Trips

Whiskered Tern at Cape May

September 23, 2014 by Corey 5 Comments

The recent hubbub in the northeastern United States in terms of rare birds has been all about the Whiskered Tern at Cape May, the third record of this species for North America. All three of those records are from Cape May. You can read more about this awesome bird here. All I really need to say is that I got to Cape May, saw the bird, and was happy.

Rather than bore you with the story I will instead share pictures and short poems. I have no idea if this will work or not but why not give it a whirl? Please tell me if this sucked in the comments. Or if you liked it.

Least Tern

Least Terns are more rare
Than Whiskered Terns by far.
Also, much cooler.

Whiskered Tern preening

I drove three hours to see a tern.
And I will probably never learn
When twitching a rarity
To be prepared and to study
So field marks I may discern.

Whiskered Tern

Look at this mess of a bird.
My mind’s in a state of revolt.
Twitching is super absurd
When the bird’s in disgusting molt.

Whiskered Tern yelling

Rare birds are like celebrities.
Click and click and click and click and click and click and click and click and click.
Two hundred plus pictures, most of them
bad.

Whiskered Tern taking off

Fly away rarity, fly,
To wherever it is that you’re going.
While you’re gone this guy
About seeing you will be crowing.

…

Written by Corey
Corey is a New Yorker who lived most of his life in upstate New York but has lived in Queens since 2008. He's only been birding since 2005 but has garnered a respectable life list by birding whenever he wasn't working as a union representative or spending time with his family. He lives in Forest Hills with Daisy and Desmond Shearwater. His bird photographs have appeared on the Today Show, in Birding, Living Bird Magazine, Bird Watcher's Digest, and many other fine publications. He is also the author of the American Birding Association Field Guide to the Birds of New York.