Cape May: Birding the Phenomenal Fall Migration

There are many North American migration locales that vie for superiority in spring, but few can stand alongside the peninsula of Cape May in the fall, when it is widely regarded as the epicenter of fall migration during its dramatic peak, during late September and October. More than 400 bird species have been recorded in fall seasons, and the sheer numbers of birds on the move are so eye-catching that it has led to the slogan of the New Jersey Audubon: “So. Many. Birds.” This could not have been stated any better. This is exactly what this tour is about, seeing an extraordinary diversity of migrant birds, while they course through the region in phenomenal numbers, as they head off to their wintering grounds. The feeling of migration happening right in front of your eyes is palpable. “Marquee” groups that feature during this time, include a bounty of warblers in the bushes and in the air, seabirds and sea ducks just off the Jersey Shore, shorebirds on the Jersey Shore, and hawks on the wing above the legendary Cape May Point State Park Hawk Watch Platform. Cape May is also dubbed the “Raptor Capital of North America”, and the numbers quickly illustrate why; an average of 30,000 individual raptors pass through there each fall, consisting of some 15 or species, and daily counts often exceeding 2,000 birds! Cape May is studded with a high diversity of birding sites too, and this tour will visit some iconic ones, like Higbee Beach, Brigantine, and the hawk watch of course, but also visit wherever the bird action is happening on any given day. Thus, we will be based at one central location in access to many birding locales, with each day’s plan unfolding once local weather conditions and bird news filters in. One base, with masses of birds, and warblers and hawks at the core of this action all within short drives away….if that excites you, please read on!