Migration

Date: 4/7/2019
Time: 11:30 am
Weather: 49 F, partly cloudy
Location: Battery park
Habitat: Open woodland & dense thicket
When I went out in the morning, I did not see many unusual species that I haven't seen frequently the past few months. I saw many Northern Cardinals (I counted 6 total), and one Black-capped Chickadee.

The Northern Cardinal is a year-round species in Vermont, and has been a focal species of my field observations thus far. The Northern Cardinal has evolved to survive the cold Vermont winters because of the food availability and decrease in competition between other species compared to the warmer months. This species has learned to store seed caches and forage successfully in the winter, while minimizing their energy expended. This makes the Northern Cardinal the perfect species as a year-round resident.

New arrivals such as the Red-winged Blackbird has just started returning from warmer climates such as the Southern United States, and South America. Recently the temperature has increased, leading plant species to emerge from beneath the soil, bringing along invertebrates with them. This creates an ample food source for migrating species. Coming back sooner, the individuals are able to set up their nests and being breeding. It is extremely disruptive for a migrating species to come this early in the year however, because although some days it feels like spring, we are still being hit with snow storms, and cold temperatures which then causes the seeds, plants, and insect life to die off or move below the surface for a while longer. This can be beneficial, as the species will get first pick of a territory they wish to defend. This can negatively impact the species migrating here because they may quickly run out of food, or materials for nesting, or individuals to mate with, and if they do reproduce they may be met with fewer food items to feed their young.

The Red-winged Blackbird winters in Mexico, the distance to Mexico from my observation area is roughly 2,586 miles away when flying a straight line from one area to the next.

Publicado el abril 8, 2019 07:36 TARDE por rlooney