2024 Spring Letter #1: Weather Forecasts for Migrating Songbirds From Dr. David Aborn

Dear Journey North Readers,

Spring migration has begun! The early arriving species are starting to show up in the southern US. I just got back from a trip to coastal South Carolina, and I saw my 1st Yellow-throated Warblers, Northern Parulas, Common Yellowthroats, White-eyed Vireos, and Blue-gray Gnatcatchers of the season. Those species have also arrived in Texas and Louisiana, along with a few Black-and-white Warblers and Louisiana Waterthrushes. The first Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have also been seen in Florida and Georgia. The first migrants are starting to trickle in out west, as well. In Arizona, the first Black-chinned Hummingbirds, Lucy’s Warblers, and Hooded Orioles were seen, and Hooded Orioles and Orange-crowned Warblers were seen in southern California.

Unfortunately, if you live north of the Carolinas, Texas, Arizona, or southern California, you won’t be seeing any of those migrants for a little while. If you have read my primer on weather and migration and you look at this week’s map, you can see a big area of high pressure over the eastern US. A strong cold front came across the country at the end of last week, and the high pressure behind it has been bringing strong north winds to much of the east. That will keep migrants grounded for another day or two. 

Out west, another front is moving in off the Pacific, bringing rain which will keep migrants grounded out there. In another day or two, the weather should clear, allowing migrants to arrive from Mexico. 

There might be a day or two before that front reaches the Midwest and South, allowing migrants to make a little progress north. They had better move quickly, because that front will be bringing another round of strong storms to the eastern half of the country, meaning migrants will be grounded for several days.

While migration is slow, this is a good time to brush of on your identification skills so you will be ready when migration really gets going! Take care.

David Aborn

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

submitted 03/15/2024