Things I Saw in Cape May in Addition to the Whiskered Tern

First, because I need to say it, I saw the Whiskered Tern. It's dead center in the photo below.  It wasn't a great look, but after a few long hours of trucking up and down the hot beach (in jean! why did I wear jeans!), it was a relief.  Thanks very much to the Guy in the White Hat for finding the bird, and sorry I didn't get your name.

But I saw a lot of other things, too. Here are some of the things I saw, with photos where I got them.

 A mini ferry:

Some ferry-goers enjoying the view:

A ton of Laughing Gulls feeding on things stirred but by the ferry (enlarge to see):

This dead gull, which apparently choked to death on a fish:

Some awesomely-named Portly Spider Crabs on the beach:

A whole ton of birders looking for/at the Whiskered.  Guy in the White Hat is in the blue to the far left.  Most of these birders did not see the bird, as it was tucked into the flock with its back to most of us.  I went up and down the line trying my best to get people on the bird, but it was surprisingly hard to pick out, and it seemed that every time I moved, even just a foot, I would lose it among the other birds.  Sorry to those I tried and failed to get on the bird:

A Black Scoter, riding the waves:

A shark (sp?) some fisherman hauled in then released:

A couple of Sachem Skippers (I think):

A Royal Tern with a leg band that I can't read:

A Ghost Crab (sp?):

In addition to those things, I also saw: A redneck wedding; an overpriced ferryboat margarita; and, ABA Year Birds 386-390 (Mute Swan, American Oystercatcher, Sanderling, Black Skimmer and, duh, Whiskered Tern).  It was a good, long day.