Mostly sunny with a
light NW breeze and cool temps in the mid 50s
It really feels like fall
today and the migration of songbirds in Cape May is in full swing. Looking down each trail, you can
see the birds zipping across from field to trees and back again in search of
“fuel”. We found one such bird, an
Eastern phoebe, who had struck it rich in his search for a repast. An unlucky Red admiral butterfly
obviously “zigged” with it should have “zagged” and wound up as a meal for this
adept flycatcher.
There were plenty of larger
birds on the move as well….Northern flickers, Brown thrashers, a Swainson’s
thrush, Blue jays, and more. But
the stars of the show this morning were the smaller songbirds, predominantly
warblers. This handsome Prairie
warbler kept us busy by diving down into the thickets and then popping up
momentarily to give us a quick view before disappearing back into the
foliage. Eventually, however, he
condescended to come up and give us the extended view we felt we all deserved.
When we talk about the changing colors of autumn, we most often think of the leaves of the maples and
birches. Many of our most colorful
birds in spring and summer, however, also change their hues and turn to
something that appears entirely different.
Take the Scarlet tanager for example. Today, I photographed an individual perched atop a tree in
its typical fall plumage. Scarlet
it is NOT. The bird in fall is
yellow on the face and underparts with black wings and tail.
Unfortunately, it’s time
to head back north to New York.
After 4 days and over 130 species of migrating birds, we are reminded
why Cape May is often referred to as the birding capital of the northeast and
one of the top spots in the entire country. We had great birds, a great trip leader in Warren, and great
fellow birders to share our weekend with.
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