Now that spring has blossomed, albeit rather late, migrant birds are trading places. Species that overwintered in Britain such as redwings, fieldfares and waxwings are returning to Scandinavia to breed.
Meanwhile chiffchaffs and assorted warblers, cuckoo, swallows, martins and last of all swifts, are winging their way back here or have already arrived for a busy nesting season following epic flights from Africa of up to 6,000 miles.
Bird and insect migration is a fascinating and awesome compulsive annual ritual and we are only just beginning to understand, guess of theorise about the mechanics and natural forces that control it.
All the evidence points to either a single or combination of factors including genetic programming, navigation by stars or sun and reacting to the Earth’s magnetic field.
On their return journey to Africa in the autumn, many young birds will fly south after their parents have already left without any tutoring from the adults.
Birds seem fragile enough, but butterflies, moths and hoverflies also make incredibly long journeys. Last summer, the painted lady joined us in record numbers but this year we may not see them.
Instead, that other great traveller, the clouded yellow butterfly or perhaps the humming bird hawkmoth, may fly in to astound us.
Who knows, we shall have to wait and see, for every insect migration pattern is different.
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