[nfc-l] Update on Night Flight
The radar bird echoes are not as expansive as last night from NWS Binghamton's radar. It is noteworthy that radar sites tothe south where cloud ceilings are non-existent or much much higher have expansive bird echoes. Cloud ceilings are running between 500 and 1000 feet in much of central NY at this time. Fog was covering the highest hills. There was drizzle and light rain but mostly in northern NY. This begs the question if the birds are flying too low and mostly under the radar beam...or not migrating en-mass like last night due to the light rains and drizzle. From: david nicosia To: david nicosia ; Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes ; CAYUGABIRDS-L ; NFC- L ; Bluewing Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012 7:33 PM Subject: [bluewing-group] Re: [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight Bird echoes rapidly expanding on radar after sunset! From: david nicosia To: Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes ; CAYUGABIRDS-L ; NFC- L Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012 4:41 PM Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight As it stands now, I think there is a good chance for low ceilings lasting well into the night. Probably less than 1000 feet all night...there will be fog too... especially over the hills. Winds are expected to be NW around 5-15 knots up through about 5-6 thousand feet through the night. Not sure how many birds will be taking off in the foggy/drizzly air mass in NY...but north into Ontario (which is north of the low cloud shield) there is a chilly mass in place and northerly winds which will increase through the night with a colder air mass pouring south. I would imagine this will get birds going south from Ontario into NY. It will be interesting to see if birds fly above the lower cloud shield or go below it ...or both. There also will be a cloud layer between 2000 and 4000 feet above ground level. This could be a great night...or a bust. Depends on what the birds do. Forecasting weather is hard enough, forecasting what birds will do is beyond my expertise. Maybe someone else can help here with the birds?? If the flight is low enough it may fall below the radar beam and not show up as well. If we see radar echo "blossoming" after sunset then we know there is a flight at 2000-5000 feet above ground level which still could mean many birds below the clouds and in the fog. Since there is also drizzle and light rain showers, the radar is picking up precipitation echoes. I have access to dual polar radar data which will be able to determine between the precipitation and the bird echoes. This will be interesting to see also. In any event, I hope, in some ways, the flight is not too low because the risk of tower and wind turbine kills will go way up. If people go out listening tonight, please share on this listserver. If you live near a tower and it is foggy you may want to check for kills. Let's hope this does not happen. Good luck everyone! Dave Nicosia From: Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes To: CAYUGABIRDS-L Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012 3:49 PM Subject: [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight Good afternoon, birders! Tonight the forecast for the Ithaca, NY area (at least) is looking very interesting. The local forecast is calling for a light NW wind (3-5 mph). Currently, we've got foggy conditions (very low cloud ceiling). If the weather pattern holds true, we may see a slowly increasing cloud ceiling height over the course of the night (thanks Dave Nicosia for this info!). If this condition persists into the night, we may see an excellent night flight of low-flying night migrants (thrushes, warblers, sparrows, etc.). This means that migrants will be easily heard, but it also means that they may temporarily circle around or even temporarily settle down near well lighted areas (lighted athletic fields, mall parking lots, etc.). On the potentially detrimental side of things, this means that birds may be more prone to striking human-made objects that are in unexpectedly in the way of these night-flying birds (for example: radio towers, wind turbines, tall lighted buildings, etc.). The negative side-effects from this type of weather event may include higher than normal numbers of tower-killed and wind turbine-killed birds and an increased incidence of nighttime window-strikes at tall lighted buildings. Local areas to go to listen for migrants and check for birds (healthy or otherwise) include: lighted athletic fields (Schoellkopf Field Stadium or other practice fields around Cornell University and Ithaca College), lighted parking lots (especially those at higher elevations, such as Shops at Ithaca Mall, Ithaca College Campus, Cornell Campus, Cayuga Medical Center, etc.), near tall lighted buildings, and possibly include checking radio towers or wind turbine sites for deceased or injured birds. Hopefully, tonight won't contribute to
Re: [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight
Bird echoes rapidly expanding on radar after sunset! From: david nicosia To: Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes ; CAYUGABIRDS-L ; NFC- L Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012 4:41 PM Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight As it stands now, I think there is a good chance for low ceilings lasting well into the night. Probably less than 1000 feet all night...there will be fog too... especially over the hills. Winds are expected to be NW around 5-15 knots up through about 5-6 thousand feet through the night. Not sure how many birds will be taking off in the foggy/drizzly air mass in NY...but north into Ontario (which is north of the low cloud shield) there is a chilly mass in place and northerly winds which will increase through the night with a colder air mass pouring south. I would imagine this will get birds going south from Ontario into NY. It will be interesting to see if birds fly above the lower cloud shield or go below it ...or both. There also will be a cloud layer between 2000 and 4000 feet above ground level. This could be a great night...or a bust. Depends on what the birds do. Forecasting weather is hard enough, forecasting what birds will do is beyond my expertise. Maybe someone else can help here with the birds?? If the flight is low enough it may fall below