Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center Inc

08/18/2025

August 16-17, 2025- 24hr Pelagic Trip Highlights:
Unidentified Beaked whales
4 S***m whales
Striped dolphins
Pelagic Bottlenose dolphins
Tamanend's Bottlenose dolphin (Welcoming us home at the inlet!)
Common dolphins
Pilot whales
2 Loggerhead Sea turtles
Chilean Devil Ray
Manta Ray
Mola mola
White Marlin
Flying Fish
Portuguese Man O’War
Great, Sargasso, Cory’s, Scopoli's shearwaters
Wilson’s Storm, Leach's, Band-rumped petrels
Red-necked Phalaropes
Long-tailed Jaeger
Monarch Butterfly (25 miles offshore!)
8 Mylar balloons for our
📸: Captain Melissa & Research Intern Danielle
These trips provide invaluable data for our research team. Special shout out to our Captains, crew, passengers, and trip leaders who work tirelessly to spot our wildlife from dawn until dusk!
Sailing daily on the American Star!
➡www.capemaywhalewatch.com
📞(609)-898-0055
We participate with Whale SENSE and view our marine mammals responsibly.

08/14/2025

Last night, volunteers from Cape May Whale Watch and Research Center, Good Deeds Market, Cape May Point Arts and Science Center, and May Stage completed a beach cleanup organized by our Research Interns, Chariclia and Brooke. Together, we removed over 300 pieces of litter from the shoreline near the Cape May - Lewes Ferry terminal.
Cigarette butts and small plastic pieces were our most collected items. Cigarette filters, made of cellulose acetate (a form of plastic), can take up to 10 years to degrade, all while leaching harmful chemicals into the ocean. Plastic pieces can persist for hundreds of years, breaking down into microplastics that are easily mistaken for food by our marine life.
Every cleanup is a step toward healthier beaches and oceans. Thank you to all who joined us in protecting our coastal ecosystem and to Lower Township!

08/06/2025

Are you getting ready for our 24hr pelagic? Join our friends at the Cape May Bird Observatory for a workshop Identifying Summer Seabirds of the Mid-Atlantic on Wednesday, August 13th at 7:00pm!

Join CMBO Senior Naturalist Scott Barnes for a beginner/intermediate level class on summer pelagic birds, learning to identify 18 species of seabirds that may be encountered off the Mid-Atlantic coast. We’ll cover shearwaters, storm-petrels, jaegers, and terns and how to distinguish these often-si...

08/06/2025

Join us for a community Coastal Clean Up as part of our Clean Ocean Initiative! Help us protect local wildlife and keep our beautiful Delaware Bay shoreline free of marine debris. We’ll provide gloves, bags, and data sheets to record what we collect so you’ll be contributing to science too! All are welcome!

08/02/2025

It's SUPPERTIME! 🦅🐟
An American Bald Eagle enjoys its catch of the day along the Cape May Canal on our Sunset Cruise! Bald Eagles may consume fish, small mammals, or occasionally other birds along the salt marsh shoreline.
📸: Naturalist Melissa
Sailing daily on the American Star!
➡ www.capemaywhalewatch.com
📞(609)-898-0055

08/01/2025

Atlantic menhaden, also known as bunker, are referred to as "the most important fish in the sea." They serve as a crucial food source for whales, dolphins, ospreys, and many other species. They also play a vital role in ocean health by filtering large volumes of water, helping to maintain water quality in coastal ecosystems.
Check out this wonderful video by Ted Greenberg featuring Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ and our Research Director, Melissa Laurino.

Ospreys are a staple at the Jersey Shore where they can usually be found nesting and perched above the marshes. Wildlife experts say they are seeing less osprey nests this summer however and are investigating the reasons why. NBC10’s Ted Greenberg explains.

07/30/2025

Jumping for joy! 🐬 Check out this breaching Bottlenose dolphin enjoying the evening off Cape May breaching over 7 times on our sunset cruise!
📸: Research Interns Elena and Ella
Sailing daily on the American Star!
➡ www.capemaywhalewatch.com
📞(609)-898-0055

07/26/2025

Bait, birds & babes 😍🐬
Yesterday we encountered large schools of small Atlantic menhaden that numerous rafts of Shearwaters including Great, Sooty, Cory's & Scopoli's were enjoying. Along the shoreline, there were nursery pods with many Bottlenose dolphin calves. Cownose stingrays are being observed daily offshore!
📸: Naturalist Melissa
Sailing daily on the American Star!
➡ www.capemaywhalewatch.com
📞(609)-898-0055

07/24/2025

While returning from a dolphin survey, our research team observed hundreds of Northern diamondback terrapins surfacing and basking near the docks! These brackish water turtles are specially adapted to life in coastal salt marshes and estuaries like those around Cape May. This seasonal gathering likely reflects their summer behavior, as females move toward nesting areas and males become more active in the warmer waters.

07/22/2025

Yesterday afternoon was filled with so many Shearwaters soaring, diving, and feeding right off the Cape May coast! These long distance travelers migrate thousands of miles from the South Atlantic to our waters each summer. They are one of our favorite nearshore pelagic species we encounter!
📸: Captain Matt
Sailing daily on the American Star!
➡ www.capemaywhalewatch.com
📞(609)-898-0055