So did you get out there and do some birding?

The last two nights saw some heavy migration across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, and as a result the birding has picked up at many migration hotspots across the region. I got so excited watching the evening radar on Friday night, that I had to go out and take some digital video through my telescope. You can view some of the clips by clicking this link.

Check out the national forecast to see Paul's recent comments about migration happenings across the US, and also the regional birding lists at birdingonthe.net to see what birds are showing up in specific states. Around the Mid-Atlantic we've seen big pushes of Prairie Warblers, American Redstarts, Magnolia Warblers, and Black-and-white Warblers. Coastal locations such as Cape May have been reporting many more species including some less common ones (as is always the case with this great migrant trap) such as Dickcissel. Buff-breasted Sandpipers, Upland Sandpipers, and American Golden Plovers (collectively referred to as "grasspipers" because of their tendency to be found in open grass fields rather than along the shore) have been showing up at sod farms and similar locales. Hudsonian Godwits and both Wilson's and Red-necked Phalaropes have also made appearances along the east coast as of late.

The next few days

Given the number of birds that have moved over the last couple of nights, it'll be nice to have two nights of southerly winds to slow things down. In doing so, birds will settle into good habitat to feed and build up fat stores for the next leg of their journey. For the birder, it can be a great time to find diverse feeding flocks of migrant landbirds, as well as large staging groups of shorebirds. A few nights of "down time" will also mean a larger push of birds as soon as the weather turns favorable again.

The forecast

A cold front is forecast to move across our area Monday night and into Tuesday morning, with northwest winds building in behind it as it clears Tuesday afternoon. We should therefore see the next big push of migrants on Tuesday night, followed by another push on Wednesday night and possibly a third on Thursday night (if the north winds persist). With northwest winds forecast for Tuesday night, Wednesday morning should be a great time to head for coastal hotspots. In the meantime, enjoy your Labor Day finding some of the most recent arrivals in your area!

Good Birding

David
www.woodcreeper.com