Warning: birding at night can turn you into a night owl.

The 65th Annual Cape May Autumn Birding Festival is coming up on October 28-30, 2011. This is always a fun and impressive event, as evidenced by the fact that it’s in its 65th year. Birders flock to Cape May to participate in field trips, lectures, and special events. Each year, we welcome birders to our Cape May Bed and Breakfast.

This year promises to be as exciting as ever. Ted Floyd will present a fascinating presentation on Birding at Night: The Final Frontier. Birders beware: “Night birding can become addictive”. Ken Kaufman will encourage participants to have “Birder Pride”. Festival participants can look forward to “Birding by Boat” aboard the Osprey, Birding by Bike, and even Birding by Kayak.

The Cape May Autumn Birding Festival is truly an event not to be missed, as least for birding enthusiasts. But we’d like to encourage birders to consider bringing binoculars to Cape May at other times, too. Try midweek birding. After all, the birds don’t care if you watch them on Saturday or Wednesday. They’re beautiful and interesting any day of the week.

The Osprey offers Birding by Boat tours daily. The Cape May Bird Observatory offers talks, walks, and other birding events on a regular basis. Cape May Point State Park is always open.

Many guests of our Cape May Bed and Breakfast are birders. These folks know that while special birding events are fun and informative, there are innumerable opportunities to see birds in and around Cape May, any day of the week.

Bird watching amps up at this time of year, as the earliest fall migrators start to appear. While many of our guests enjoy visiting birding hot spots in and around Cape May on their own, others prefer to participate in guided bird walks. In the coming weeks, guided bird watching tours take place daily through the Cape May Bird Observatory.

A sampling of August Bird Walks offered through the Cape May Bird Observatory:

It's not too soon to reserve your room at our Cape May Bed and Breakfast!

• EZ Birding: ideal for folks who don’t want to walk too far, but still want to see many birds.
• Birding Cape May Point: explore one of the best birding spots on the east coast.
• Higbee Beach Birding: see the birds of this beautiful local beach with a CMBO naturalist.
• Sunset Birding at the Meadows: watch diurnal and nocturnal creatures as the sun sets behind Cape May Point Lighthouse.
• Photo Walks with Mike Hannisian: bring your camera for this serious nature photo learning expedition around Cape May Point State Park.
• Fall Migrants at the Rea Farm: enjoy the birding privileges of the NJ Audubon at a superlative fall birding spot.

Details for these walks and a list of additional events are found through the Cape May Bird Observatory. Preregistration is not necessary for the walks listed above. Simply put on good walking shoes and head out with your binoculars, bug repellent, sunscreen, and drinking water. Walks may be cancelled due to inclement weather.

If you enjoy any of the walks above, you may also enjoy the Cape May Autumn Birding Festival, which takes place the last weekend of October. This tends to be a popular event, so reserve your room at our Cape May Bed and Breakfast soon.

Look for rare beauties during the Cape May World Series of Birding

Some of you may well be wondering just what is a world series of birding? It’s a fair question. It is primarily a conservation effort, and over the years, millions of dollars have been raised to help preserve and protect critical bird habitats. People of all ages flock from all over the world to participate, forming teams to see who can spot the most birds in a 24 hour period. But these being birders, all folks are encouraged to get out and look for birds, whether you compete or not.

Stay at our Cape May bed and breakfast during the World Series of Birding. Regale us with tales of birding wonders and woes – the bird you could hear but couldn’t see, the rare breeds you saw. Right now, a heavy forecast of birds is expected (yes, birds are truly forecast like weather). It is sure to be a fun day for all.

For more details, please visit the World Series of Birding website.

Osprey Nest, sited during a Cape May Birdwatching Cruise

Bird enthusiasts up and down the east coast recognize the name of Cape May, NJ. The land and waters around Cape May are home to many species of birds, and serve as a popular rest-stop for migrating birds. We always enjoy hosting bird watchers at our Cape May lodging – they are an interesting lot.

Throughout the year there are many birding events in and around Cape May. Just this past weekend, birders flew in from around the country for the Cape May Autumn Weekend, THE Bird Show. It may be too late for you to attend that event, but perhaps you can make it to the upcoming Waterbird Society Meeting, November 4 – 8. Consider staying at least part of that time at our Cape May bed and breakfast.

What a beautiful place to be.

The summer crowds have retreated here in Cape May NJ, making way for the next round of visitors. In the fall, flocks of birds descend upon Cape May from the north, seeking warmer waters. They fly thousands of miles to be here (or pass through), and are enthusiastically greeted by bird watchers from all over the nation. Indeed, it has been said (by the NJAS) that “not watching birds when you’re in Cape May is like not visiting the Grand Canyon when you’re in Arizona.” We wholeheartedly welcome birders at our bed breakfast Cape May.

The Cape May Bird Observatory, run by the NJ Audubon Society, is a good place to educate yourself on which birds winter in- or migrate past- Cape May. The center is open seven days a week through the end of November. Tours are offered through the peninsula by foot, and periodically out in the water by boat as well. There are regularly scheduled walks led by naturalists or professional staff.

On September 1, 2009, the Cape May Autumn Hawkwatch began at the Cape May Bird Observatory. You are welcome to stop and visit hawk counter Pete Dunne, who sits atop the Wildlife Viewing Platform daily from sunrise to 5pm. Another interesting option is the Songbird Morning Flight Project, which takes place for four hours, beginning at sunrise every day. This is a great time to spot migrating songbirds. Periodic twilight watches for migrating owls, bats and herons are also fascinating and fun.

We promise to provide a healthy and delicious breakfast at our historic Cape May Inn, so that you will have plenty of energy to hold your binoculars steady (unless you drink too much coffee, of course). After a full day of scanning the skies you will be deeply rewarded by a soak in your own private whirlpool, and an extremely comfortable bed. Check out our autumn specials – you may just find it convenient to stay an extra day.

Hooded Warbler (Wilsonia citrina), originally uploaded by woodcreeper.

The Cape May Bird Observatory and New Jersey Audubon will host the 26th annual World Series of Birding. According to the Cape May Bird Observatory, the World Series of Birding

has changed the birding landscape and raised over $8,000,000 for bird conservation. Every species found – every dollar raised preserves and protects critical bird habitat.

If you’re already planning a trip to Cape May to participate, the John F Craig House is the perfect headquarters for your birding experience. And if you are a fan of birdwatching or environmental conservation, you might consider heading out to Cape May on May 9th for the World Series of Birding.