If you keep your eyes trained on the sky Thursday you might just see something straight out of Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds.”
Experts are predicting that around 364 million birds will take flight as part of their annual migration south for the winter. To put that in perspective, that’s roughly the same number of people living in the United States.
Northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin sit right on the edge of the most intense activity, with the peak of the migration happening right through the middle of the country.
The birds are expected to take flight about 30 to 45 minutes after sunset. The majority of the birds will be in flight around two to three hours later.
Fall migration for birds lasts much longer than spring migration. It typically starts around late summer, peaking between mid-August and mid-October. During any given night millions of birds can take flight to make the trek.
With the skies expected to be as busy as they are, experts say there are a few things you can do to help keep “traffic” moving smoothly.
During the migration season they recommend keeping light pollution to a minimum. That means turning off non-essential lights, pointing exterior lights downward, and closing blinds. Bright lights can often attract and confuse nocturnal birds as they fly, possibly leading to fatal collisions.
from NBC Chicago https://ift.tt/MPomWEv
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