Hurricane Irene had devastating effects from North Carolina to New England, but the water and high winds blamed for at least 45 deaths in 13 states and extensive flooding and damage were no match for a little bird on a migratory mission.
A whimbrel, a pigeon sized bird that spends four to six weeks on the Georgia barrier islands each spring, was tracked flying through the swirling winds of the storm on Wednesday, even managing to sustain an average 30 mile per hour flight speed despite winds of up to 110 miles per hour. Biologists tracking the bird aren't sure exactly how he or she (the bird's gender is undetermined) could have made the treacherous journey, but they are hoping long-term data on this and other birds will shed light on such key aspects of survival.
"I think this guy probably got lucky," said Tim Keyes, wildlife biologist with the Nongame Conservation Section of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The department is one of six organizations participating in a study of the resources whimbrels need for food and nesting, as well as their migratory patterns which put them in the path of hurricanes and tropical storms each year. "Any one storm can be disastrous, but these species have evolved over thousands of years dealing with tropical storms," Keyes said. "They have managed to achieve some balance where they are not getting wiped out by them."
The hardy bird, named Chinquapin after the creek just east of Darien where Georgia whimbrels roost, took off in May following a similar flight pattern as the previous year which annually stretches from the Canadian and Alaskan Arctic to South America and back, Keyes said. The bird, who has been wearing a satellite transmitter since spring 2010 and may have been traveling in a small group, headed from Georgia to nest at Mosquito Lake in the Northwest Territories (with a few stops along the way), then to Coats Island on Hudson Bay for a month before leaving from Southampton Island on Saturday.
"It was leaving and we were like, ‘Oh my goodness,'" Keyes said. "Irene was churning up through the Caribbean." The next transmission showed Chinquapin over water on Wednesday, right in the middle of Irene. Then the solar paneled transmitter, which stays on for 10 hours before powering down for two days, went off. "We had 48 hours of biting our nails," Keyes said. Biologists in three states frantically emailed wondering what would become of the hurricane battered bird.
Then, Friday at 4 p.m., Keyes got confirmation that Chinquapin had reached land in Eleuthera Bahamas, where it remains likely prepping to fly to Suriname for winter.
"It hit that storm after flying non-stop for four days and was still able to navigate around and find some land. It is pretty amazing," Keyes said.
But it isn't the first time Chinquapin proved storm ready. The bird also managed to circumnavigate tropical storm Colin in 2010, Keyes said. Back then Chinquapin took the less risky route, flying some 300 miles out of the way to avoid the storm. Keyes and the others theorized that the birds fly out of the way to avoid getting caught in the storms, but Chinquapin's path through Irene blew that theory out of the water.
"[Chinquapin is] one bird who had a very different experience," he said, noting other less lucky wimbrels. "We will continue to tag and track these birds and certain others over time building up more data on their habits."
