Today the geese move north

Sparrow studies the chickens intently

Today the Canada geese are moving north.  In the early morning I’ve already seen a dozen or more large flocks of them, filling the sky, heading over the mountains on their flight north.  This is the second day of a true warm-up, a sure sign winter is easing and enough to move the waterfowl out of their wintering grounds.  Actually, the 11th of March is late for this movement. Often, the last week of February is when I see flocks aflight in this area.  This year, of course, waterfowl were then still held to the south by snow and ice and the tight grip of winter.

It’s not just Canada geese on the move today.  At 2:45 a.m., on one of my overnight trips outside for the puppies, a small flock of snow geese honked and flew overhead.  Against the overcast sky, their bright white feathers looked as though they were illuminated from within.  They coursed over the forest, perhaps a few tree-heights above the tree tops.

Snow geese are among the earliest of the migrants to move north.  They hurry to reach their breeding grounds. This year I wonder how their late flight will impact that.  The flight this year is a good two weeks later than usual.  Will this impact breeding success?   If fall comes early, will the year’s new geese be ready for the stress of migration?

I have yet to see the tundra swans whistling their way north. Perhaps I will before the day is over. Perhaps they are already gone.  Spring is underway.

Sunday the geese flew north

Canada geese heading north and very high (taken with 300mm lens)

Sunday the geese flew north. And the tundra swans. By the thousands. Maybe by the tens of thousands.

It started on Saturday evening not long after dark, with the tundra swans. I heard that familiar “whoo-whoo” sound. And then, directly over the cabin where I have a bit of open sky, I saw them. A snowy white vee against the ebony sky, heading north. That flock was a big one, about 200 swans. If there’s anything more beautiful than seeing swans flying north at night, I can’t think what that might be.

And that was just the beginning. After that came the first of Canada goose flocks. I heard many more flocks than I saw, and I saw quite a few, even with the forest trees hiding many from my view. I heard them while I was on raccoon patrol—more about that tomorrow. The sound of the flocks went on for hours, perhaps all night. Certainly every time I was outside I never had to wait more than a few minutes before I heard the sound of another flock.

During the day on Sunday, even more flocks passed overhead. Mostly Canada geese, with an occasional flock of swans joining in. Sunday evening, I heard and then saw my first flock of snow geese. To my ear their honking is a bit less harsh than that of the Canada geese. Again, the sound went on for hours, well into the late night, until I was forced to bed.

Spring is here. It arrived with the geese and the swans heading north.

A few snow geese

I know video files are huge, and I apologize ahead of time to my fellow dial-up users. So with that in mind, I've kept this video clip very short. Still, if you'd like to hear and see a few seconds of tens of thousands of snow geese, here you go. Enjoy!

Migration underway!

Waterfowl migration is underway! Snow geese are amassing at Lancaster County’s Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area, as are tundra swans. I managed a too-short trip to Middle Creek on Sunday morning and guess that well over 50,000 snow geese are currently on the site.

For me, this kind of waterfowl migration is one of the wonders of this world. I think there are more than the traditional 7, but I would still rank this in the top 2 or 3. The sound that so many geese make is deafening, so it’s a good thing they aren’t always calling. But when they do start calling, I know another flock is coming in to join the thousands already there. The geese can hear their fellows before I can, but it usually doesn’t take longer than 30 seconds or so before I can hear and see the new arrivals coming, too.

This year, the ice and snow cover have delayed this migration spectacle. In an average year, the geese and swans are moving north around the end of February. A weekend ago, only about 2500 geese were at the site. Yesterday it was roughly 50,000. Tomorrow it may well be 100,000. Because the arrival is later this year, I don’t think it will be spread out over as many days as usual, but that will mean more geese at once at Middle Creek. The photo shows only a very small portion of the geese.  But even if I'd had a wide-angle lens, it wouldn't begin to capture the whole span of snow geese.

In a normal year, this upcoming weekend would be spectacular, too. This year I am not sure of that, and the forecast for rainy weather ahead may also play a part. But if you can make the trip, either this year or in some future year, don’t miss it. Once you’ve seen it, you’ll want to come back every year to see it again. I’ve been coming for more than 20 years now, and I never get tired of this amazing spectacle.