Happy October, Everyone! Things are shaping up for a massive flight into the Mid-Atlantic tonight with a chance of Peregrine action throughout the day today. Overall the weekend is looking mighty fine, plan accordingly. Here’s the radar from sunset last night through 5:00am this morning.

Frames are every 1/2 hour. Click on the thumbnail to view the full-sized animation.

I almost didn’t post the radar this morning, simply because there were NO birds migrating over eastern NY, NJ or the Delmarva. But after checking it out, I couldn’t help but be impressed by the sheer volume of birds moving west of the low pressure system currently overhead (that, and I have this obsessive/compulsive thing about not skipping the first day of a new month). Check out the regional composite to see what I’m talking about. Clearly, anywhere along the western frontal boundary this morning will be seeing lots of birds falling out (come on you Pensy Birders- let’s hear it!).

Moving over to the local radars you’ll see virtually NOTHING on the reflectivity images. Winds were strong and southerly last night and birds were staying put wherever they were. Watch the velocity loops for New Jersey, though, and you’ll see that in the last frames the winds quickly turn northwesterly. This is due to the front pushing across the region, eventually putting us into position for optimal migration weather.

So here we go! The front will clear our region today and make way for northwest winds at all altitudes. Raptors will fly over New Jersey throughout the day and the faster the front clears the east coast, the more Peregrines we can expect to move through. If it’s fast enough, we could see some daily record-shattering totals around the state… fingers crossed!

Of course, with the sheer number of birds backed up in the migration pipe, and with northwest winds on tap for at least two nights, coastal migrant hotspots will be P R I M E tomorrow and Sunday mornings. If you’re on the fence about where to go, THESE are exactly the conditions that make Cape May one of the best fall migrant traps in the US. Sandy Hook will also be a great bet for the next two mornings, so if you’re in the north and can’t get down here- do try and make it to The Hook or Island Beach State Park.

Good Birding – and hope to see you in the field!

David