Some species migrate south in late summer and fall. On a clear or partly cloudy night about a half an hour to an hour after sunset the Swanson’s thrush, a local nesting bird, will take flight going south. It will reach a height of up to 500 feet or more. The species flies south using the stars as a guide.

You can hear their whistle call in flight. On a cloudy night they may not fly at all. Birds come south from as far away as Alaska.

Hermit and varied thrush are vertical migrants coming down from the mountains to the lowlands. The hermit thrush may sometimes winter here but generally stay...