The differences in wind direction and speed between northern and southern NJ last night created some very interesting migration patterns over the last twelve hours. Check out the radar loops below to find out how! These loops cover from sunset last night through 5:00am this morning.

Frames are every 1/2 hour. Click on the thumbnail to view the full-sized animation.

The regional composite does show the phenomenon quite well, where early signs of migration indicate light movement over the northeast, heavier over northern NJ and none over Southern NJ. You can see a wave of migrant density move into Northern NJ and down the state through the early morning hours as winds eventually turn light northwesterly across the region.  Looking at the individual radars this pattern is quite apparent, with the wind and migrant-direction shift clearly present on the velocity images.

Since the highest densities of birds appear to have entered the state in the northwest corner and headed straight down the state towards Cape May, I would think the best birding locations would be interior hotspots along the ridges throughout NJ, and anywhere from the northern Delaware Bay shore east to the Cape May peninsula. Winds at Cape May are light with a touch of east, but not enough to thwart any migration activity here today. Sandy Hook is showing light northwest winds on the buoy, but little migration out of Long Island last night will probably mean similar birding to this past weekend at The Hook; good, but not outstanding.

Good Birding

David