carjug
Well-known member
(Stecoah Gap is on NC 143 near Robbinsville, at the base of the Smoky Mountains)
There is a warbler hotspot about fifty miles from my house. It is called Stecoah Gap, and aside from the abundance of grapevines choking the trees, there is nothing special about the place. It is simply a ridge on the north side of a mountain.
Around April 20 it fills up with warblers. B&W, Parulae, Blackburnian, Redstarts, BT Greens, Ovenbirds; the list hit 16 species this year. WHY?
What makes for a spring migration hotspot? Do the birds have a set route, or is there a natural night-time wind tunnel that pulls them into these places? Where are the other hotspots between Florida/Texas and Canada? and how does a person look for undiscovered hotspots?