Memories of Cape May, New Jersey Day 4

Up at 6am and on the road at 6:30am again to Higbee Beach for the Warbler Flight. This morning was the best of the trip with over a thousand plus birds passing whilst we were there. The counters call out the species as they whizz past and take rapid fire shots with DSLR cameras for verification of the tricky ones.
This morning I added Rough-Winged Swallow, American(Buff-Bellied) Pipit, Bobolink, Yellow Warbler,Scarlet Tanager, Purple Finch, Eastern Phoebe, Blackpoll Warbler and American Goldfinch.

Higbee Dike

The Slurry pit at dawn

The Flight Deck

Lesser Yellowlegs

We then headed into town for our customary 'brunch'. It being Saturday it was really busy in the Ocean View and as there were seven of us we had to wait for around twenty minutes to get a table.

When we were eating news came out on James' phone that an Eastern Seaboard MEGA rarity was over the Hawk Watch Point, a Zone-Tailed Hawk, a first for New Jersey. We paid up and rushed over there but on the way news came that the bird was now over Coral Ave. so we went there instead, only to be told that the report was erroneous, these hawks show a remarkable likeness to Turkey Vultures and are often confused, and by the time we got back to the Hawk Watch the bird was gone and over Delaware Bay, showing up twenty minutes later in Delaware and becoming a first for that state as well. The delay at the diner had cost us dearly ! It later transpired that the false report was put out by the Higbee recorder !
We then headed north for the rest of the day to the Dennis Creek Wildlife Management Area or as is commonly known Jake's Landing. This is vast area of marsh grass interspersed with tidal creeks and drainage channels which is arrived at through a forest of mixed pine and oak trees.

Jake's Landing

Tape luring is a common practise in the USA, as it is in Australia and when we were partway through the forest James parked the bus and we listened as he played a recording of an Eastern-Screech Owl, within minutes we had an Owl responding from deep in the wood and a small flock of agitated birds looking for the intruder such as Dark-Eyed Junco and Pine Warbler.

Dark-Eyed Junco

We then carried on to the marsh area and by a small reed fringed pond we had a Marsh Wren which flew back and forwards across the water. Making our way to the creek we spotted a Clapper Rail on the far bank.

Clapper Rail

James played a recording of the more elusive Black Rail but we got no response. Whilst scanning for sparrows we had great views of a hunting Northern Harrier.

Northern Harrier

Our target species of salt marsh sparrows proved elusive but we did see several Savannah Sparrows on the track.

Savannah Sparrow

 On our way back to Cape May that evening we stopped at an 'All you can eat' Chinese buffet. Not my favourite choice being vegetarian but this being the USA there were pizza and fries as well as the usual Chinese dishes. 

We arrived back at the motel at 8:30pm, sat outside for a bit and updated the daily log and then turned in for the night.