A Little Bit More
Although most people know that birds migrate north in spring and south in fall (in the northern hemisphere), most of us have only a vague understanding of this impressive phenomenon. Actually, few people have even seen many birds during migration other than the most obvious ones like geese in V formation! To be totally fair, it is difficult to determine whether one is looking at a flock that is simply moving from A to B or watching a flock that is in the act of migration. Then, if we note that many birds travel at night when they can’t be seen, it makes it a bit more plausible that most of us have never seen this impressive seasonal event.
If you asked most people why birds migrate, most people would tell you birds leave the north for warmer climates when it’s too cold or there is no food. We now know that this simply isn’t true in most cases; most birds leave the north each fall BEFORE their food runs out or BEFORE it’s too cold! Just to give you a picture of how soon some birds leave the north, I chose the Wilson’s Warbler and the Bay-breasted Warbler to illustrate on the mini-poster since they both breed in Canada and pass through the U.S. on their way south. Records in New York state show that the last fall date for Wilson’s Warblers is September 9th and the Bay-breasted Warbler’s last fall date is September 26th. Obviously, both species have left their most northerly areas in Canada well before these dates if they’re last seen on the dates given – it does seem early!
Keep in mind that if you’d like to see/hear the nocturnal migrants in the fall, the evening you choose will be very important – both the time of the year and the weather conditions both effect migration movements. If you do make an attempt to view some of these songbirds, be sure to take a binocular with you so you can look at the moon (if the moon is available for seeing) and watch for bird silhouettes passing between you and the moon.
Activities
Science and Social Studies - Winter Retreat
Objectives: Better understanding of where “my” birds go in winter
Materials: Internet access, field guide to birds
The site I’ve included provides a list of Central and South American countries that are home to North American birds in the winter. A list of the birds that winter there accompanies each country and each bird species can be noted in alphabetical order.
Winter Ranges of North American Migratory Birds nationalzoo.si.edu
Have your students select one of the countries in the center “pull down” and look to see how many of the winter migrants are birds that breed in “your” area. For example, if you select Columbia you’ll look there to see which of the list of migratory birds found in Columbia during the winter are common with those birds that nest in Topeka, Kansas for example. Check out each of the birds found in Columbia against those you have in your own locale and write their names down. Now add up how many Topeka, Kansas’s bird species actually migrate to Columbia.
Keep in mind that Columbia is only one part of South America and some of your birds may not go to this country but to another country in Central or South America.
Web sites
Maps of North American Migration Flyways:
Simplified Migration Routes:
More in-depth info on North American Flyways:
Key Concepts
Behavior and Regulation
Questions
Do you have a question for a naturalist? Go ahead and ask!
It's easy -- just fill out this form, submit your question and you'll receive an answer shortly.
Posted by Sandy Broderick on April 12, 2006 at 05:39 PM
Q: Is there a list available for Canadaian miggrtory birds? If so, woulde please send it.
(for school projet) Thank you very much!!!
A: I don't know of a list that targets what you're after but it wouldn't be hard to come up with a list on your own. If you can get a field guide to birds, look up those birds that nest in Canada and the accompanying maps will show whether they migrate or not (shows breeding and wintering ranges). Should be just a matter of running through the book and writing them down. Good luck.
Posted by Bill Baerg on September 24, 2005 at 03:42 PM
Q: apon picking up dried out algae piles along our irrigation pond a few weeks ago, I suddenly noticed three young mouse-like critters. They were at least twice as large as baby mice, eyes still closed, head was almost 3/4 nose, fur was a purple/dark and quite thick. Is it possible to identify the species ?
A: From your description, it sounds to me that you've found some baby shrews. There are several species that live in your area so I'll list them for you. These guys are often difficult to ID from each other but this will give you an idea of the possibilities. Water Shrew (Sorex palustris), Pigmy Shrew (Sorex hoyi), Cinereus Shrew (Sorex cinereus), Montane Shrew (Sorex monticolus),and Vagrant Shrew (Sorex vagrans)all live in southeastern British Columbia.
I realize I may be confusing the issue but as you can see, there is no single species I can point to although if you want, knowing you have shrews may be enough.
Shrews are NOT rodents so don't confuse them with mice and rats. These extremely active mammals need to eat lots of insects, slugs, snails, centipedes plus amphibians, even mice, and some seeds to fuel their bodies.
Hope this helps.