Macaulay Library - What We Do, Cornell Lab of Ornithology A multimedia resource for the study of animal behavior and biodiversity, setting the standard for the collection, preservation, and dissemination of natural history recordings since 1929 Help us capture sounds and images of rare wildlife from around the world. The Macaulay Library is the world’s leading scientific collection of biodiversity media, with more than 175,000 audio and 60,000 video recordings documenting the behavioral diversity of birds and other animals. The collections in our care inspire, educate, and entertain people around the globe. We provide training, expert consultation, and equipment that enable scientists, educators, and nature enthusiasts to discover and record the natural world. Explore the sound and video archive on the Macaulay Library website. Preservation and Curation As the stewards of an irreplaceable scientific resource, we ensure that every recording will remain available for future generations. The Macaulay Library's Online Archive of Biodiversity Media
Sibley Guides WhatBird WildBirds.com Peterson Field Guides Featured Books Peterson Birds of North America app >>2011 BEST APP EVER AWARD<<MUST-HAVE BIRDING APP The ultimate birding resource for at home and in the field combining 10 Peterson Field Guides in an easy-to-use searchable format for iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch. More Peterson Feeder Birds of North America app AN EXCITING NEW TOOL FOR BIRDERS! More On Our Website: Video Podcasts! Richly illustrated with paintings, photographs, and sound recordings of featured birds, these video podcasts are an entertaining and educational supplement to the Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America. Family OverviewsSpecies ProfilesBiographyTutorials Special Features Who is Roger Tory Peterson? For more than 65 years, Peterson Field Guides have set the standard by which other field guides are measured. Learn More About Roger Tory Peterson
Understanding birds & weather: Fall birding basics — eBird Fall migration is an exciting time for birds. With migrants on the move your local birding site can be transformed from the static to the dynamic overnight, with a suite of new species to identify, an abundance of individuals, and a feeling that anything is possible. We realize some of our best birding days center on being at the right place at the right time. Fall Migration Basics Fall migration starts earlier than most people realize, with many shorebirds on the move by late June, and the first landbirds heading south soon thereafter. Bird migration is spectacular, complex, and difficult to generalize — even within closely related species the pathways and strategies may differ. Diurnal migration can be spectacular to watch, and birders traditionally gather at locations where weather and geography conspire to concentrate migrants, most notably along coastlines and ridges, and especially peninsulas with southerly orientation. Weather Basics Cold Fronts Figure 1. Conclusion Acknowledgements
Birds & Birding: Spring Migration All across North America, one of the sure signs that spring is on the way is the return of the migratory birds. If you are familiar with the birds in your area you know that the change can be abrupt: One morning, the bushes and trees around you are suddenly filled with singing birds that were not there just the day before. They have arrived during the night, following a combination of celestial (by the stars) and magnetic cues that are part of their genetic heritage. The most amazing part of this story is that these tiny birds may have flown thousands of miles to reach your yard, after spending the North American winter in Mexico, Central America, or South America, where the days remain warm and food is plentiful during our cold season. Many of the birds we consider "our birds," those that appear in field guides to the United States, actually spend less than half of their lives here. The spring migration, however, is urgent.
Migration of Birds Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center General Considerations While certain flight directions are consistently followed by migratory birds, it is well to remember that the term "migration route" is a generalization, a concept referring to the general movements of a species, rather than an exact course followed by individual birds or a path followed by a species characterized by specific geographic or ecological boundaries. Even the records of banded birds usually show no more than the places of banding and recovery, and the details of the route actually traversed between the two points is interpolated. In determining migration routes, one must also constantly guard against the false assumption that localities with many grounded migrants are on the main path of migration and localities where no migrants are observed are off the main path. There is also considerable variation in the routes chosen by different species. Flyways and Corridors Narrow Routes Converging Routes W.W.