Geese gather before storm

Published: Feb. 22, 2023 at 5:38 PM EST
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TOWN OF HOUNSFIELD, New York (WWNY) - Hundreds of snow geese were seen Tuesday night just outside of Watertown as they make their way back to Canada as part of their northern migration.

The geese are known to travel in large groups and will find large open fields to rest and recover as they travel north.

Experts tell us that the birds are likely refueling in advance of take-off before the winter weather hits.

The birds are able to predict the change in temperatures, wind conditions, and pressure.

“There’s obviously some other machinery in their physiology allowing them to understand changes in pressure. So decreasing pressure, and incoming storms - don’t migrate, don’t move,” said Andrew Farnsworth, senior research associate, Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Snow geese traditionally begin their migration in the middle of February and will do so through the end of May.