Hi Guys:

My pick would be New Jersey; of course, I?m prejudiced, because I was born
and raised there. On the right day in May, you can tick five Empid
Flycatchers, five Vireo?s, six Thrush?s in addition to Robin, twenty-five or
more Warblers and fifteen or more Sparrows. New Jersey is a small state,
200 miles long, and 40 miles wide, but you can get to the best birding spots
with less travel.

I did a big day in May in the 70?s and totaled 163 species. NJ Audubon
runs ?The World Series of Birding? in May each year. Last year?s winning
Team had 228 species, and the days cumulative total was 265. So you can see
there is plenty to see in NJ. Any time in May is good, maximum yield close
to the 15th.

If you have a few days, I would spend one or two days in Mercer and
Hunterdon Counties; hot spots are Rogers Refuge and the Institute Woods in
Princeton, Mercer County Park, farmland around Hopewell and Amwell township.
Go over to the coast and spend another day or two driving and birding from
Sandy Hook to Cape May, with stops at Sandy Hook SP, Deal, Shark River Inlet
at Brielle, Tuckerton, Brigantine NWR (Now called Forsythe Unit or
something) and then on to Cape May. If you have time and one is going out,
you may be able to add 10 to 15 species on a Pelagic trip. You should check
the listserv digest here: http://birdingonthe.net/birdmail.html to see about
rarities

Obviously as with anywhere you won?t add the entire state list on one trip,
but a few days in May in New Jersey can be magical.

I tried to check some of my old contacts, but have not found them, but you
can get some good information here: http://www.njaudubon.org/

Please feel free to contact me and I can give you more specific details


Pete Fahey
Issaquah, WA
peterfahey at comcast.net



We are contemplating a spring migration trip to the East Coast U.S.? Where
would be the most productive place and what time of year would be best??
Judging from the migration maps, it seems that there are two flyway
convergence areas: Cape May, NJ and central South Carolina.? Would these be
the two best spots, or, in your experience, is somewhere else better??
Please answer privately.
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Thanks so much :-)
Mary Reese & Jim Allen
Portland & Fairview, OR
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