720 million birds flew across the US Tuesday night
Scientists using weather radar tracked 720 million birds in flight in the U.S. as they migrated northward across the country.
Weather radar can tell us how to dress for the day or if rain will ruin your weekend cookout, but for bird experts, it also reveals a treasure trove of data about bird migration.
Bird migration typically peaks for the northern United States in mid-May, and on Tuesday night around midnight, scientists estimated that 718.9 million birds were in flight, mostly in the Mississippi Valley where a southerly breeze and dry weather helped birds move north.
Migration map the night of May 14, 2024 at 12:20 a.m. EDT. (BirdCast.Info)
BirdCast, a research consortium consisting of scientists from The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Colorado State University and UMass Amherst, uses weather radar to estimate the number of birds and direction of flight during spring migration and produces a U.S. forecast for the night.
On July 25th, 2017, Van Den Broeke’s Martins — migrants known for their distinct radar returns — were detected in Oklahoma City as they left their nightly roost, taking to the sky to forage for the day. (BirdCast.Info)
The site has a migration dashboard for every county in the United States. For example, Pulaski County, Arkansas, was near the peak of the migration Tuesday night when nearly 10 million birds crossed the county, mostly Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and White-throated Sparrows.
Migration dashboard for Pulaski County, Arkansas on the night of May 13-14, 2024 (BirdCast.Info)
Peak migration season ranges from April 24 in Florida to May 15 in Maine. Scientists recommend turning off lights between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time to avoid bird collisions.
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