Tuesday, 1 March 2016

[cobirds] Dinosaur Ridge (01 Mar 2016) 8 Raptors

Dinosaur Ridge
Colorado, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 01, 2016
SpeciesDay's CountMonth TotalSeason Total
Black Vulture000
Turkey Vulture000
Osprey000
Bald Eagle000
Northern Harrier000
Sharp-shinned Hawk000
Cooper's Hawk000
Northern Goshawk000
Red-shouldered Hawk000
Broad-winged Hawk000
Red-tailed Hawk777
Rough-legged Hawk000
Swainson's Hawk000
Ferruginous Hawk000
Golden Eagle000
American Kestrel000
Merlin000
Peregrine Falcon000
Prairie Falcon000
Mississippi Kite000
Unknown Accipiter000
Unknown Buteo000
Unknown Falcon000
Unknown Eagle000
Unknown Raptor111
Total:888


Observation start time: 09:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 6 hours
Official CounterRoger Rouch
Observers: Bill Wuerthele



Visitors:
Jim Low from Wisconsin helped with spotting for a couple of hours. He has done observation at Hawk Ridge and entertained us with raptor stories.

Weather:
Partly to mostly cloudy all day with a moderate wind of about 3 Bft. all day. Temperatures rose from the low 40's to the low 50's but it felt cool all day with the wind and cloud cover. (Weather data is from Weather Underground/North Table Mtn.)

Raptor Observations:
A couple of migrating raptors were naked eye observations early and then a couple of higher small spurts during brief periods of sun during the day. Only a handful of local Red-tailed Hawks, mostly over green mountain and in the valley between the ridge and C470.

Non-raptor Observations:
Also seen were Dark-eyed Junco, Townsend Solitare, Common Raven, American Crow, American Robin, Black-billed Magpie, and two Mountain Bluebirds.

Predictions:
Predicted high winds may challenge migration activity?


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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