Poor Man’s Pelagic
The Cape May-Lewes Ferry across Delaware Bay has been called the “Poor Man’s Pelagic” as you have an opportunity to view a number of birds out over a vast body of water up close and natural. I have always found that the trip across the bay is much more productive as far as interesting birds are concerned during the colder months, but today’s trip was quite enjoyable and quite comfortable as well. For the most part, it was a gulls, gulls, and then some more gulls.
The “Prop wash” coming off the huge propellers of the ferry tends to attract smaller fish and invertebrates. Being close to the surface, the abundance of marine life stirred up by the wake of the boat attracts seabirds looking for an easy meal.
The most prevalent gull today was the Herring gull many of which were in juvenile plumage. This image was captured with the Nikon Z8 and the Nikon Z 100-400mm zoom at 400mm. 1/1000 sec, f/7.1, ISO 125
Laughing gulls were also present in good numbers. All winter, we observed these gulls down in Florida in their non-breeding blotchy appearance. They are so much better looking with their contrasting pure black heads against the pristine white nape and breast.
As we approached Cape May, there was a bit more variety in the kinds of seabirds we found. The Double-crested cormorants were present both perched on the buoys and in flight. Their wing beats are so much more rapid that that of the accompanying gulls that it it easy to pick them out from a distance. The DC seen below flew right in front of the ferry as we approached the dock.
One final species before we hit land….the Forster’s tern. Again, there is a marked change in appearance from the winter birds in Florida and the breeding plumage seen here. The Florida birds in non-breeding attire sport a Zorro-like mask throughout the entire winter. Now that we are approaching breeding season and are getting on breeding grounds, the mask has evolved into a full hood as seen on this beautiful tern. Yet one more sign that “spring has sprung !”
Just a few more hours as we head north on the Garden State Parkway and we will be arriving at our home state of New York. May is a fabulous time to be in the Hudson Highlands as it is a magnet for migratory and breeding warblers as well as other song birds. Plenty of “blog worthy” material should be available. Stay tuned!
