I had recently read some items on the internet about neotropical birds, but it
was referencing the migrants in relation to Arizona. But since most of the
information is very general, I thought it might be helpful here anyway. Here is
a brief snip of that:

<<snip with edits>>
Some commonly asked questions:

What is a Neotropical Migratory bird?
Birds that breed in the United States and Canada, but winter south of the United
States/Mexico border are known as neotropical migratory birds.

Why do some birds migrate?
Birds need to eat more to maintain body heat when temperatures drop during the
fall and winter. However, they have less time to forage because winter days are
shorter. Most neotropical migrants eat a variety of insects and spiders, which
are not as abundant here in the winter. By migrating, birds can feast on them
all summer on their breeding grounds and all winter in the
tropics.

Where do Neotropical Migrants go?
Most migrants that breed in the West spend the winter in northern and western
Mexico, while eastern breeders tend to winter mainly in Mexico, the Caribbean,
and Central and South America.

What are Migration Corridors or Stop-Overs?
Rivers and isolated mountain ranges or "sky islands" provide relief to
neotropical migrants passing through the state's arid landscape. The lush
vegetation of a riparian corridor or sky island stop-over provides food and
cover for the weary travelers.

Why are fewer birds migrating?
Migrating birds face a tough journey between their winter and summer homes.
Unfortunately, studies have shown that fewer birds are surviving to make this
extraordinary trip each year. Not only do they face natural perils such as
storms, predation, and drought, they now contend with ever increasing human
caused threats. These threats include contamination from pesticides, herbicides,
and industrial pollution. Birds are also losing their homes and migration
stop-overs through timber harvesting, urbanization, grazing, and farming.

Land management practices that "fragment" habitat into smaller, more isolated
patches, make it easier for predators and cowbirds to find nests of other
species. Cowbirds parasitize these nests by laying their eggs in them. This
leaves the "foster parents" to raise cowbird young at the expense of their own.

<<end of snip>>

Hope this is of help to some.



Franny Drobny
Seattle, Washington
fdrobny at cairncross.com

>>> Kelly Cassidy <kelly at cqs.washington.edu> 09/09/97 11:15AM >>>
If anyone has a response to this query about the definition of a
neotropical migrant, please respond to the list. Is there any
"official" list of Neotropical migrants?

How about migrants in general? Are robins migrants or residents, since
part (all?) of the winter population is from the north?

Kelly (one of the "shes") Cassidy