The common name of the species comes from Cape May, New Jersey, where Alexander Wilson first described it. After the initial recording, these birds were not recorded in the area for more than 100 years.
Powdermill Nature Reserve’s avian research center is part of Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s biological research station in Rector, Pennsylvania. The research center operates a bird banding station, conducts bioacoustical research, and performs flight tunnel analysis with the goal of reducing window collisions.
