Weather and Migration Dr. David Aborn March 30, 2005 Dear Students: Well, it looks like migration has arrived in full force. All those big storms in the southern US forced migrants to land along the Gulf Coast. Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi all reported good numbers of migrants on March 26 and 27. Ten species of warblers were seen, including Black-throated-green Warblers, Worm-eating Warblers, Ovenbirds, and Hooded Warblers. Those areas also reported Indigo Buntings, Summer Tanagers, Wood Thrushes, Red-eyed Vireos, and White-eyed Vireos. The front moved through the southeast on the March 27- 28t. The winds quickly shifted to the south on March 29, and some of those Gulf coast birds started showing up in my Tennessee area. I saw the first Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Broad-winged Hawks, and a Red-eyed Vireo, while others here in Tennessee saw Black-and-white-Warblers and Louisiana Waterthrushes. Waterthrushes, Eastern Kingbirds, and Ovenbirds were also seen in Georgia. The south winds are allowing more of the early migrants to fly farther north, as swallows continue to move into Illinois and Pennsylvania. Migration in the western US was slow. New Mexico reported the most activity, with Lucy's Warblers, Yellow Warblers, and Black-throated-gray Warblers being seen. Someone in southern California reported a Swainson's Hawk. What Does This Week's Weather Mean for Birdwatchers? By this point, you should be able to make some predictions of your own; just look for those good old cold fronts! A large front is in the middle of the country right now, with another one right behind it. This is a very similar situation to last week. So: The Gulf coast should get ready to see another wave of migrants coming in. Migrants should be forced to land over the next couple of days, and the eastern US should expect the same thing by the weekend. By that time, winds farther west should have shifted to the south, allowing the first group of migrants to head up towards the Midwest. There don't seem to be any cold fronts around the western US, so that area should see southerly winds this week. This means no fallouts, but the good flying weather will bring in more birds from the tropics. While there won't be any big concentrations of birds, there should be a good diversity over much of the region. A lot of migration is still ahead, and so far it is off to a good start! Take care. David Aborn North Chickamauga Creek Conservancy, TN Click to enlarge The Next Weather and Songbird Migration Update will Be Posted on April 6, 2005. Copyright 1996-2005 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form