10 hours ago, Kerry Beal said:4 trees full of vultures - and more circling.
I don't know if it's the same type of migration, but on Vancouver Island they really have to wait for the right wind currents for their migration, maybe it's the same there in the Spring? It's pretty cool here to see them gather and try to find the right wind patterns. They are kind of beautiful, really.
http://vancouverisland.com/things-to-do-and-see/wildlife-viewing/turkey-vulture-migration/
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They are not strong fliers, taking advantage instead of winds and currents of rising warm air to keep them aloft in the search for the carrion on which they almost exclusively feed. (A Turkey Vulture, asked in the airport if he wanted to check the two dead raccoons under his wings, declined, explaining that they were carry-on.)
When these southbound vultures are faced with the Strait, where cool air eliminates those favourable currents, they linger, sometimes for weeks, until conditions are suitable for crossing. It is possible to see many hundreds of Turkey Vultures in the air at once, soaring in flocks called “kettles”, trying to gain enough height to carry them as far across as possible without having to resort to powered flight.
The vultures are joined by good numbers of eagles and hawks, too, although many of these do not wait so long to cross. It is a fascinating sight for all, and for birders it provides an opportunity to see many raptors, and perhaps a chance at something unusual among them.
