Birds Find Safe Harbor on Cape Ann
by Kim Smith
With lush natural habitat and a varied coastline that juts
eastward into the Atlantic Ocean, Cape Ann is both a prime destination for breeding birds and a significant stopover point for migratory species.
The peninsula of Cape Ann lies within the Atlantic Flyway, one of four north to south migratory highways that span North America. Throughout the year, shorebirds, songbirds, wading birds, raptors, and waterfowl find safe harbor and excellent foraging at Cape Ann’s innumerable waterways and protected conservation lands. The early months of spring are a magical time for migratory species in Massachusetts, and Cape Ann is surely at the top of the list for beautiful, scenic places to observe avian species. We see the return of wading birds, including the stealthy Great Blue Heron and Great Egret, the highly animated Snowy Egret, the patient Black-crowned Night Heron, Glossy Ibis, and Little Blue and Green Herons. Plovers, both Piping and Killdeer, arrive to breed and to raise young, while Semipalmated Plovers and Black-bellied Plovers stop to rest and to forage before heading north. Ruddy Turnstones, Sanderlings, Sandpipers, Dunlins, Whimbrels, and Hudsonian Godwits join the scene, also heading north to the Arctic to rear their young. During springtime, dozens of species of songbirds can be seen dining on insects in the treetops, refueling to continue their
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migratory journey north, or fortifying for nest building and egg-laying. Warblers, vireos, orioles, wrens, woodpeckers, flycatchers, and thrushes abound. Some favorites to be on the lookout for are Cedar Waxwings, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, Bobolinks, Eastern Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, and the Massachusetts state bird, the friendly and ever present Black-capped Chickadee. Late spring and early summer months find owl nestlings, including Barred, Great Horned, and Eastern Screech Owls. It’s not uncommon to observe breeding pairs of Osprey and Bald Eagles, true conservation success stories, diving for fish at Cape Ann’s many inlets and waterways. By mid-summer we begin to see waves of birds returning from their northern breeding grounds. The same birds we saw on their northward migration in early spring are now using the shores of Cape Ann to rest and to build their fat reserves for the journey south. This great migratory movement of life continues through the early autumn months. You may be fortunate enough to catch a combined Double-breasted Cormorant, gull, heron, and egret symbiotic feeding frenzy as they