the radar beam and not show up as well. If we see radar echo "blossoming" after sunset then we know there is a flight at 2000-5000 feet above ground level which still could mean many birds below the clouds and in the fog. Since there is also drizzle and light rain showers, the radar is picking up precipitation echoes. I have access to dual polar radar data which will be able to determine between the precipitation and the bird echoes. This will be interesting to see also. In any event, I hope, in some ways, the flight is not too low because the risk of tower and wind turbine kills will go way up. If people go out listening tonight, please share on this listserver. If you live near a tower and it is foggy you may want to check for kills. Let's hope this does not happen. Good luck everyone! Dave Nicosia From: Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes To: CAYUGABIRDS-L Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012 3:49 PM Subject: [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight Good afternoon, birders! Tonight the forecast for the Ithaca, NY area (at least) is looking very interesting. The local forecast is calling for a light NW wind (3-5 mph). Currently, we've got foggy conditions (very low cloud ceiling). If the weather pattern holds true, we may see a slowly increasing cloud ceiling height over the course of the night (thanks Dave Nicosia for this info!). If this condition persists into the night, we may see an excellent night flight of low-flying night migrants (thrushes, warblers, sparrows, etc.). This means that migrants will be easily heard, but it also means that they may temporarily circle around or even temporarily settle down near well lighted areas (lighted athletic fields, mall parking lots, etc.). On the potentially detrimental side of things, this means that birds may be more prone to striking human-made objects that are in unexpectedly in the way of these night-flying birds (for example: radio towers, wind turbines, tall lighted buildings, etc.). The negative side-effects from this type of weather event may include higher than normal numbers of tower-killed and wind turbine-killed birds and an increased incidence of nighttime window-strikes at tall lighted buildings. Local areas to go to listen for migrants and check for birds (healthy or otherwise) include: lighted athletic fields (Schoellkopf Field Stadium or other practice fields around Cornell University and Ithaca College), lighted parking lots (especially those at higher elevations, such as Shops at Ithaca Mall, Ithaca College Campus, Cornell Campus, Cayuga Medical Center, etc.), near tall lighted buildings, and possibly include checking radio towers or wind turbine sites for deceased or injured birds. Hopefully, tonight won't contribute to many deaths, but these conditions invariably result in some level of casualties. Good birding and good night listening. Sincerely, Chris T-H -- Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes Field Applications Engineer Bioacoustics Research Program, Cornell Lab of Ornithology 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, New York 14850 W: 607-254-2418 M: 607-351-5740 F: 607-254-1132 http://www.birds.cornell.edu/brp -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics Rules and Information Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net Please submit your observations to eBird! -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics Rules and Information Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net Please submit your observations to eBird! -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info:
Re:[nfc-l] [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight
As it stands now, I think there is a good chance for low ceilings lasting well into the night. Probably less than 1000 feet all night...there will be fog too... especially over the hills. Winds are expected to be NW around 5-15 knots up through about 5-6 thousand feet through the night. Not sure how many birds will be taking off in the foggy/drizzly air mass in NY...but north into Ontario (which is north of the low cloud shield) there is a chilly mass in place and northerly winds which will increase through the night with a colder air mass pouring south. I would imagine this will get birds going south from Ontario into NY. It will be interesting to see if birds fly above the lower cloud shield or go below it ...or both. There also will be a cloud layer between 2000 and 4000 feet above ground level. This could be a great night...or a bust. Depends on what the birds do. Forecasting weather is hard enough, forecasting what birds will do is beyond my expertise. Maybe someone else can help here with the birds?? If the flight is low enough it may fall below the radar beam and not show up as well. If we see radar echo "blossoming" after sunset then we know there is a flight at 2000-5000 feet above ground level which still could mean many birds below the clouds and in the fog. Since there is also drizzle and light rain showers, the radar is picking up precipitation echoes. I have access to dual polar radar data which will be able to determine between the precipitation and the bird echoes. This will be interesting to see also. In any event, I hope, in some ways, the flight is not too low because the risk of tower and wind turbine kills will go way up. If people go out listening tonight, please share on this listserver. If you live near a tower and it is foggy you may want to check for kills. Let's hope this does not happen. Good luck everyone! Dave Nicosia From: Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes To: CAYUGABIRDS-L Sent: Friday, September 28, 2012 3:49 PM Subject: [cayugabirds-l] FOG - Night Flight Good afternoon, birders! Tonight the forecast for the Ithaca, NY area (at least) is looking very interesting. The local forecast is calling for a light NW wind (3-5 mph). Currently, we've got foggy conditions (very low cloud ceiling). If the weather pattern holds true, we may see a slowly increasing cloud ceiling height over the course of the night (thanks Dave Nicosia for this info!). If this condition persists into the night, we may see an excellent night flight of low-flying night migrants (thrushes, warblers, sparrows, etc.). This means that migrants will be easily heard, but it also means that they may temporarily circle around or even temporarily settle