Large fall at Cape May and Higbee in last two days

Friday and Saturday has seen a change in fortunes for the better.  After the misty and humid conditions on Thursday, light westerly winds overnight produced our second BIG fall of the trip.  We went to the Higbee Dike at first light and were rewarded with very high numbers of warblers, phoebe's, woodpeckers, nuthatches and raptors.  Perhaps the signs were there on Thursday evening when we found several new Yellow-rumped Warblers and the Orange-crowned Warbler at the Lighthouse.  I spoke to Sam Galick, one of the official Morning Flight counters and he had logged over 4,500 Yellow-rumped Warblers and 400 Red-breasted Nuthatches.  The majority are flyovers continuing their onward southerly migration, but many linger in the woods round the Dike area, giving stunning views.

Parula Warbler - one of 156 logged today!

The link here > VIEW FROM THE FIELD by Mike Crewe explains all in more detail, but essentially the extraordinary numbers are relayed here: (courtesy Mike Crewe).

 Red-bellied Woodpecker - 50

Yellow-belled Sapsucker - 8
Downy Woodpecker - 2
Hairy Woodpecker - 1

Northern Flicker - 164

Eastern Wood-Pewee - 4
Empidonax sp. - 1

Eastern Phoebe - 48
Red-eyed Vireo - 29
Blue-headed Vireo - 3
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 427
White-breasted Nuthatch - 7

Golden-crowned Kinglet - 13

Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 20
kinglet sp. - 1

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 1

American Robin - 27
Catharus sp. - 4

American Pipit - 1

Cedar Waxwing - 731
Tennessee Warbler - 17

Nashville Warbler - 15

Northern Parula - 156
Yellow Warbler - 2

Magnolia Warbler - 10

Cape May Warbler - 5

Black-throated Blue Warbler - 66

Yellow-rumped Warbler - 4610

Black-throated Green Warbler - 67

Blackburnian Warbler - 1

Prairie Warbler - 1
Palm Warbler - 389

Bay-breasted Warbler - 4

Blackpoll Warbler - 95
"Baypoll" Warbler - 109
Black-and-white Warbler - 20
American Redstart - 10

Ovenbird - 1

Connecticut Warbler - 1
warbler sp. - 7809

Scarlet Tanager - 14
Field Sparrow - 1
Chipping Sparrow - 9

Savannah Sparrow - 28
Dark-eyed Junco - 4

Rose-breasted Grosbeak - 3
Blue Grosbeak - 1
Indigo Bunting - 57

Dickcissel - 1
Rusty Blackbird - 3
Baltimore Oriole - 1

Purple Finch - 13

Pine Siskin - 169

 

Yellow-rumped Warblers - two of the 4,600 logged today!!!