May 23rd, 2015

Tonight's winds. Click
image to view live.

Tonight, Illinois has received the strong southerly winds we've been waiting for the past few days. Strong southerly winds means smooth sailing for what migrants are left, and they are indeed moving northward tonight. Light to moderate concentrations are in transit over the Prairie State right now. Many of these species are on the last leg of their northward migration, a common characterization in this last week of May. Some migratory influx will be visible tomorrow morning, but keep in mind that it won't be as obvious as it was a week or two ago.

Tonight's radar. Click
image to view live.

Next up: the forecast. Tonight's southerly winds are set to remain throughout the state at least into Tuesday, but even still they will be a'shiftin'. Tomorrow afternoon, winds will become progressively stronger, and by tomorrow night, we may see large areas where winds aloft reach nearly 50 miles per hour. This speed may be overpowering for migrants, so any movements are likely to be limited to near the surface, where winds are set to be calmer. All that aside, tomorrow night be one of those rare spring occasions of southerly winds and limited migration. From there, winds are set to remain favorably southerly through Monday night, at which time they will be calmer aloft. Southerly winds will continue until Tuesday night, when a front is set to intrude from the north and block off Northern Illinois from favorable conditions. As always, I'll keep you posted.

Powerful winds, maxing out at 44 kts, predicted aloft (1000 ft) for
tomorrow (5/24) at midnight. Click image to view live.

So tomorrow morning, then, should bear witness to some influxes. Predict what that influx will be composed of using this eBird page or a brand new BirdCast National Forecast.

Until tomorrow night, good birding, all!