Michael Mroczek

Cape May National Wildlife Refuge

osprey flying in the air
Osprey flying in the Cape May National Wildlife Refuge Two Mile Beach Unit in Wildwood Crest, New Jersey on Monday, October 14, 2024. This bird was photographed from the observation platform overlooking Old Lower Thorofare

This past Monday, we took a trip to Wildwood Crest to visit my in-laws' new condo. I managed to carve out an hour to visit the Cape May National Wildlife Refuge, which is only a mile away from their new beach house. The refuge is located on the southern tip of the barrier island, just before the city of Cape May.

Based on my research on Google Maps, I found a platform overlooking a tidal marsh that seemed like the ideal spot for photographing migrating birds. To my surprise, the platform turned out to be a bird blind—an exciting discovery, as it was my first time photographing from one. This felt like the perfect opportunity to practice my technique in a more concealed environment.

My father-in-law accompanied me to the blind. Upon arriving, we met a friendly couple from upstate New York who were also birdwatching and taking photographs. They pointed out a couple of osprey perched in some dead trees nearby. I immediately started snapping photos, and within a few minutes, one of the osprey took off from its perch and flew right past the blind, giving me the chance to capture some close-up in-flight shots.

Osprey in Flight
In some of the images, you can see a swarm of swallows above the dunes. While they may not be as impressive as the osprey, watching hundreds of swallows moving together was still an incredible sight.

I've made a real effort to photograph osprey since the spring, and I'm still refining my technique. My keeper rate for in-flight images is still quite low, but the image at the top of this post is my best result yet. Tracking a fast-moving bird with a telephoto lens and keeping it in focus is challenging, but experiences like these make the effort worthwhile.

A full gallery of images can be found here: Osprey in Cape May National Wildlife Refuge