Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field OrnithologistsGolden, Colorado, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 29, 2025 |
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 3 | 333 | 374 |
| Osprey | 4 | 74 | 78 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 17 | 44 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 49 | 57 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 9 | 307 | 335 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 8 | 243 | 292 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 18 | 258 | 258 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 4 | 234 | 499 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 1 | 38 | 38 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 14 | 29 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 5 | 24 |
| American Kestrel | 6 | 830 | 932 |
| Merlin | 0 | 11 | 16 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 1 | 12 | 15 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 6 | 7 |
| Total: | 54 | 2438 | 3011 |
| Observation start time: | 07:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 14:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 7 hours |
| Official Counter | Audrey Anderson, Emma Riley, Audrey Anderson |
| Observers: | Ajit Antony, Beth Davis, Cayce Gulbransen , Chris Gulbransen |
Visitors:Thank you to Cayce and Chris Gulbransen for all of your help, support, and company this season! Cayce and Chris are first-year volunteers that completely caught the bug and have been at the count multiple times in a week recently. Today was their last day with us this year. We can't believe the season is already coming to an end. We'd also like to thank Ajit Antony and Beth Davis for their help in spotting migrants today. 16 people stopped at the ridge today to ask about the count and enjoy the view. Can't make it out to the ridge and still want to follow along? Check out our Trektellen page and follow along with live updates at https://www.trektellen.org/count/view/4515/20250301 .
Weather:Temperatures fluctuated today with a cold start and end to the day separated by some strong sun. Winds came from the SE for most of the day, blowing at light speeds until some gusts picked up in the afternoon. Massive towering cumulus clouds were present early in the day, followed by walls of rain seen S and N of us. Just before 1400 MST a storm cloud bringing lightning was spotted directly W of us. A sizable storm was seen moving in on the weather radar so we ended the count.
Raptor Observations:Today was the day!! It has been an unbelievable season here at Dinosaur Ridge with species records, day records, and season records being broken left and right. While this is not exactly a specific record, it's a huge milestone in the history of this site. An overhead American Kestrel in the late morning was our 3000th bird of the season! The last year 3000+ migrants were counted here was 2002. This is an excellent representation of how crucial full-time coverage at a hawk watch site is! We had another nice push of Broad-winged Hawks today! These birds continue to outdo themselves. Most came along the west ridges. Other highlights include a very close Osprey and an overhead Peregrine Falcon. Swainson's Hawks continue to come through in low numbers, but are now seen all over the Front Range en masse (it seems). Non-migratory Cooper's Hawks were spotted a few times today, sometimes hunting and sometimes performing their aerial courtship display. Hunting birds were seen along the ridge, and displaying birds were further away. Unsure of the true number of locals. Turkey Vultures continue to do what Turkey Vultures do here. Red-tailed Hawk (3), Golden Eagle (1), and American Kestrel (2) were also seen in the area.
Non-raptor Observations:White-throated Swift 6, Mourning Dove 6, Double-crested Cormorant 3, Say's Phoebe 1, Woodhouse's Scrub Jay 4, Black-billed Magpie 2, American Crow 4, Black-capped Chickadee 2, Tree Swallow 1, Violet-green Swallow 8, Rock Wren 1, Blue-grey Gnatcatcher 3, EVENING GROSBEAK 5, Lesser Goldfinch 2, Chipping Sparrow 1, Dark-eyed Junco 1, Spotted Towhee 4, Western Meadowlark 2, Brewer's Blackbird 1, Common Grackle 8, Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's) 5
Predictions:More precipitation/storm activity is possible tomorrow afternoon. The trail may or may not be muddy in the morning. We are hoping for another nice push in the morning before potential storms roll in.
Report submitted by Official Counter of the day shown above (
dinoridgehw@gmail.com)
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at:
www.dinosaurridgehawkwatch.orgMore information at
hawkcount.org: [
Site Profile] [
Day Summary] [
Month Summary]
Site DescriptionDinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawk watch in Colorado and is the
best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Hawk watchers may
see 17 species of migrating raptors; and it is an excellent site to see rare
dark morph buteos including Broad-winged hawk, Swainson’s hawk, Ferruginous
hawk, Rough-legged hawk and Red-tailed Hawk. Other raptors we see include Golden
and Bald Eagles, Northern harrier, Osprey, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons,
Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels, Merlin, and Turkey
Vultures. American Goshawk is uncommon but also counted each season. Non-raptor
species include Rock Wren, Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane,
White-throated Swift, American White Pelican, and Dusky Grouse. Birders of any
skill level are always welcome. The hawk watch at Dinosaur Ridge is staffed by
Hawk Counter(s) and volunteers from March through early 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 hawk watch signs from the
southwest end of the parking lot to the hawk watch 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, and walk to
the flat area at the crest of the ridge. (Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain:
259 feet)
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