This migration is so large that sometimes meteorologists pick it up on weather radar. “The Migration of the birds continue,” Steve Caporizzo, chief meteorologist at News10 Albany, wrote in a Facebook post. Weather radar antennas work by shooting bursts of microwave energy into their surroundings, and then measuring the energy that reflects back to detect rain, snow, or hail in clouds. [ Related: Why do birds migrate? Most birds migrate at night, and artificial lights can confuse and disorient them.