Regional Overview
The first strong migration up the East Coast in quite a while, last night should have brought a significant turnover in species to areas that have been severely lacking in spring migrants. The flight was strongest right up the coast while inland it was not quite as strong through the entire night. Diversity should be high at spring migrant traps.
I don’t always have time to comment on the radar in each state. To interpret it yourself, read the quick tutorial at the bottom of the page.
New York
Spots around New York City should be hopping today as the Ft Dix radar over New Jersey showed large numbers of migrants heading north. Upstate should also see a fair number of new migrants and in higher numbers than the last few days have seen.
Click on the thumbnail to view the full-sized animation.
Pennsylvania & New Jersey
Western PA is seeing some precipitation now but it likely reached the area too late to concentrate birds and will just make birding slightly miserable. Those who get out should be rewarded with new species, however. The rest of Pennsylvania also should see a good number of new species, with migration being much stronger over the eastern portion of the state. In New Jersey, Sandy Hook may be excellent this morning as birds heading Northeast along the coast decide to head back to the nearest land.
Click on the thumbnail to view the full-sized animation.
Ohio
Click on the thumbnail to view the full-sized animation.
Maryland and Delaware
Click on the thumbnail to view the full-sized animation.
Quick guide to interpreting the radar
On the top row (reflectivity radar), the images show the magnitude of migration. When birds are migrating, it looks like a donut shape around the center of the radar station.
The bottom row is the velocity radar. This shows the direction that the objects detected by the radar station are moving. Blues are moving towards the radar station, yellows and reds are moving away from the station. So for southbound migration, blue should be on the top half of the donut, yellow on the bottom half.
Watch for precipitation moving through during the night hours, this can cause birds to stop migrating in a concentrated area, creating the fabled ‘fallout’, particularly on nights with strong migration.
For more in depth info, watch this video.
For migration updates or other regions check-
Upper Midwest – Woodcreeper by David La Puma
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula – The Northwoods BIRDAR by Max Henschell
New England – Tom Auer’s blog
Florida/SE – Badbirdz Reloaded by Angel and Mariel Abreu
NW Ohio – Birding the Crane Creek by Kenn Kaufman
Pac NW – Birds Over Portland by Greg Haworth
Continental US – eBird BirdCast Forecast & Report by Team eBird
I need your help! These reports will only be as good as the feedback I get on these updates. Please leave comments on interesting patterns of migration you are seeing in the field so I can incorporate some ground truthing to my forecasts and predictions. Thanks!