Greetings birders, I estimate 400-500 Am. Robins past by my observation site in southcentral Danby this morning between 7:30-8:30AM EDT. They were headed northwesterly at altitudes generally <200-ft above ground level (about 1700-ft asl). A higher vector (~600+-ft agl) of lesser numbers of southbound Robins was noted beginning about 7:50 AM -- the two opposing flight directions happening simultaneously.
Peak Robin morning flight numbers in past years from my observation site are 4000-5000/hour, ten times what I counted today. Last week I had another morning count in the 400-500 range and these are the two largest flights I've noted this fall. Peak fall migration morning flights of Am. Robins typically occur through Ithaca in the next two weeks and can be observed from anywere with a view of the sky between half hour before sunrise to an hour after sunrise, sometimes later. The regional numbers are highly variable from year to year, apparently due to broad-scale weather patterns, perhaps in conjunction with circumnavigation dynamics around Lake Ontario.. Bill E -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES Archives: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
