Spring Migration Brings Birds Back North
With spring comes the beginning of the migration season for returning birds after spending the winter in the south.
There are at least 100 types of migratory birds in the local area alone, but many migrate during different times of the year. Some are here year-round, but overall the season begins during early spring and most birds have returned to the area by early-to-mid June.
Twan Leenders, director of conservation for the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy, said there are even more different types of birds in the area than people realize.
“There have been over 250 recorded. I’ve recorded 150 in my backyard in Jamestown alone,” Leenders said. “There are more in just the city parks. I’ve gone for walks and on bike paths and kept my ears open and have counted somewhere around 135.”
Leenders is set to give a talk Wednesday, April 19, at Lakewood Memorial Library about migratory birds. The event is open to the public and begins at 5 p.m.
At the talk, Leenders will discuss all of the different things that come with migratory birds.
“I will talk about the birds’ different habitats and how different birds need different habitats,” Leenders said. “I will encourage people to go outside and enjoy the birds, especially since some of them come from the tropics. It’s not just the incredible journey that they make every year, but that they also are drawn back to the same places each year.”
Leenders gave an example of hummingbirds that will return to the same feeder each year, and sometimes arrive before people have their feeders out. He said people have reported seeing hummingbirds looking for their food.
Leenders is also a licensed bird bander and has experience seeing birds on both the local and southern ends returning to the same place each year.
“This is something that happens on the other end too,” Leenders said. “If you see, let’s say, an oriole in your backyard and then you see another one next year, it’s probably the same bird. It’s the same on the southern end, because these birds have very specific places that they will go.”
Leenders said this enforces the need to protect each bird’s habitat, shows how beautiful and amazing these birds are and helps to show how they help manage the landscape.
Birds help shape the landscape because many that are currently coming back to the area eat insects and help to get rid of some of the insects that people do not like. They leave in the winter months because of the lack of insects and return during the spring season to feed, and then also feed their young. The young also eat the insects.
Leenders added that birds are also good seed dispersers, helping to create more of the landscape and having an important ecological impact.
During springtime, Leenders encourages people to go out and look for the birds.
“I love to wake up in the morning and hear the birds calling,” Leenders said. “I know my bird calls so I can identify them. I love to hear new voices after the winter is over and things have melted and birds are coming back. Of course, when I hear them I want to see them so I go and look. It gives you an excuse to go outside, especially to see some of the birds returning from the tropics, which are always bright and colorful. They are amazing.”
Right now is a good time for people to go look for migratory birds as the ones returning are beginning to come back more. All birds have different seasons, so some like sparrows and purple martins are starting to return while others such as ducks are on the way out. Leenders said he heard loons on Chautauqua Lake last week, and it’s about their mating season time and time for them to be moving out as well. Wood ducks are also on the way back.
For those interested in becoming bird watchers, Leenders recommended resources from the Cornell University Lab of Ornithology. The lab has a focus on bird studies and provides online resources like E-bird, which allows for people to keep track of birds they have seen. The program creates lists and maps for people to use, and also allows the information entered to be shared with researchers. The program is free with an account.
Other resources include online training manuals, guide books and field guides.
Leenders encourages the local community to go outside and see the birds, and also to come to his talk at the Lakewood Library.
“I hope people will get out and enjoy the beautiful time of year,” Leenders said. “Spring is a beautiful time and it’s a great time to be outside. And I hope people will come to my program, and will be encouraged to go outside and enjoy.”