This Baird’s Sandpiper, photographed on 10 March 2013, Mitchell Lake, San Antonio, TX by Paul Pruitt, is one of the early migrant shorebirds to appear during the past week.
West
Scattered light migration was apparent in some areas of the West, particularly on Wednesday and Thursday nights. The image below, from Thursday evening 14 March 2013, shows light movements in California and portions of the Desert Southwest. Some of this week’s species on the move, as detected in eBird, include some diurnal migrants like Cliff (February and March maps) and Northern Rough-winged Swallows (February and March maps), Turkey Vultures (February and March) and Rufous Hummingbird (February and March) and some nocturnal migrants like Say’s Phoebe (February and March). When looking at the maps, make sure to zoom in and click on the pins to see dates and observers.
Great Plains
Light and moderate migration occurred in the region this week, evident in the image below. Scattered light and moderate movements occurred on the evening of 14 March 2013 across the Plains states, although some precipitation in the border region kept migrants grounded. Some of this week’s species on the move, as detected in eBird, include early season shorebirds like Greater Yellowlegs (February and March), Killdeer (February and March), American Golden-Plover (February and March), and Pectoral Sandpiper (February and March).
Upper Midwest and Northeast
After some favorable conditions last weekend, nocturnal migration fell somewhere between not a highlight and non-existent in most areas of the region. Some areas of the central Mississippi River valley did see some isolated light and moderate movements, but this was not the norm for the region. That said, some nocturnal migrants were certainly on the move, for example Pine Warbler (February and March) and American Woodcock (February and March). For this week in many areas, the highlight reel instead features excellent diurnal movements of waterfowl, raptors (Osprey, February and March), and blackbirds (see Benjamin Van Doren’s checklist from Ithaca, NY). Also, note – some good sea-watching was indeed to be had in Massachusetts, where Leach’s Storm-Petrel was certainly a star of a nice sea watch.
Gulf Coast and Southeast
Light to moderate migration occurred in the region of a number of nights this forecast period, as highlighted in the image below. Coastal areas in particular exhibited these movements as high pressure over the northern Gulf of Mexico brought southerly flow to these areas by later in the period. The first warblers and shorebirds arrived in numbers this week, including increasing numbers of Northern Parula (February and March), the appearance of Prothonotary (February and March) and Golden-cheeked Warblers (February and March), and many shorebirds including Baird’s Sandpiper (February and March).
Frontal boundaries and radar reflectivity at 0500 UTC, 15 March 2013. Note light to moderate migration occurred from Texas east and north through the Lower Mississippi River valley and even the central Great Plains. Scattered light movements occurred in the Desert Southwest and California.
