Fall for Cape May

Cape May, New Jersey, is a magical place any time of the year, but in the fall it can be the stuff of legend. Here, on a misty morning, you might see Great Blue Herons rise from the marshes in great squawking squadrons. You might find warbler species numbering in the double-digits in the morning, marvel at scores of hawks and falcons sprinkled across the skies in the afternoon, and retire for the evening with the trace of a fishing Black Skimmer’s graceful flight etched in your memory. And if you’re very lucky, you might awaken to discover a fabled fallout, when weather conditions conspire to dump a mother lode of feathered jewels onto the southernmost tip of New Jersey.

From mid-September to mid-October, Osprey, American Kestrel, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Northern Harrier, and Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s hawks should all be in heavy migration. Shorebird migration peaks for such species as Black-bellied Plover, American Golden-Plover, Ruddy Turnstone, Western Sandpiper, Sanderling, and Dunlin. And many small passerines, including a host of warblers, swallows, wrens, sparrows, and buntings, should be present in good numbers. Join us for a week that could provide you with the migration spectacle of a lifetime!