Dinosaur Ridge Colorado, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 05, 2011 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 14 22 29 Osprey 0 3 4 Bald Eagle 0 2 35 Northern Harrier 0 0 3 Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 3 15 Cooper's Hawk 1 3 16 Northern Goshawk 0 0 1 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 2 59 219 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 2 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Ferruginous Hawk 0 0 10 Golden Eagle 0 1 13 American Kestrel 2 23 55 Merlin 0 0 1 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Prairie Falcon 0 2 11 Mississippi Kite 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 3 3 Unknown Buteo 0 5 19 Unknown Falcon 0 8 10 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 3 Total: 20 134 449 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:30:00 Total observation time: 7.5 hours Official Counter: Bill Wuerthele Observers: Gary Rossmiller Visitors: David Gulbenkian, a Dinosaur Ridge veteran, visited briefly. Weather: Warm, clear day with a high of 71 degrees F (21.7 C). In the morning, the wind was very light and variable, coming mostly from the east, southeast. But, at about 11:30, the wind shifted, coming strong from the west. It remained very windy for the remainder of the day (est. steady levels 5- 6, with gusts to level 7, or winds between 30 - 50 km/hr). Raptor Observations: Fairly quiet day on the ridge without much raptor movement, except for Turkey Vultures. Total of 20 migrating raptors of which 14 were Turkey Vultures. Watched several local Red-tailed Hawks, one pair in courtship display. Raptor "event" of the day, a group of 6 Turkey Vultures passed low, directly over the observation site. Non-raptor Observations: White-throated Swifts were seen throughout the day, some likely migrants as well as some likely locals (from the Red Rocks area). Also counted: 10 Common Ravens; 2 Bushtits; 1 Northern Flicker; 1 Black-billed Magpie; 1 Western Scrub-Jay; 1 Dark-eyed Junco. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory ([email protected]) 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. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en.
