Colorado, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 30, 2018 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 86 | 88 |
| Osprey | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 18 | 22 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 32 | 40 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 4 | 16 | 16 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 67 | 235 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 1 | 6 | 6 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 3 | 11 |
| American Kestrel | 1 | 19 | 33 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 13 | 17 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 18 | 23 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 7 | 8 |
| Total: | 7 | 310 | 534 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 14:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 6 hours |
| Official Counter | Joyce Commercon |
| Observers: | Richard Cuellar |
Visitors:
Only a few hikers came up to the platform today, only for the view. One young man, who had hiked north along nearly the entire Ridge, inquired where the dinosaur footprints were, as well as the quickest and easiest way to get back there.
Weather:
The day was partly cloudy, with cloud-cover increasing from an initial 30-percent (mostly at the horizons and to the east) to about 60-percent coverage (shifting, scattered cumulus interspersed with thin, higher clouds). Relatively mild winds of bft 2-3 came initially from the east but shifted about halfway through the watch to come a bit more forcefully (bft 3-4) from the northeast and north-northeast. The temperature rose from 15 C to 19 C before the slightly chilly northeastern winds dropped it back down to 17 C for the second half of the watch. Visibility from the platform was acceptable but not as good as usual. A noticeable, thick wall of whitish haze obscured the southeastern valley past about 10 km.
Raptor Observations:
All but one of the migrants passed by in the first three hours—before the wind changed to come from a more-northerly direction. Most came directly alongside and close to the Ridge, which allowed for very nice views of the Broad-winged Hawks, all of which were adults. A local Cooper's Hawk, with a full crop, was observed in the morning to circle up very high, drifting to the northwest over the west-side valley, but then it headed back southwest. After the weekend sighting of a Zone-tailed Hawk at Chatfield State Park (reported, with an accompanying photo, on CO Birds), every passing Turkey Vulture was regarded today with extra scrutiny, but all were determined to be the regular locals.
Non-raptor Observations:
Several swallows were seen flitting up and down the Ridge, often in small groups. Most of these were Tree Swallows but a couple of Violet-green Swallows were also spotted today. Quite a few unidentified songbirds, many of them likely warblers, moved north along the Ridge; one specific group looked and sounded a lot like Kinglets as they flew by. Also seen or heard were American Robin, Spotted Towhee, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay, Western Meadowlark, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Common Grackle, Black-capped Chickadee, Black-billed Magpie, White-throated Swifts, Common Raven, Northern Flicker, Mountain Chickadee, and Rock Wren. Seven Mule Deer were seen near Bare Slope in the morning.
Report submitted by Matthew Smith (matt.smith@birdconservancy.org)
Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies information may be found at: http://www.birdconservancy.org/
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
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 Bird Conservancy of the
Rockies from about 9 AM to around 3 PM from March 1st to May 7th.
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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