#bird migrations

[transpondster]

If you've ever wondered how many birds have migrated through your state or county any time of day, The Birdcast Migration Dashboard will tell you.

[thoughtlessarse]

Wind turbines at sea shut down for the first time to protect migratory birds

Turbines that make up part of the offshore wind farms near Borssele and Egmond aan Zee were shut down for four hours on Saturday to prevent

Turbines that make up part of the offshore wind farms near Borssele and Egmond aan Zee were shut down for four hours on Saturday to prevent migratory birds from flying into the wind turbine blades. A massive bird migration over the North Sea was predicted to take place last weekend. Energy Minister Rob Jetten said it was an "international first." The idea is that wind farms in the North Sea will be shut down more often from this autumn, so that migratory birds can safely travel. Bird migration has been easier to predict since the end of last year, when a PhD student from the University of Amsterdam came up with an accurate model to better predict migration periods about two days in advance. It was already known last month that the migration would cause wind turbines to rotate more slowly, or to be almost completely stopped at some point.

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[pmg227]

Best Bird Pictures of October '22--Part 1

Best Bird Pictures of October ’22–Part 1

So many good pictures this month, I finally decided to post in more than one part. These pictures serve as a personal journal for me since I have been very unorganized with keeping up with my pictures. Blogging on a regular basis helps me to remember which birds I saw in different parts of the year as I learn more about birds–how to identify them and their habits. Fall is a fun time of year to…

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[woodlandrose]

Viral Gratitude ~ 5.2.20

Viral Gratitude ~ 5.2.20

A few snippets that I came across reading the NYT this week. 

“If we’re all inside, might as well jump on the couch and have a good time.”

“I’m reading some poetry not for solace, but for understanding.”

“Seasons will not be still, filled with migrations of birds.”

“I actually have a crush on someone, and I used the time to write to them.”

“If you look at a moment like this, you realize it’s a…

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[netbros]

Spring is Arriving Earlier, Messing With Bird Migrations

Spring is Arriving Earlier, Messing With Bird Migrations

Thanks to climate change, spring now comes earlier. But how much sooner the season arrives varies across the U.S. That’s according to a new study that assessed the first appearance of leaves and flowers in nearly 500 U.S. National Wildlife Refuges over more than 100 years.

Researchers found the irregular seasonal changes affect migratory birds’ breeding sites, an outcome that could endanger many…

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[newstfionline]

Long Winter Sends Migratory Flocks into Tailspin

Der Spiegel, April 3, 2013 Weak and exhausted birds flying to their breeding grounds in Northern Europe have made an unpleasant discovery: Winter isn't over yet. The result has been a difficult search for food as well as huge gatherings of migratory birds in milder parts of Germany.

They say the early bird gets the worm, but this year in Germany, those that have already returned for spring breeding are actually struggling to find enough food.

Though spring technically began last month and Easter has come and gone, winter continues to drag on in Germany. In some places, this March was the coldest in 130 years, and snow still covers many parts of the country. This has put residents in a surly mood, but the unseasonable weather has been much harder on migratory birds, whose return usually heralds warmer weather to come.

Local news reports across the country in recent days have detailed "bird jams," or locations where huge swarms of migratory birds have gathered to weather the cold before reaching their final breeding grounds.

"Because of the snow still covering the ground in many places, they are struggling to find enough food to make it the final stretch, particularly to the breeding grounds that are further north," says Eric Neuling, an ornithologist at the Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU) in Berlin. "So they are staying as long as possible in places where the weather is milder to some degree, where they can find enough food to refuel."

The flocks gathering in the states of Hesse, Lower Saxony and elsewhere are mainly ground-nesting or field birds, such as the Northern Lapwing or the Eurasian Skylark, which still don't have the right conditions to begin breeding.

"It has been stunning to observe south of Berlin an enormous swarm of Eurasian Skylarks, numbering in the thousands, which is a really rare thing to see," Neuling says.

Along the Rhine River, a region typically milder than other parts of the country, authorities have reportedly closed certain hiking areas to protect migratory birds that are too weak to handle human disturbance. "Especially in these difficult weather conditions, preventing any kind of disturbance is important, because whether it's airplanes, traffic or people, this equals stress for the animals, and any time they are roused they lose precious energy," says Neuling. This is particularly true for species like geese and cranes, which spend the entire day foraging for food.

But this has created problems for farmers, in Lower Saxony for example, where large swarms of geese have camped out in fields, kicking up crop seed and eating it too. "Attempts to scare them off or hunting just creates a vicious cycle, because then they have to eat even more to survive to make up for the loss of energy," says Neuling.

Other species are simply turning around and heading back south, which Neuling said had been confirmed by a number of sightings. These birds, such as the Common Snipes seen flying south, won't go far, though. "They'll fly a few hundred kilometers south where they will ride it out until the weather conditions improve to fly on," Neuling says.