned Hawk         200           5544           9468
Cooper's Hawk               64           2514           3915
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          1             20             29
Broad-winged Hawk            0            376            515
Red-tailed Hawk             16             96            187
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 1              2              2
American Kestrel             7            858           2865
Merlin                       8            486           1190
Peregrine Falcon             9            901           1365
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              1              1              3

Total:                     339          11990          21450
Posted by Anonymous at

Monarch Monitoring Project - 10/18/08

The Insect of the Week

The Wheel Bug (Arilus cristatus)
Photo by Michael O'Brien

Hello everyone! It's time for another exciting "Insect of the week"! Meet the wheel bug! This alien-looking creature is one of the many types of assassin bugs that you might find in Cape May. When I say bug, I mean bug! Entomologists might yell at you if you call just any old insect a "bug." In taxonomy the word "bug" refers to anything in the order Hemiptera. The wheel bug, and many other things, fall into that order of classification. So, to review, here is the taxonomy of the wheel bug:

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Family: Reduviidae
Genus: Arilus
Species: Arilus cristatus

So as you can see all insects are not indeed bugs, but all bugs are insects. Phew! Glad we cleared that up. The wheel bug is actually one of the largest true bugs in the world! It falls in the family Reduviidae which includes all "assassin bugs". Believe me, they are called assassin bugs for a reason. This cryptic killer hides itself on leaves or flowers, and much like the praying mantid, strikes quickly when it's prey lands nearby. As illustrated by the photo below:


The wheel bug, and other assassin bugs in general, attack prey with their long beak-like mouth parts called a rostrum. They stab the prey with their rostrum, and inject an enzyme which paralyzes the unfortunate captive. The enzyme also dissolves the insides of the prey on contact and allows the wheel bug to suck out the insides of the victim. It's like something from a horror movie!

Photo by Michael O'Brien


Wheel bugs also have some gruesome habits when it comes to mating. Like the mantid, the female wheel bug will often attack and consume the male after mating. Once fertilized the female will lay her eggs and eventually she will die. The eggs will hatch into tiny nymphs. Assassin bugs, as well as all Hemipterans and many other insects, go through incomplete metamorphosis. This means that they have only three stages of life: the egg, the nymph, and the adult. The monarch, and many others, have four stages of life and go through complete metamorphosis.



Photo from BugGuide.net


The nymph (see above) is like a smaller version of the adult but it lacks wings. The nymph will eat continuously and, like the monarch caterpillar, undergo five different molts (or instars) before molting into an adult. There have been records of cannibalism in wheel bugs, and freshly hatched nymphs may attack and feed on each other. If you find a wheel bug in the wild be careful! Their bite is extremely painful, and the sore can last for several weeks. They also are capable of emitting a stinky smell from scent-sacs located on the back of their abdomen. So this is perhaps another insect you might want to leave alone!
Posted by at

Morning Flight 10-18-2008

Morning Flight: 10-15 NE wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker- 1
Eastern Phoebe- 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch- 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet- 16
Ruby-crowned Kinglet- 1
American Robin- 195
American Pipit- 5
Cedar Waxwing- 40
Northern Parula- 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 2084
Palm Warbler- 13
Blackpoll Warbler- 7
Chipping Sparrow- 1
Savannah Sparrow- 4
Dark-eyed Junco- 14
Eastern Meadowlark- 1
Rusty Blackbird- 67
Purple Finch- 14
Pine Siskin- 17
Blue-headed Vireo- 1

Total Birds: 2485
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Sea Watch Count - 10/17/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Snow Goose - 19
Brant - 1,397
Canada Goose - 25
Wood Duck - 13
Gadwall - 6
American Wigeon - 2
American Black Duck - 57
Mallard - 10
Northern Pintail - 149
Green-winged Teal - 869
Lesser Scaup - 1
Surf Scoter - 1,942
White-winged Scoter - 11
Black Scoter - 3,398
dark-winged scoter - 415
Red-breasted Merganser - 6
Red-throated Loon - 30
Common Loon - 43
Northern Gannet - 367
Brown Pelican - 5
Double-crested Cormorant - 11,735
Great Cormorant - 2
Great Blue Heron - 1
Great Egret - 149
Snowy Egret - 163
Little Blue Heron - 1
Laughing Gull - 795
Bonaparte's Gull - 3
Common Tern - 1
Royal Tern - 37
American Oystercatcher - 81

