Parashuram blog

Cape Ann Winter Birding Weekend Delivers Rare Species

The third annualwas held on the weekend of Feb. 4 to 5 in and around Gloucester, Mass. The event, co-sponsored byand the , aims not only to attract experienced birders, but offer an inexpensive winter activity for families that is both fun and informative, even for those with little or no birding experience.

This year, the Cape Ann Winter Birding Weekend came on the heels of several big northeast storms that left many area rooftops buried under so much snow that the . Despite the wintry conditions, turnout was good with 71 people registered for the event according to the Cape Ann Chamber.

"It's not a record attendance number," said Tim Burton of the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce, "but it is a good number considering the recent weather." Forecasts for Saturday called for temperatures near freezing and rain beginning in the early afternoon. Fortunately, the rain held off for almost the entire day with only a few minutes of very light rain during the events outdoor activities.

Wayne Petersen, one of the expert birding guides leading the four event bus tours and Director of Mass Audubon's Massachusetts Important Birding Areas, told attendees "these are near-perfect condition for ocean birding. The high overcast sky really increases the visibility of birds on the water." Indeed, those on bus number two with Petersen counted upwards of forty species of birds on Saturday.

Guides and some participants set up birding scopes for use by all attendees to make sure everyone got a great view of the various species of sea birds floating offshore at the various locations visited on the bus tour.

The Cape Ann Birding Weekend, says Chris Leahy, the Gereard A. Bertrand Chair of natural History and Field Ornithology at Mass Audubon, "was born a few years ago when the Chamber called me to ask whether it was a good idea. I thought it was a great idea and the partnership with Mass Audubon and the Cape Ann Chamber was born."

Leahy, whose books include "Introduction to New England Birds," and "Birdwatcher's Companion to North American Birdlife," said of the event, "Our goal is not to make money. Our interest is in promoting interest in nature and bird watching." The expenses of the annual birding weekend are underwritten by the Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce, with help from business sponsors, "without whom," Burton noted, "we could not put on this event."

Birders and Other Rare Species Flock to Cape Ann in Winter

"Cape Ann is very well-known for its winter birding," Leahy explained. "Many very rare species are easy to see here in winter." The purple sandpiper is a good example. In summer it resides in Greenland and the extreme north of Canada; during the winter, however, coastal birders are almost guaranteed to spot them on the rocky coasts of Cape Ann.

In addition to Dovekies, Razorbill, Iceland Gulls, and the event's signature bird, the very striking Harlequin Duck, attendees this year also saw a Harp Seal resting on the rocky beach at the Straitsmouth Cove stop of the morning bus tours. The Harp Seal is a resident of the Arctic whose range does not normally include the United States according to a .

In addition to the bus tours, the event featured a number of bird-related vendor displays, and slideshow presentations of the birds and wildlife of the Svarlbad, Belize and Cape Ann. The Sunday morning bird watching ocean cruise that had been planned for the Cape Ann Birding Weekend had to be cancelled this year because of poor weather conditions forecast for the day.

Brad Sylvester is a life-long New England resident who has resided in four of the six New England states. He writes about New England news and events for Yahoo! (and is an avid birder!)