Last night it happened. The winds finally lightened up enough over southern Ontario and northern New York to allow the bottleneck of migrants in these north woods to head south. While I don’t have enough time to post the radar this morning, this image will give you a glimpse of what it looked like at midnight last night.
Migration was heaviest over the Buffalo, Fort Drum, and Binghamton, NY radars, with most birds heading SSW on light northerly winds. Therefore, the main trajectory of these migrants would have them in Pennsylvania, rather than New Jersey, this morning. New Jersey, on the other hand, did receive a significant increase in birds this morning, but most of them came via Eastern NY and New England. North winds and no weather to concentrate migrants in any particular location, means that birds will be dispersed across the landscape today. Head for your favorite fall migrant trap, and you should not be disappointed. Hawkwatches, especially interior ones, should have a good flight today.
Good Birding!
David
2 responses to “When the levee breaks”
Wow. Period. The NP dredge spoils in Gloucester County, NJ from 9:30AM until 11:30AM. It’s Saturday. I don’t usually go birding because of my late start time! I am glad a friend called and said – “get out there!”. Calm winds. It was light north or something all night. I think. Highlights – birds most everywhere. I had 5 different flocks. My last new bird was at 11:25 as I walked out. Wow. It didn’t slow down much.
1 EASTERN KINGBIRD
10 BLUE JAYS
2 RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES
4 BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS
1 GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH
1 SWAISON’S THRUSH
1 WHITE-EYED VIREO
1 PHILADELPHIA VIREO
4 RED-EYED VIREOS
1 TENNESSEE WARBLER
5 NORTHERN PARULAS
8 CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLERS
8 MAGNOLIA WARBLERS
2 CAPE MAY WARBLERS
3 BLACK-THROATED GREENS
1 BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER
1 PINE WARBLER
1 BLACKPOLL
4 BLACK and WHITE WARBLERS
12 AMERICAN REDSTARTS
1 NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH
14 COMMON YELLOWTHROATS
1 CANADA WARBLER
1 ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK
Only 10 or so BOBOLINKS overhead.
GOLDFINCHES
Although the birding was okay, nothing spectacular or epic happened. Nocturnal flight calls were few and far between, with only a few species heard.
During morning flight and nocturnal listening, I had the follow highlights:
Veery 1
Swainson’s Thrush 15
Wood Thrush 1
American Robin 6
Cedar Waxwing 25
Tennessee Warbler 1
Northern Parula 1
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1
Magnolia Warbler 6
Cape May Warbler 1
Black-throated Green Warbler 4
Blackburnian Warbler 1
Prairie Warbler 1
Bay-breasted Warbler 4
Blackpoll Warbler 3
American Redstart 3
Hooded Warbler 1
Canada Warbler 1
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 4
Indigo Bunting 2
Bobolink 14
Purple Finch 4
American Goldfinch 16
Unidentified warbler 66