Colorado, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: May 05, 2014 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 2 | 9 | 112 |
| Osprey | 0 | 2 | 17 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 3 | 41 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 1 | 7 | 78 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 3 | 5 | 6 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 7 | 252 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| American Kestrel | 1 | 3 | 81 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 1 | 23 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 2 | 26 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| Total: | 10 | 43 | 727 |
| Observation start time: | 07:45:00 |
| Observation end time: | 13:30:00 |
| Total observation time: | 5.75 hours |
| Official Counter | Joyce Commercon |
| Observers: |
Visitors:
Judy Henderson arrived in the afternoon with binoculars and camera to help spot and try her luck at photographing raptors and other birds. Doug Kibbe came out in hopes of seeing some Broad-wings.
Weather:
A beautiful warm day with mostly light breezes that started out from the west and northwest but shifted to the southeast and east. Visibility was good. Ample cloud cover made it easier to spot migrants.
Raptor Observations:
The highlights of the day were three adult Broad-winged Hawks, as well as two adult Swainson's Hawks. Of these, all but one of the Swainson's Hawks came along the Ridge. Local Red-tails and Turkey Vultures were out and about most of the morning. One local Red-tail roller-coastered over Rooney Valley very near the HawkWatch site, putting on a wonderful show.
Non-raptor Observations:
A pair of Mountain Chickadees flew through the HawkWatch site twice, each time with the one escorting the other, which carried a beak-full of soft fuzzy nesting material. A number of Violet-green Swallows were spotted flying north. About a dozen Cliff Swallows were observed swirling in a loose mass over Rooney Valley briefly. Also seen and heard were American Robin, Common Grackle, Western Scrub-Jay, Spotted Towhee, Rock Wren, Western Meadowlark, Black-billed Magpie, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Blue Jay, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Golden-crowned Kinglet, White-throated Swift, Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Common Raven, Townsend's Solitaire, and Audubon's Yellow-rumped Warbler.
Report submitted by Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory (jeff.birek@rmbo.org)
Dinosaur Ridge information may be found at: http://www.rmbo.org/
Site Description
Dinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawkwatch in Colorado and is the
best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Dinosaur Ridge may
be the best place in the country to see the rare dark morph of the Broad-winged
Hawk (a few are seen each spring). Hawkwatchers who linger long enough may see
resident Golden Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks and Prairie Falcons, in addition to
migrating Swainson's, Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels and
Turkey Vultures. Peregrine Falcons and Ferruginous Hawks are uncommon; Northern
Goshawk is rare but regular. Non-raptor species include Rock Wren, and sometimes
Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane, White-throated Swift, American White
Pelican or Dusky Grouse. Birders are always welcome.
The hawkwatch is generally staffed by volunteers from the Rocky Mountain Bird
Observatory from about 9 AM to around 4 PM from the first week of March to the
first week of May.
Directions to site:
From exit 259 on I-70 towards Morrison, drive south under freeway and take left
into first parking lot, the Stegosaurus lot. Follow small signs from the south
side of lot to hawkwatch site. The hike starts heading east on an old two-track
and quickly turns south onto a trail on the west side of the ridge. When the
trail nears the top of the ridge, turn left, head through the gate, and walk to
the clearly-visible, flat area at the crest of the ridge.
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