How to Enjoy Birds During Spring Migration

In the Spring a fuller crimson comes upon the robin’s breast;
In the Spring the wanton lapwing gets himself another crest;

In the Spring a livelier iris changes on the burnish’d dove;
In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.

-Alfred Lord Tennyson

While each season holds its own charms for the aviphile, as Tennyson suggests, springtime is arguably the most rapturous. Migratory birds migrate, and non-migratory or semi-migratory birds come out from the woodwork (or woods) to seduce the senses of mate and man alike.

In this article you will learn a few tips about appreciating the spring season for birdwatching.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Magnification of the senses (binoculars helpful)
• Bird guide

1. Understand About Spring in General
   
   Many species of birds lay low during the winter, and even robins and bluebirds are not unheard of in the North during winter, it's just that what small numbers remain make themselves even more scarce than they already are.
   
   But in springtime all the birds come out to play - it is the season of migration and mating, of singing and prancing, in short, of male exhibtionism. For species that moult (or change their feathers), winter's drab garb becomes spring's Mardi Gras of color. The male American goldfinches that you have seen in olive brown at your feeders all winter long become gold, and their handsome black caps appear, metamorphosing the hitherto modest birds into bouncing lemon drops.

2. Groove on Spring Migration
   
   While some species may be found in the same regions throughout the year, such as blue jays, chickadees, and crows, many migrate. Some species may migrate only as far as the state immediately south of where you live, while others may head all the way for South America. This is often dependent upon their diets. The ruby-throated hummingbird of eastern North Americas migrates a long way, for pretty obvious reasons. So to do most species of warblers and flycatchers, as they tend toward diets of flying insects.
   
   So for much of North America, spring finds these species returning from points far south, and not only that, they return in bold colors and make themselves more noticeable. This is what separates fall migration birdwatching from spring migration birdwatching - in autumn, overall plumage tends to be duller and the behavior more conservative.

3. Here's Your Chance To Catch Them While They're Passing Through!
   
   One of the best aspects of birdwatching during migration is that for many species this is your only chance at seeing them (unless you're a widely traveling birder). There are at least two reasons for this:
   
   One reason why migration time may be your only chance for spotting various species is that they are less selective in terms of habitat during migration than they are during winter, and especially during summer settling down. A species that nests in tangles near ponds might be seen in your carefully groomed neighborhood during migration! He/she's just passing through and is tired from all the flying of the previous night! Many species of warbler and flycatcher fall under this category of stopping in backyards during migration, but being found only in swamps or woods breeding.
   
   So while choice of habitat is less selective during migration, so too is choice of geographical range. It only makes sense that even if a species nests only in Canada, that if it winters south of the border, it must pass through the interior of the U.S. in its goings back and forth. So while you may never see a blackpoll warbler in Indiana during the summer, and certainly not in winter, you might in May! There are dozens of species like this, and while they pass through during autumn too, in particular the many species of warblers tend to be much more colorful during spring.

4. Learn to Identify Birds During Migration
   
   What with all of the variety of birds passing through spots unknown during much of the year, especially if you're a novice birder, you're bound to run across species that don't fall under the simple categories of robin, blue jay, or crow. Purchase a bird guide or borrow one from the library, and you might also want to invest in binoculars.
   
   Many bird guides contain what are called range maps for each species, and the most comprehensive range maps also include migratory ranges. As a help, I've posted at the bottom of this page under "Resources" a pretty good online bird guide that does feature range maps.

Tips & Warnings

• While your backyard may abound in birds during the spring, it's still a good idea to take a birdwalk through a woodsy or wetlands area in April (in the South) or May (in the North). Morning is probably the best time, but evening is better than midday - kind of like fishing.
• The only thing to warn about here is be careful lest your love affair with birds in springtime turns you into a mad poet!

Resources

• Cornell Lab of Ornithology Bird Guide

[gerrie5044]

on 5/11/2009 I really like this article on birds! 5* and rec

[achenoweth]

on 4/30/2009 Great article. 5* and a rec