Birding Hurricane Wilma

Want to see that storm-petral, skua, frigatebird or other pelagic you keep missing from the boat? Hurricane Wilma may bring a few of them to shore. There used to be a listserv dedicated to helping birders know which lagkes have become dropoffs for hurricane pelagic birds. Hurricane Net

SOUTH ALABAMA BIRDING ASSOCIATION has a good tip list about birding hurricanes.

As a hurricane develops, birds sometimes get trapped in the eye by the towering, fierce storms in the eye wall. In effect, the eye wall becomes a tropical bird cage until the hurricane begins to fizzle. In September 1985, thousands of birds, presumably trapped by the eye wall, were observed in the eye of Hurricane Gloria as the storm came ashore in southern New England.

More recently Laura Erickson is tracking the birding aftermath of KAtrina and Rita.