Houston Audubon recommends buildings three stories and higher to turn LIGHTS OUT tonight -- April 21. Conditions are favorable for migratory birds crossing or circumnavigating the Gulf of Mexico to meet strong headwinds and precipitation on the Upper Texas Coast. We recommend buildings three stories and above turn off unnecessary lighting during the entire migration period, March 15 to May 15.
The BirdCast Live Migration Maps show northward bird migration is in full swing. A strong weather frontal system is moving into the region from the northwest and will bring a good chance of thunderstorms late Saturday night. Winds will continue through Sunday morning, switching directions around 7 am. A look at the Ventusky website shows the predicted precipitation and wind shift early Sunday morning. The Ventusky website can be adjusted to examine weather at various altitudes, times, and associated phenomena.
Migration for the region is predicted to have medium intensity by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s BirdCast Program. It is likely that the weather frontal passage tonight and tomorrow will bring any migratory birds over the coast from higher altitudes (e.g. 2,000-8,000 ft.) to areas of lowest headwinds and shelter, lower than 1,000 ft. to ground level. With grounded birds in the region possible for the next few days, daytime collisions of birds at ground level will be significantly increased. Please consider limiting dangerous threats such as glass surfaces reflecting vegetated habitat and outdoor predators such as house cats. More information on how you can reduce threats can be found at the Houston Audubon Bird-Friendly Communities webpages.
Thank you for making our region safer for wildlife!
