Birds leaving S.Florida on the radar

[John Roberts]

A huge departure of birds last night, it can be seen on the radar.
Yes fall is on it's way.

http://www.badbirdz.com/byx093003.htm

 

[MissIntrigue]

is it the green area that indicates the birds? If it is that is so cool. or is it the whole thing?! OMG!!

 

[John Roberts]

is it the green area that indicates the birds? If it is that is so cool. or is it the whole thing?! OMG!!

Watch it.....at the beginning of the loop it is sunset when migratory birds fly......all those signatures are birds...you see the clouds when you first click on it...but they are all pretty much all the birds....it is astounding to me......and this happens all over the world...think of all the birds that must on the move everyday during migration.

 

[Arden]

Oh my... Key West must be knee deep in bird stuff!

How are you doing, JR?

 

[John Roberts]

Oh my... Key West must be knee deep in bird stuff!

How are you doing, JR?

Hello Arden, It is good to see you as always.
All the bad weather has brought some excellent birding in Florida,
the passerine birds tire quickly in wet conditions and land to forage. When the weather is good they fly right on by Florida most of the time.

The keys have been loaded with birds, the migrating hawks take this route as well so it is the bird super highway.

 

[PAINTED BUNTING]

John, where do you like to go birding?

 

[someplace]

Where are the birds going? I would think they'd LIKE it in Florida over the winter. Isn't that where the birds from the north fly down to? The Canadian Geese fly to places like South Carolina, etc. So where are the Florida birds going?

 

[Arden]

Hello Arden, It is good to see you as always.
All the bad weather has brought some excellent birding in Florida,
the passerine birds tire quickly in wet conditions and land to forage. When the weather is good they fly right on by Florida most of the time.

The keys have been loaded with birds, the migrating hawks take this route as well so it is the bird super highway.

It must be an awesome sight! I tried to find some real photos of the migrating birds, and came up empty-handed. But I did find this page on hawk migration to the Keys...

http://www.hawkwatch.org/keysmigration/flkeysmigration.htm

http://www.hawkwatch.org/keysmigration/images/AK%20Male2.jpg

 

[John Roberts]

John, where do you like to go birding?

Hello Painted Bunting(one of my favorite birds by the way),
I like birding all the good areas in East Central Florida, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Turkey Creek, Tosohatchee...ect...
I would bird more place abroad but have little time.
JR

 

[John Roberts]

Where are the birds going? I would think they'd LIKE it in Florida over the winter. Isn't that where the birds from the north fly down to? The Canadian Geese fly to places like South Carolina, etc. So where are the Florida birds going?

A lot of birds do winter here, many waterfowl and shorebirds and some of the Passerine birds(Pine Warblers, Yellowthroated Warblers, Blue-headed Vireo, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Palm Warblers, ect....), and a lot of predatory birds...Hawks, Peregrine Falcons, American Kestrel, Merlins, Northern Harriers, Sharpshinned Hawks, ect......

However many birds winter in the Carribean, Central America and South America(the Artic Tern migrates pole to pole 22,000 miles each year) There are two main Migratory routes for the Passerine birds....Mexico and island hopping through the carribean.....the Blackpoll Warbler flies direct from Cape Hatteras to Northern South American in a single flight....many birds loose up to half their body weight in such flights.

Some of the birds take the Flight from Lousianna, to the Yucatan Pennisula a 500 mile flight over open water. Needless to say the weaker birds die out there....

 

[John Roberts]

It must be an awesome sight! I tried to find some real photos of the migrating birds, and came up empty-handed. But I did find this page on hawk migration to the Keys...

http://www.hawkwatch.org/keysmigration/flkeysmigration.htm

http://www.hawkwatch.org/keysmigration/images/AK%20Male2.jpg

Thanks Arden, This is something I would like to do sometime, I love the birds of prey, had a Cooper's Hawk in my front yard today eating a Eurasian Collared Dove.....a non native invasive species.....The local Cooper's Hawk population has grown quite a bit for this new food supply.

 

[MissIntrigue]

Thank you! I find birds facinating.

 

[John Roberts]

Thank you! I find birds facinating.

You are most welcome MissIntrigue.
I got hooked on this stuff by being present in a spring fallout of colorful Warblers....