While Cape May may be considered the unofficial birding capital of the state, New Jersey’s position along the Atlantic Flyway gives the whole state “a ringside seat to the spectacular annual migration,” said New Jersey Conservation Foundation Executive Director Michele S. Byers in a recent “State We’re In” newsletter.

A new-this-year Motus Wildlife Tracking Network station in Blairstown is helping to track the state’s fall and winter visitors, which summer in points north, including New England, Canada, and the Arctic. The station, one of several in the state, uses radio telemetry to monitor previously tagged birds (and bats, butterflies, and dragonflies!).

Birds visiting this time of year include songbirds like pine siskins, red-breasted nuthatches and grosbeaks, as well as seabirds, waterfowl, and tiny Northern saw-whet owls, said Byers.

The Motus system is just one way to track this great migration.

For those interested in monitoring the migration for themselves, the eBird Portal by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology allows birdwatchers of all skill levels to report their sightings. The website includes an interactive map, user photos and reporting information.