Colorado, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 03, 2013 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 2 | 6 | 6 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 4 | 9 | 9 |
| Observation start time: | 08:45:00 |
| Observation end time: | 15:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 6.25 hours |
| Official Counter | Joyce Commercon |
| Observers: | Francis Commercon |
Visitors:
Many hikers, several with dogs, braved the initially-icy-but-later muddy trails. Many stopped by for the view. One did ask about HawkWatch.
Weather:
Warm, mostly sunny, with shifting cloud cover. Winds were mild, coming from the West initially but shifting to the East and then Southeast by midmorning. Temperatures rose during the day from 12 C to 16 C, There was noticeable melting of the broken remnants of snow on the surrounding hillsides.
Raptor Observations:
The four migrants all arrived within an hour of each other in the midmorning. There seemed to be no preferred route as two passed well to the West, one passed near the Ridge, and the last passed to the East along Green Mountain. The Rough-legged Hawk was identified by the combination of white at the top and bottom of the tail base, dark marks at the wrists and dark primary tips. There was plenty of local raptor activity. The local Prairie Falcon arrived early from the West and perched on a power pole for a half hour. It appeared to have fresh blood on its belly feathers, likely from a recent meal. Later in the day it flew South along the ridge, only to return North a few minutes later in a lazy soar. Local juvenile Golden Eagles circled near West Ridge. An adult local Golden Eagle did some playful dives near Cabrini. A pair of local Red-tailed Hawks circled together and flew up and down the Ridge; one of them was seen engaging in a "roller-coaster" flight of repeated stoops.
Non-raptor Observations:
Also seen or heard were Townsend's Solitaire, Northern Flicker, Common Raven, American Crow, Western Scrub-Jay, Black-billed Magpie, White-breasted Nutchatch, Bushtit, and House Finch.
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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