down near well lighted areas (lighted athletic fields, mall parking lots, etc.). On the potentially detrimental side of things, this means that birds may be more prone to striking human-made objects that are in unexpectedly in the way of these night-flying birds (for example: radio towers, wind turbines, tall lighted buildings, etc.). The negative side-effects from this type of weather event may include higher than normal numbers of tower-killed and wind turbine-killed birds and an increased incidence of nighttime window-strikes at tall lighted buildings. Local areas to go to listen for migrants and check for birds (healthy or otherwise) include: lighted athletic fields (Schoellkopf Field Stadium or other practice fields around Cornell University and Ithaca College), lighted parking lots (especially those at higher elevations, such as Shops at Ithaca Mall, Ithaca College Campus, Cornell Campus, Cayuga Medical Center, etc.), near tall lighted buildings, and possibly include checking radio towers or wind turbine sites for deceased or injured birds. Hopefully, tonight won't contribute to many deaths, but these conditions invariably result in some level of casualties. Good birding and good night listening. Sincerely, Chris T-H -- Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes Field Applications Engineer Bioacoustics Research Program, Cornell Lab of Ornithology 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, New York 14850 W: 607-254-2418 M: 607-351-5740 F: 607-254-1132 http://www.birds.cornell.edu/brp -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics Rules and Information Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net Please submit your observations to eBird! -- -- NFC-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC_WELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC_RULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC-L_SubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nfc-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NFC-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NFCL.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nfc-l] FOG - Night Flight
Good afternoon, birders! Tonight the forecast for the Ithaca, NY area (at least) is looking very interesting. The local forecast is calling for a light NW wind (3-5 mph). Currently, we've got foggy conditions (very low cloud ceiling). If the weather pattern holds true, we may see a slowly increasing cloud ceiling height over the course of the night (thanks Dave Nicosia for this info!). If this condition persists into the night, we may see an excellent night flight of low-flying night migrants (thrushes, warblers, sparrows, etc.). This means that migrants will be easily heard, but it also means that they may temporarily circle around or even temporarily settle down near well lighted areas (lighted athletic fields, mall parking lots, etc.). On the potentially detrimental side of things, this means that birds may be more prone to striking human-made objects that are in unexpectedly in the way of these night-flying birds (for example: radio towers, wind turbines, tall lighted buildings, etc.). The negative side-effects from this type of weather event may include higher than normal numbers of tower-killed and wind turbine-killed birds and an increased incidence of nighttime window-strikes at tall lighted buildings. Local areas to go to listen for migrants and check for birds (healthy or otherwise) include: lighted athletic fields (Schoellkopf Field Stadium or other practice fields around Cornell University and Ithaca College), lighted parking lots (especially those at higher elevations, such as Shops at Ithaca Mall, Ithaca College Campus, Cornell Campus, Cayuga Medical Center, etc.), near tall lighted buildings, and possibly include checking radio towers or wind turbine sites for deceased or injured birds. Hopefully, tonight won't contribute to many deaths, but these conditions invariably result in some level of casualties. Good birding and good night listening. Sincerely, Chris T-H -- Christopher T. Tessaglia-Hymes Field Applications Engineer Bioacoustics Research Program, Cornell Lab of Ornithology 159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, New York 14850 W: 607-254-2418 M: 607-351-5740 F: 607-254-1132 http://www.birds.cornell.edu/brp -- NFC-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC_WELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC_RULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC-L_SubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nfc-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NFC-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NFCL.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nfc-l] Odd call sequence - 1 of 2
Folks, I caught the attached call sequence at my house east of Cleveland, Ohio, about 21:30 on the night of September 24. Thoughts from me and a couple of knowledgeable friends are Northern Cardinal, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Northern Mockingbird. A mockingbird would be a bit surprising here. I've seen two in my yard over the past 10 years, but I've never heard one calling in this part of the Cleveland area. They do breed in small numbers in a few locations around Cleveland, though, especially on the Lake Erie shore (about 6 km from my house as the mocker flies). Interestingly, I caught this on my sky-pointing exponential horn, but not on my 21C, which suggests that the bird was quite high overhead (or it would have been picked up by both mics). I'd appreciate any thoughts about what this series might be. Because the whole sequence is a bit over a minute, I've attached it as an MP3 file and broken it into two pieces to keep the size within the listserv limits. Part 2 will be in a separate email. The two parts overlap at the (very obvious) chatter/click call. If anyone would like the .wav file, I'd be happy to send it along. Thanks, Laura Gooch -- NFC-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC_WELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC_RULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NFC-L_SubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nfc-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NFC-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NFCL.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- 20120924_2129_Riff_1of2.mp3 Description: audio/mpeg
