Driving west through eastern Kansas this morning, I encountered several flocks of snow geese, circling through the gray overcast and seemingly tired of fighting the frigid, north wind. The air temperature was 11 degrees F and the wind chill was surely well below zero.
My suspicion was confirmed when I observed a massive flock of snows, resting and foraging in a field of crop stubble along the Smoky Hill River, just south of Junction City. Farther down the road, another large flock occupied a field west of Salina, Kansas. Clearly, these hardy travelers were grounded by the severe weather conditions and were conserving energy on their long journey to their Arctic breeding grounds.
While their migrations, like those of other birds, are triggered by the solar cycle, waterfowl move in concert with open water and food availability; they also wait for favorable tail winds before setting out on the legs of their journey. The current Arctic blast, with another on its heels this weekend, will surely slow their progress.
