Clara now in Mexico!

On October 6, Clara was detected in Mexico.  She is now located south of Puerto Peñasco in Sonora Mexico.  Her last signal from Great Salt Lake came just before midnight on October 2.  Fifty two hours later we received a signal from her in Mexico over 720 miles away.  Because the transmitters only send out signals to satellites for five hours, followed by a 20 hour off-cycle, we don’t know her exact time of departure.  However, for birds that can travel 30-50 miles per hour, a 700 mile flight could be accomplished in as little as 14 hours.  She continues to slowly move south along the coast of Mexico.

The other birds continue to provide signals at Great Salt Lake within Farmington Bay.

First migration report

Yesterday morning (September 30, 2014) we received an excellent signal from Simba.  He has left Great Salt Lake and is now over 600 miles southwest in Northern Mexico near the delta of the Colorado River.  Like Great Salt Lake, this location is also critical habitat for shorebirds.  The area is called the Estero Rio Colorado and is designated as a site of "International Importance" through the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network.  Check out Simba's map for his most recent location.

We have received good signals from Torito, Florence, Clara and Sweco over the last several days.  All of these birds are still at Great Salt Lake.  Interestingly Torito, Clara and Sweco seem to be using the same area of Farmington Bay, near the southeastern corner.  We expect the remaining avocets here at Great Salt Lake to be leaving any day.

We will update maps again early next week.