World Series of Birding - Strategies

Strategies

Most teams that compete throughout the entire state start at midnight in the northern part of the state. During pre-daylight hours, teams often visit sites such as the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge that are home to certain kinds of owls, rails, and bitterns that are difficult to hear or see during the day. At daybreak, many teams find themselves in the far northern reaches of New Jersey attempting to find species such as Purple Finch and Common Raven that are difficult to find farther south. From 5-10am, teams often pick up the majority of the species they will see all day. Afterwards, teams typically make their way into the central and southern parts of the state to places such as the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge at Brigantine, Cape May, and Belleplain State Forest. After dusk, teams continue to search for the nocturnal species they may have missed at the start of the day, but must be at the "finish line" at Cape May Point State Park by midnight, or face stiff penalties.

Crucial to the success of any serious World Series effort is scouting for species in the days and weeks prior to the event. Most teams will have staked out desirable species (often nesting birds that can be reliably found on the day of competition) in advance to minimize the time they have to spend looking for any one species in particular. Additionally, teams should maximize the number of different habitats they visit (e.g., saltwater marshes, Canadian Zone woodlands, pine forests, beach, etc.), as different species frequent different habitats. Finally, teams should plan their route to maximize time spent birding and minimize time spent driving.

For more information on route planning and strategy, see Pete Dunne's "Blueprint for a Big Day," the World Series of Birding Discussion Forum, and the scouting notes of the Nikon/DVOC team that has won the World Series five out of the last eight years. All can be found under External Links.