Weekend birders can look forward to widespread light to moderate movements across the West, while Monday through Wednesday brings similarly widespread light to moderate flights in the East. Species on the move this week will include Blue-winged Teal, Turkey Vulture, Eastern Phoebe, Western Kingbird, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Tree Swallow, Lucy’s Warbler, and Hooded Warbler.
Arrows show wind speed and direction (arrow points in the direction to which wind is blowing) 100 m above ground level. Areas with southerly winds are colored red; northerly winds colored blue. Accumulated precipitation (in 6 hour intervals) is green, outlined by white. Broadly speaking, areas of the map in red will experience conditions that are favorable for migration, and areas where red and green (and red and blue) intersect and overlap may experience migrant concentrations and fallouts as migrants interact with precipitation. Need a review of our definitions for regions, species on the move, and migration amounts? Please visit this link.
Arriving low pressure in the region brings short-lived favorable conditions for light to moderate movements to kick off the weekend before widespread precipitation shuts down migrants. Birders should watch this precipitation carefully, as it could concentrate birds, particularly waterbirds. Sunday and Monday nights see a return of more widespread favorable conditions, with southerly winds on Monday night spawning nearly region wide and moderate flights. Late week conditions, while also favorable in some areas, will not yield such extensive flights, with more local light to moderate flights and some locations shut down completely in rain.
No species arriving rapidly yet — check back next week!
Peaking
Species
Peak
Rapid Depart
Snow Goose
6-Mar
29-Mar
Bald Eagle
9-Mar
–
Canvasback
11-Mar
30-Mar
Northern Pintail
12-Mar
31-Mar
Common Merganser
12-Mar
11-Apr
Red-necked Grebe
12-Mar
23-Mar
Tundra Swan
13-Mar
29-Mar
Redhead
13-Mar
30-Mar
American Woodcock
17-Mar
16-Apr
American Wigeon
19-Mar
11-Apr
Red-breasted Merganser
19-Mar
21-Apr
Departing
Species
Rapid Depart
White-winged Scoter
Before 1-Mar
Rough-legged Hawk
Before 1-Mar
Great Black-backed Gull
Before 1-Mar
Snow Bunting
Before 1-Mar
Horned Lark
19-Mar
Gulf Coast and Southeast
Local light to moderate movements highlight the weekend in Florida and a few other locations, while the bulk of region waits patiently. On Monday, and then again late in the week, light to moderate movements will occur, but these will not be region wide. Wednesday-Thursday have the most favorable conditions for diurnal and nocturnal migrants to move through Texas, but note that no favorable conditions for trans-Gulf migration are apparent for any part of the week.
An unfavorable cold and northerly wind will keep migrants grounded to start the period, but as high pressure passes east on come the southerly winds for the Saturday and Sunday nights. Light to moderate movements will be widespread as these conditions arrive. The remainder of the period will see alternating favorable, marginal, and unfavorable conditions across the region, and resulting movements will be much more localized and generally lighter in these variable conditions. Birders should, however, watch for precipitation in the mid to late week time frame, particularly in the southern Plains where local concentrations may result from migrants flying into rain. This may be especially true for early migrant shorebirds and waterbirds.
Favorable conditions will facilitate light to moderate movements across the region to begin the forecast period this weekend. Those in the Pacific Northwest should pay particular attention to the distribution of precipitation, which may interact with migrants on the move on Saturday and Sunday nights. More marginal and locally favorable conditions are the norm for the remainder of the period during the work week, with similar local and scattered movements that will be primarily light. More isolated moderate movements are possible late in the period in portions of the Desert Southwest.