Total: 21,733

Monarch: 27
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Hawk Watch Count 10-17-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                9             27             39
Turkey Vulture              64            195            195
Osprey                      21            578            979
Bald Eagle                   8             88            235
Northern Harrier            11            269            426
Sharp-shinned Hawk         333           5344           9268
Cooper's Hawk              129           2450           3851
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          3             19             28
Broad-winged Hawk            4            376            515
Red-tailed Hawk              8             80            171
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              1              1
American Kestrel            12            851           2858
Merlin                      13            478           1182
Peregrine Falcon            22            892           1356
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              0              2

Total:                     637          11651          21111
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View from the Platform 10-17-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 18

Brant X
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 4
Wood Duck 1
American Wigeon 19
Green-winged Teal 35
Common Loon 1
Northern Gannet X
Great Egret 3
Lesser Yellowlegs 23
Caspian Tern 1
Belted Kingfisher 2
Eastern Phoebe 2
Blue Jay 45
Eastern Bluebird 3
Yellow-rumped Warbler X
Pine Warbler X
Red-winged Blackbird 30
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Morning Flight 10-17-2008

Morning Flight: 5-10 N wind, clear conditions
Counter: Dan Berard

Red-bellied Woodpecker- 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker- 1
Northern Flicker- 65
Eastern Phoebe- 3
Red-eyed Vireo- 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch- 14
Golden-crowned Kinglet- 73
Ruby-crowned Kinglet- 13
American Robin- 3002
American Pipit- 17
Cedar Waxwing- 35
Black-throated Blue Warbler- 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 11061
Black-throated Green Warbler- 4
Palm Warbler- 61
Blackpoll Warbler- 18
American Redstart- 2
Warbler sp.- 193
Chipping Sparrow- 1
Dark-eyed Junco- 23
Dickcissel- 2
Bobolink- 21
Eastern Meadowlark- 6
Rusty Blackbird- 23
Purple Finch- 4
Pine Siskin- 1
Blue Jay- 89
White-breasted Nuthatch- 1

Total Birds: 14737
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View from the Platform 10-16-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 25

Snow Goose 2
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 2
Gadwall 1
American Wigeon 14
Mallard X
Northern Shoveler 15
Northern Pintail 8
Green-winged Teal X
Double-crested Cormorant 5
Great Egret 3
American Coot 1
Lesser Yellowlegs 15
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Caspian Tern 1
Royal Tern 1
Belted Kingfisher 1
Northern Flicker 4
Blue Jay 35
Northern Mockingbird 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 95
White-crowned Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 18
Eastern Meadowlark 1
House Sparrow X
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Hawk Watch Count 10-16-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             18             30
Turkey Vulture               0            131            131
Osprey                      10            557            958
Bald Eagle                   0             80            227
Northern Harrier            15            258            415
Sharp-shinned Hawk         148           5011           8935
Cooper's Hawk               33           2321           3722
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          1             16             25
Broad-winged Hawk            0            372            511
Red-tailed Hawk              1             72            163
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              1              1
American Kestrel            18            839           2846
Merlin                      14            465           1169
Peregrine Falcon            33            870           1334
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              0              2

Total:                     273          11014          20474
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Morning Flight 10-16-2008

Morning Flight: 5-10 NE wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Red-bellied Woodpecker- 1
Northern Flicker- 18
Eastern Phoebe- 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet- 4
American Robin- 47
American Pipit- 2
Cedar Waxwing- 9
Northern Parula- 11
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 10375
Palm Warbler- 38
Blackpoll Warbler- 11
Warbler sp.- 3082
Chipping Sparrow- 2
Savannah Sparrow- 7
Dark-eyed Junco- 2
Indigo Bunting- 2
Dickcissel- 3
Bobolink- 1
Eastern Meadowlark- 7
Rusty Blackbird- 1

Total Birds: 13625

Non Morning Flight Birds: 2 Wood Ducks, 1 Great Cormorant, 9 Stilt Sandpipers
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View from the Platform 10-15-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 27

Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 2
Gadwall 3
Mallard X
Northern Pintail 4
Green-winged Teal 15
Greater Scaup 1
Ruddy Duck 1
Double-crested Cormorant 110
Great Blue Heron 1
Great Egret 2
Greater Yellowlegs 4
Lesser Yellowlegs 5
Least Sandpiper 3
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Caspian Tern 1
Rock Pigeon X
Northern Flicker 1
Blue Jay 18
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 7
Yellow-rumped Warbler 1
White-crowned Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 1
Bobolink X
House Sparrow X
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Hawk Watch Count 10-15-2008

Official Observer: Seth Cutright


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0             18             30
Turkey Vulture              17            131            131
Osprey                      21            547            948
Bald Eagle                   5             80            227
Northern Harrier            16            243            400
Sharp-shinned Hawk         225           4863           8787
Cooper's Hawk              102           2288           3689
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             15             24
Broad-winged Hawk           10            372            511
Red-tailed Hawk              4             71            162
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              1              1
American Kestrel            16            821           2828
Merlin                      12            451           1155
Peregrine Falcon            70            837           1301
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              0              2

