Cranston, Rhode Island - SWAROVSKI OPTIK NORTH AMERICA, a subsidiary of the Austrian-based company, announces their sponsorship for the 2012 Cape May Bird Observatory Autumn Hawk Watch event. This event, held annually throughout the fall season, has become a staple of the Cape May Bird Observatory, attracting tens of thousands of birders from around the world each year, to take part in a “viewing” spectacle that is tough to match anywhere else in the world.

Cape May Bird Observatory plays host to one of the biggest bird watching events of the year. Each day during the season, birders from around the world join the official CMBO hawk counter, along with interpretive naturalists at the Hawk Watch Platform to take part in one of the greatest hawk migrations in North America. On average, 36,000 hawks are counted throughout the season, and a tally is kept by the official Cape May Bird Observatory hawk counter. This includes hundreds of eagles, more than a thousand Peregrine Falcons, thousands of Ospreys, and tens of thousands of Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s Hawks. Peak flights occur in late September and early October, with up to 2,000 or 3,000 birds counted in a single day.

“Hawk watching is a tough proving ground for optics. When you are scanning for hours, superior optics and intelligent ergonomics make all the difference. SWAROVSKI OPTIK excels in the hawk watching arena and we are delighted to have them as our partner on the Cape May Hawk Count,” says Pete Dunne, Director of the Cape May Bird Observatory.

“I am thrilled to be able to walk onto the Cape May Hawk Platform and see the hawk counters and New Jersey Audubon Naturalists using SWAROVSKI OPTIK products again this year. There is no better place in North America where hawk enthusiasts, birders, and nature lovers can more easily see migrating hawks, waterfowl, and landbirds, and at the same time compare their present binocular or spotting scope with the newest SWAROVSKI OPTIK products,” says Clay Taylor, Naturalist Market Manager for SWAROVSKI OPTIK NORTH AMERICA.

The Hawk Watch is a partnership project with the N.J. Division of Parks and Forestry and is sponsored by SWAROVSKI OPTIK NORTH AMERICA.