Clear, high-pressure skies and very light east winds kept migration slow this morning at our migration sites on the Eastern Shore today. Totals of 24 species and 82 individuals were counted today.
With little wind, few birds were actively migrating today, and the small movement that occurred lacked much in the way of direction when it came to reorienting songbirds. Warblers were flying both directions, and the majority of the day’s nine Cape May Warblers were southbound, the most numerous warbler counted. Seven Northern Flickers were counted, hinting at the larger flights in the coming weeks we should see of that species.
A number of migrants were simply hanging around the count site today including two Brown Thrashers, a Merlin posted up on a snag to the south, and a Ruby-throated Hummingbird repeatedly visiting a lingering trumpet vine bloom. A juvenile Mississippi Kite rose up high to the south at the end of the count, but soon drifted northeast, possibly the same individual seen yesterday and today at the hawkwatch.
Things were similarly slow at the Kiptopeke Hawkwatch, though a few raptors were still trickling through with 20 Osprey and 10 American Kestrels making up the majority of the flight. An Eastern Phoebe was a first-of-season for either of our count sites, as this species is a fall and winter arrival on the lower Eastern Shore with no substantial local breeding population.
Light southerlies tonight and tomorrow will probably keep things very slow, though it’s possible a few migrants like Bobolinks may move into the light headwind. Winds switch more northerly by midday Friday, when more raptors should start to push in.
Stay tuned for tomorrow’s daily migration update on CVWO social media and the CVWO blog: https://vawildliferesearch.org/cvwo-blog
And follow along with the count
live every morning on Trektellen: https://trektellen.nl/count/view/3748/20260916