Total:                     498          10741          20201
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Monarch Monitoring Project - 10/15/08

Well it's been another exciting week at the Monarch Monitoring Project! We have had high numbers on our daily census, bringing us to an average of 48.15 monarchs/hour! It was indeed a good week to see monarchs. Unfortunately this past week also brought some sadness to the monarch crew. Dick Walton and Patsy Eickelberg, the director of our project and one of our most wonderful volunteers (respectively), returned to Massachusettes after three fabulous weeks in Cape May. They will be missed greatly!!! Thankfully, Dick and Patsy didn't take all the monarchs with them when they left. Yesterday and today brought in some higher numbers, and we hope that this will continue throughout the week.

Today I would like to blog about monarch predators (and parasites)! Sure, monarchs are unattractive to some potential predators. The milkweed they consume as caterpillars makes them poisonous to most vertebrates (birds, bats, etc). Still, life isn't easy if you are a monarch. In this blog I will attempt to show you that:
It's not (always) easy being orange and black

Imagine that you are a monarch. You can glide lazily around Cape May in broad daylight. Birds don't want to eat you (you taste terrible), and you advertise this fact every second of every day with your magnificent orange and black coloration. Life is good. Or is it? You see a beautiful butterfly bush (Buddleja sp.) just dripping with delicious nectar. You head over and perch on a flower, ready to feast. Suddenly, without warning, something snatches you in its treacherous grasp! Oh no!! It's a praying mantid!! You are gobbled up with no hope of reaching Mexico.


Photo by Michael O'Brien

Aside from the rapacious grasp of mantids, monarchs have other predators to worry about too. Say instead of making it to that butterfly bush, you got tangled in a web along the way. Oh no! Out comes an orb weaver spider, and you are soon again lunch.


It's not just the monarch adults that have all the trouble either. Parasitic insects like the tachinid fly and certain types of wasps, lay their eggs on the monarch caterpillar. The caterpillar is helpless if a parasitic wasp selects it as a host (see below...poor guy).




The tachinid fly is a common monarch parasite. The fly will lay it's eggs on the monarch caterpillars and once they hatch the larvae will burrow inside the monarch. The fly larvae will feed off its host until it is ready to pupate. It will then emerge from the late instar caterpillar or the chrysalis killing the monarch and leaving a string-like structure in it's path. The tachinid will then pupate after emerging from the monarch. Below is a picture of a chrysalis that has been parasitized by a tachinid fly.


The last predator/parasite I wanted to mention is Ophryocystis elektroscirrha also known as OE. OE is a protozoa that parasitizes monarchs and it is very contagious. The female monarch passes it to her offspring directly, but it can also be spread from monarch to monarch interaction. OE causes many problems in monarchs, including a shorter life span, trouble emerging from the chrysalis, and difficulty flying. Luckily we don't have many OE cases in our east coast population, but we have come across a few this fall. Below is a photo of a monarch with OE, the spores are visible on the abdomen:


So as you can see, it's not easy being a monarch. Aside from a long arduous journey to Mexico, monarchs have lots of predators and parasites to deal with. Enough of them make it though, and enough monarchs are able to pass their genes on to the next generation. If anything, this should just remind us how amazing monarchs are. So I tip my hat to you Mr./Ms. Monarch, and wish you the best of luck!
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Morning Flight 10-15-2008

Morning Flight: 0-5 W wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker- 1
Northern Flicker- 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet- 8
American Pipit- 2
Cedar Waxwing- 27
Black-throated Blue Warbler- 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 155
Warbler sp.- 5
Savannah Sparrow- 1
Dickcissel- 2
Bobolink- 1
Eastern Meadowlark- 4
Pine Siskin- 8
Blue Jay- 21

Total Birds: 234

Non-Morning Flight Birds: 3 Snowy Egrets, 1 Black-bellied Plover, 103 Black Scoters, 37 Surf Scoters
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Sea Watch Count - 10/14/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 1
Wood Duck - 2
American Black Duck - 19
Green-winged Teal - 46
Greater Scaup - 8
Surf Scoter - 461
Black Scoter - 161
dark-winged scoter - 12
Red-throated Loon - 8
Common Loon - 17
Northern Gannet - 392
Brown Pelican - 5
Double-crested Cormorant - 1,856
Snowy Egret - 54
Little Blue Heron - 1
Laughing Gull - 814
Ring-billed Gull - 5
Common Tern - 4
Forster's Tern - 76
Royal Tern - 30
Pomarine Jaeger - 1
jaeger sp - 1

