Birds have become trapped within the eye of Hurricane Isaias as the powerful cyclone moves toward Florida, a phenomenon detected by both hurricane hunters and Doppler radar.
The American meteorologist Matt Devitt reported this Friday on Facebook that the signals observed within the eye correspond to birds that are staying in the area of relative calm due to the intensity of the surrounding winds.
"The hurricane hunters and Doppler radar have confirmed that there are birds trapped in the eye of Isaias right now because the winds are too strong in the eye wall," Devitt explained.
According to the meteorologist, the birds stay within the eye, where conditions are comparatively calmer, as crossing back through the wall of the hurricane would mean facing its most violent winds.
Devitt also explained that, in the radar image she shared, the blue colors represent the birds detected within the eye, while the red corresponds to the rain.
The evidence was not limited to radar. In the comments of his post, the specialist shared a report from the hurricane hunters in which the crew noted having directly observed a bird during a mission within Isaias.
"Here is the report from the hurricane hunters. They spotted a white heron at 9,400 feet inside the eye," Devitt wrote.
The Vortex Data Message issued by the meteorologist states: “White egret approx 9,400 feet passed beneath ACFT heading eastbound inside eye”, meaning that a white egret was observed at approximately 9,400 feet above passing beneath the aircraft while traveling east within the eye.
Devitt warned that not all birds caught in these conditions manage to survive. Some may die from exhaustion, lack of food, or even drowning after spending hours over the ocean, although many manage to endure until the cyclone makes landfall, depending on the species and the conditions.
The Cuban aeronautical meteorologist Henry Delgado Manzor, a member of the Cuban Societies of Meteorology and Speleology, also drew attention this Friday to the unusual sighting.
"Unbelievable. The crew of the hurricane-hunting plane reported seeing a white egret trapped inside the eye of the intense Hurricane Isaias," wrote Delgado Manzor in a Facebook post.
The Cuban specialist added that the bird, which he described as having a "wingspan of over 2 meters," was seen flying beneath the aircraft during the reconnaissance mission inside the eye.
The phenomenon has already been documented in other major hurricanes. In October 2025, birds were observed trapped inside the eye of Hurricane Melissa, a Category 5 cyclone moving through the Caribbean at that time.
A hurricane hunter from the U.S. Air Force also confirmed the presence of birds inside the eye.
The curious sighting occurs as Isaias reached category 3 on Friday with maximum sustained winds of 195 km/h, becoming a major hurricane as it approaches the U.S. coast. The system rapidly strengthened in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
The National Hurricane Center expects that Isaias will make landfall tonight in the northwest of Florida or very close to the border with Alabama. The region is preparing for destructive winds, storm surge, heavy rainfall, and flooding.
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