[cobirds] HSR: Dinosaur Ridge (06 Apr 2013) 21 Raptors

Dinosaur Ridge
Colorado, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 06, 2013
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	0	0
Turkey Vulture	6	14	23
Osprey	0	2	3
Bald Eagle	0	1	28
Northern Harrier	0	1	2
Sharp-shinned Hawk	0	5	13
Cooper's Hawk	4	19	30
Northern Goshawk	0	0	0
Red-shouldered Hawk	0	0	0
Broad-winged Hawk	0	0	0
Red-tailed Hawk	3	34	168
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	6
Swainson's Hawk	0	0	0
Ferruginous Hawk	0	1	9
Golden Eagle	0	2	5
American Kestrel	3	18	40
Merlin	0	0	0
Peregrine Falcon	1	3	4
Prairie Falcon	0	1	15
Mississippi Kite	0	0	0
Unknown Accipiter	0	3	7
Unknown Buteo	1	17	26
Unknown Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Eagle	0	1	1
Unknown Raptor	3	5	8
Total:	21	127	388

Observation start time:	07:30:00
Observation end time:	14:30:00
Total observation time:	7 hours
Official Counter	Lee Farrell
Observers:	Bill Wuerthele, Karen Balog, Linda Farrell, Roger Rouch

Visitors:
The openspace trail was busy today with a number of folks coming up to the station. Several of them inquired as to what we were up to, others had heard about the hawkwatch and come to see what it was about.

Weather:
A generally nice day with temperatures ranging between 9 and 13 Celsius. Mostly cloudy skies with a fair amount of sunshine received at the station. A light breeze from the southeast for most of the day kept things cool on the east side of the station.

Raptor Observations:
Quite a number of observers on the ridge during the middle part of the day. Observers included Lee & Linda Farrell, Bill Wuerthele, Roger Rouch, Karen Balog, Steve Santangelo, Gail Ferris, Jamie Fader, David Gulbenkin, Pat Connor, Susie & Steve Price, Tom & Teresa Mapp. An overcast sky (poor lighting) combined with a high flight pattern made raptor identification difficult throughout much of the day. Local Raptors Observed included: Golden Eagle pair, Peregrine Falcon, Red-tailed Hawks. The highlight of the day involved a local male Kestrel flying up to relentlessly harass a migrating Cooper's Hawk.

Non-raptor Observations:
Non-raptor species seen and/or heard included: American Robin, White-breasted Nuthatch, Townsend's Solitaire, Spotted Towhee, Black-capped Chickadee, Mountain Chickadee, Black-billed Magpie, Great Blue Heron, Bushtit, Common Raven, a murder of American Crows, Western Scrub-Jay.

Predictions:
With sunny skies and light winds predicted, likely to be a day of high flying raptors.

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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.