Total: 3,973

Monarch: 39
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View from the Platform 10-14-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 32

Canada Goose-X
Mute Swan -2
Gadwall-6
American Wigeon-5
American Black Duck-2
Mallard-27
Northern Shoveler-7
Northern Pintail-11
Green-winged Teal-33
Ring-necked Duck-1
Greater Scaup-1
Ruddy Duck-1
Double-crested Cormorant-3000
Great Egret-1
Snowy Egret-2
Killdeer-2
Lesser Yellowlegs-15
Stilt Sandpiper-2
Laughing Gull-X
Great Black-backed Gull-X
Caspian Tern-1
Royal Tern-3
Belted Kingfisher-1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)-2
Blue Jay-60
crow sp.-X
Carolina Wren-1
Northern Mockingbird-1
Yellow-rumped Warbler-X
White-crowned Sparrow-1
Eastern Meadowlark-4
House Sparrow-30
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Hawk Watch Count 10-14-2008

Official Observer: Dan Berard


Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                3             18             30
Turkey Vulture              22            114            114
Osprey                      29            526            927
Bald Eagle                   2             75            222
Northern Harrier            16            227            384
Sharp-shinned Hawk         329           4638           8562
Cooper's Hawk               76           2186           3587
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          3             15             24
Broad-winged Hawk            7            362            501
Red-tailed Hawk             10             67            158
Rough-legged Hawk            0              1              1
Golden Eagle                 0              1              1
American Kestrel            63            805           2812
Merlin                      23            439           1143
Peregrine Falcon            36            767           1231
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              0
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              1
Mississippi Kite             0              1              2
Swallow-tailed Kite          0              1              1
Swainson's Hawk              0              0              2

Total:                     619          10243          19703
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Morning Flight 10-14-2008

Morning Flight: 5-10 SE wind, clear conditions
Counter: Sam Galick

Red-breasted Nuthatch- 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 299
Black-throated Green Warbler- 3
Black and White Warbler- 1
American Redstart- 1
Warbler sp.- 385
Chipping Sparrow- 2
Savannah Sparrow- 4
Dark-eyed Junco- 1
Dickcissel- 2
Bobolink- 1
Eastern Meadowlark- 7
Pine Siskin- 2

Total Birds: 709

Non Morning Flight birds: 16 Boat-tailed Grackles, 3 Bald Eagles
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Sea Watch Count - 10/13/08

Counter: Sean Fitzgerald

Brant - 1
Canada Goose - 11
Wood Duck - 17
American Black Duck - 22
Northern Pintail - 4
Green-winged Teal - 52
Surf Scoter - 736
Black Scoter - 311
dark-winged scoter - 67
Red-breasted Merganser - 4
Red-throated Loon - 2
Common Loon - 53
Northern Gannet - 149
Brown Pelican - 5
Double-crested Cormorant - 6,999
Great Cormorant - 1
Great Blue Heron - 1
Laughing Gull - 382
Bonaparte's Gull - 1
Ring-billed Gull - 34
American Oystercatcher - 2
Killdeer - 1

Total: 8,851

Monarch: 163

Non-waterbirds of note: Pine Siskin - 11
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View from the Platform 10-13-08

Location: Cape May Bird Observatory Hawk Watch Site
Number of species: 28

Although the number of raptors was fairly low today, there was plenty of eye candy around the platform! The ever-increasing diversity of Bunker Pond's waterfowl now includes a ruddy duck, ring-necked duck, greater scaup, and more. An awesome flock of tree swallows, along with 2 stowaway barn swallows, made their presence known by continuously skimming the pond for a drink and swarming the bayberry bushes. There were 2 incidences of perched raptors throughout the day: morning visitors were able to watch a perched osprey eat a fish for breakfast while an immature bald eagle rested for about 45 minutes in the late afternoon. As I already said-AWESOME eye candy for birders!!

Canada Goose-X
Mute Swan-3
Gadwall-9
American Wigeon-63
American Black Duck-1
Mallard-43
Blue-winged Teal-2
Northern Shoveler-6
Northern Pintail-3
Green-winged Teal-52
Greater Scaup-1
Ruddy Duck-1
Great Egret-1
Snowy Egret-1
Killdeer-4
Herring Gull-X
Great Black-backed Gull-X
Caspian Tern-1
Belted Kingfisher-2
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)-1
Tree Swallow-115
Barn Swallow-2
Carolina Wren-2
Northern Mockingbird-1
Yellow-rumped Warbler-4
Northern Cardinal-1
Eastern Meadowlark-4
House Sparrow-35
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