Day two of the Morning Flight Count was off to a unseasonably brisk start with strong northeast winds in the wake of yesterday's passing cold front. Both counters quickly fetched an extra layer of clothing for the early morning hour despite air temperatures in the low 70s; quite the treat for the second day of August! A lovely rainbow also appeared over the bay despite the lack of precipitation at our vantage point.
The winds remained strong out of the northeast all morning, producing a solid movement of birds throughout the count period. A small northbound movement of several warbler species early on included at least two Louisiana Waterthrushes, a species clearly making a significant push on the shore at the moment. The season's first American Redstarts, Prairie and Yellow Warblers also showed up.
One of the season's first American Redstarts in silhouette
The flight was hardly limited to warblers, and northbound shorebirds over the Chesapeake occupied a good bit of our attention throughout the morning after the warblers made their move. Semipalmated Plovers were a consistent presence throughout the morning, with 24 counted in total. Highlight species included another Whimbrel, a very distant adult Red Knot low over the water, and a southbound juvenile Least Tern.
Whimbrel north over the Chesapeake Bay
One of several Semipalmated Plover flocks moving north
The flight spanned a fairly wide range of species overall, with 40 species exhibiting migratory movements this morning during the count, and 426 individual birds counted overall. Northeast winds will remain strong tomorrow and are forecasted to stay in place for the first few days of next week. While strong winds can make birding for migrants on the ground somewhat challenging, this pattern should continue to produce visible migration. Hopefully the coming days will continue to highlight the diverse movements taking place at the beginning of the season!
Stay tuned for tomorrow's daily migration update here on the CVWO Blog, and follow along with the Sunset Beach Morning Flight Count live at our Trektellen page every morning.
-Baxter
