We Love to Shuttle In combination


We Love to Shuttle In combination
Magnolia warbler and American restart (footage by way of Steve Gosser)

23 September 2024

This month warblers and thrushes are making lengthy trips from North The usa to Central and South The usa. Each and every week there’s a brand new cohort of species and a few species go thru on the identical time.

In recent times I’ve spotted that once I to find a lot of American redstarts there also are many magnolia warblers. Once I to find Tennessee warblers there are continuously Nashville and black-throated inexperienced warblers as neatly.

Nashville, Tennessee and black-throated inexperienced warblers commute in combination (footage by way of Charity Kheshgi and Cris Hamilton)

Chicken banders questioned about this phenomenon, too, so 5 banding stations together with Powdermill Avian Analysis Middle amassed 20+ years of banding knowledge for a longer term learn about of spring and fall migration. They grouped the banding knowledge by way of season, by way of mist web and the date-time each and every fowl used to be captured, and by way of species. After they tested which species had been discovered in combination patterns emerged, revealed of their learn about Power species relationships represent migrating fowl communities throughout stopover websites and seasons.

Two species captured in the similar web on the identical time, over and over again for a duration of twenty years, signifies they’re feeding in combination at stopover websites and are most probably touring in combination, too.

The learn about’s chart of fall migrants displays that American redstarts (AMRE) and magnolia warblers (MAWA) are continuously discovered in combination all through fall migration (the thick pink line). So are Tennessee warblers (TEWA), Nashville warblers (NAWA) and black-throated inexperienced warblers (BTNW). [See chart of 4-letter bird banding codes used in the diagram.]

Fall migration chart from Power species relationships represent migrating fowl communities throughout stopover websites and seasons

There’s even a correlation amongst thrushes. Realize the faint line between Swainson’s thrushes (SWTH) and gray-cheeked thrushes (GCTH), above.

Swainson’s and gray-cheeked thrushes (footage by way of Steve Gosser and Charity Kheshgi)

Q4 I realized that whilst many Swainson’s thrushes are touring thru southwestern Pennsylvania I’ve additionally observed a sprinkling of gray-checked thrushes. The road at the chart is almost definitely faint as a result of gray-cheeked thrushes are a ways much less a large number of than Swainson’s.

So who does this blackpoll warbler commute with? His touring good friend isn’t at the chart however I will be able to bet.

Blackpoll warbler, Sept 2012 (photo by Marcy Cunkelman)
Blackpoll warbler, Sept 2012 (picture by way of Marcy Cunkelman)

Are you able to say “baypoll” warbler?

Learn concerning the learn about in Audubon Mag: A New Learn about Finds Migration Isn’t a Solo Affair—It’s the Social Match of the Season.

See the whole learn about in PNAS: Power species relationships represent migrating fowl communities throughout stopover websites and seasons.

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