Wrap up from Delaware Bay

Sunset Reeds beach June 4th

SHOREBIRDS PROJECT 2007

The total catch of Red Knot, Ruddy Turnstone and Sanderling for this season was 1607. This total was made up of 537 Red Knot of which 73 were retraps, 509 Ruddy Turnstone (52 retraps) and 560 Sanderling (37 retraps). Overall, therefore, our total for retraps was 162. These figures did not take into account a good number of Semipalmated Sandpiper that were passed over for processing to the Audubon team led by David Mizrahi; nor does it account for other species netted but released unbanded, such as Laughing Gull. Sometimes additional birds of our three target species were released if they were surplus to requirements for a sample at the time. We set a cannon net on 19 occasions on 16 different days between 14th May and 5th June (with one additional catch on the 10th before the main party arrived). On three occasions no net was fired and one catch was made on a misfire (Eldridge Road on 4th June). Our largest catches were 206 (3rd June at Gandy's Beach) and also at Gandy's Beach on 24th May with 185. Our smallest catches were on the last two days with only 16 Sanderling caught each time and a catch of 46 at Sunray Beach on the 1st June. However, an additional 55 Semipalmated Sandpipers were handed over for processing to the Audubon team on the 5th June thus making our final catch far from disappointing.
These and other daily totals, of course, do not take into account species other than Red Knot, Ruddy Turnstone and Sanderling nor birds set free unprocessed.

There are, of course, hundreds of re-sightings to account for. I have no idea how many have been logged but Alice Ewing has been out just about every day and she alone has collected many hundreds of flag identifications, let alone the efforts of the band of other willing "scanners" including, in particular, Steve Gates and Jeannine Parvin.



The Bird List

The following list is based on the Checklist of the Birds of Cape May County, New Jersey published by Cape May Bird Observatory, New Jersey Audubon Society (available free from their Centers). I have used the 2007 edition.
In the tally I have used normal font for species listed as common for the period mid-March to the end of May; italics indicates listing as fairly common at this time. In the same way I have used UPPER CASE for uncommon, bold for Scarce and Large bold font for rare. Species not seen during the trip but shown as falling within the common category at this season are listed here in red. We were in fact too late for many of the waterfowl.

WATERFOWL
Snow Goose; Brant (light bellied); (Greater) Canada Goose; Mute Swan; WOOD DUCK;Gadwall; American Wigeon; American Black Duck; Mallard; Northern Pintail; Green-winged Teal; Surf Scoter; Black Scoter; Long-tailed Duck; Bufflehead; Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser.
UPLAND GAME BIRDS
WILD TURKEY
LOONS to CORMORANTS
Red-throated Loon; Common Loon; Northern Gannet; Double-crested Cormorant.
BITTERNS to VULTURES
Great Blue Heron; Great Egret; Snowy Egret; TRICOLORED EGRET; GREEN HERON; Black-crowned Night-Heron; Glossy Ibis; Black Vulture; Turkey Vulture.
DIURNAL RAPTORS
Osprey; Bald Eagle; Northern Harrier; Sharp-shinned Hawk; Red-tailed Hawk; PEREGRINE FALCON.
RAILS to CRANES
Clapper Rail.
SHOREBIRDS
Black-bellied Plover;Semipalmated Plover; PIPING PLOVER; Killdeer; American Oystercatcher; Black-necked Stilt; Spotted Sandpiper; Greater Yellowlegs; Willet; Lesser Yellowlegs; Whimbrel; Ruddy Turnstone; Red Knot; Sanderling; Semipalmated Sandpiper; Least Sandpiper; WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER; Purple Sandpiper; Dunlin; Curlew-Sandpiper; Short-billed Dowitcher; Red-necked Phalarope.
GULLS to ALCIDS
Laughing Gull; Bonaparte's Gull; Ring-billed Gull; (American) Herring Gull; Great Black-backed Gull; Least Tern; Common Tern; Forster's Tern; Royal Tern; Black Skimmer.
PIGEONS to WOODPECKERS
Rock Pigeon; Mourning Dove; YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO; Eastern Screech-Owl; Chuck-will's-widow; Whip-poor-will; Chimney Swift; Ruby-throated Hummingbird; Red-bellied Woodpecker; Downy Woodpecker; Northern Flicker.
FLYCATCHERS to VIREOS
Eastern Wood-Pewee; ACADIAN FLYCATCHER; GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER; EASTERN KINGBIRD; WHITE_EYED VIREO; Red-eyed Vireo.
JAYS to WRENS
Blue Jay; America Crow; Fish Crow; HORNED LARK; Purple Martin; Tree Swallow; NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW; Bank Swallow; Barn Swallow; Carolina Chickadee; Tufted Titmouse; Carolina Wren; Marsh Wren.
KINGLETS to WAXWINGS
Blue-grey Gnatcatcher; Wood Thrush; American Robin; Grey Catbird; Northern Mockingbird; Brown Thrasher; European Starling.
WARBLERS
Northern Parula; Yellow Warbler; Yellow-rumped Warbler; Yellow-throated Warbler; Pine Warbler; Prairie Warbler; Black-and-white Warbler; American Redstart; Prothonotary Warbler; Ovenbird; LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH; Common Yellowthroat; Yellow-breasted Chat.
TANAGERS to BUNTINGS
SUMMER TANAGER; eastern Towhee; Chipping Sparrow; Field Sparrow; Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow; seaside Sparrow; Song Sparrow; White-throated Sparrow; northern Cardinal; Indigo Bunting.
BLACKBIRDS to OLD WORLD SPARROWS
Red-winged Blackbird; Common Grackle; Boat-tailed Grackle; Brown-headed Cowbird; Orchard Oriole; Baltimore Oriole; Purple Finch; House Finch; American Goldfinch; House Sparrow.

A grand total of 127 species seen. We did not see 13 species listed as common for this time of the year but 9 of these are waterfowl that might safely be said to have long gone north. On the other hand, we did see 15 species listed as uncommon and another 3 listed as scarce together with 3 more listed as rare. Not bad coverage for 24 days in a relatively restricted area of southern New Jersey along the eastern shoreline of Delaware Bay (Cumberland and Cape May counties). Only the Black-necked Stilt was added by including our day trip to Delaware.

To continue with this theme on number of species for the area. I note that 313 species are listed for the spring to early summer period, that is mid-March up to the end of May. This figure would include all vagrants and rare birds seen over time during these months. However, excluding pelagics, very rare, rare and scarce species the residue is 206 species listed as common, fairly common and uncommon. This is the more realistic figure to aim for and indeed on the 24th Annual World Series of Birding day organized by the New Jersey Audubon Society this year on 12th May, a team (the MOS Yellowthroats) amassed the incredible total of 184 species of bird logged in the one day from Cape May County! We can safely say, therefore, that our modest effort was about 69% of what we might have achieved had we been really keen! Not bad really.