BB on his way

BB has finally started his southward migration! The trajectory of his migration from northern Italy means that he would have likely passed over the toe of Italy at dawn today, and will perhaps make a short stopover there before continuing on over the Mediterranean and Sahara tonight or tomorrow.

 

The multiple years of data from veteran cuckoos such as BB and Chris are showing just how much variation there can be for an individual bird between years. There can be quite a lot of variation in the consistency of migration timing, and spring schedules are often more tightly fixed than schedules in autumn. The summer in northern Italy has been wetter and cooler than normal, so these conditions together with their age may have made it more difficult for both BB and Chris to fatten up for their migration as quickly as previous years.