Leaders: Kathy Horn, Kyle Chelius, Bernie Hodgdon
Temp: 38° F
Winds: N 0-5mph
Weather Conditions: sunny
It was a good day to be out birding in Cape May, chilly but sunny and still, AND the First Day of Spring! A gorgeous male Wood Duck was hanging out with some Mallards in the 2nd Plover Pond, perhaps the same one that was hanging out there last fall. Waterbird numbers are down as many ducks have already migrated out but the Blue-winged Teal are still on Al’s Pond at the back of the park. One challenging surprise were the two Wilson’s Snipe in the marsh off the Blue Trail. So well camouflaged among the marsh grasses, they were very difficult to find and impossible to photograph!
40 species
| Species | Count |
| Canada Goose | 11 |
| Mute Swan | 4 |
| Wood Duck | 1 |
| Blue-winged Teal | 4 |
| Northern Shoveler | 14 |
| Gadwall | 26 |
| Mallard | 13 |
| Green-winged Teal (American) | 32 |
| Surf Scoter | 2 |
| Black Scoter | 1 |
| Bufflehead | 12 |
| Ruddy Duck | 4 |
| Mourning Dove | 3 |
| American Coot (Red-shielded) | 7 |
| Wilson’s Snipe | 2 |
| Ring-billed Gull | 1 |
| Herring Gull (American) | 3 |
| Northern Gannet | 28 |
| Double-crested Cormorant | 1 |
| Great Blue Heron (Blue form) | 1 |
| Great Egret | 2 |
| Black Vulture | 3 |
| Turkey Vulture | 2 |
| Northern Harrier | 1 |
| Belted Kingfisher | 1 |
| Tree Swallow | 1 |
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet | 1 |
| Carolina Wren (Northern) | 8 |
| European Starling | 5 |
| Northern Mockingbird | 2 |
| Hermit Thrush | 1 |
| American Robin | 6 |
| Field Sparrow | 4 |
| Song Sparrow | 3 |
| Eastern Towhee | 1 |
| Red-winged Blackbird (Red-winged) | 13 |
| Common Grackle | 2 |
| Pine Warbler | 1 |
| Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) | 6 |
| Northern Cardinal | 4 |
Blue-winged Teal photo by Kathy Horn
Wood Duck photo by Kathy Horn
