Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists Colorado, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 11, 2022 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 0 0 Osprey 0 0 1 Bald Eagle 1 1 1 Northern Harrier 0 0 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 1 Cooper's Hawk 2 3 11 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 1 Red-tailed Hawk 1 1 15 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 7 Ferruginous Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 1 1 6 American Kestrel 0 0 8 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 1 Prairie Falcon 0 0 2 Mississippi Kite 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 1 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 1 1 Total: 5 8 57 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 07:30:00 Observation end time: 11:00:00 Total observation time: 3.5 hours Official Counter: Ajit Antony Observers: Sammy Korengut Weather: Weather.gov forecasted WNW winds at 13 mph with gusts up to 31 mph. This is the sort of wind in the East that would allow us to see a good numbers of migrant hawks especially Eagles, but I was sure that with the local conditions our sightings would be different. earth.nullschool.net had moderately strong winds from the West, with a strong band of winds in the same direction north of Denver which I suspect would push any Southward flying raptors far away to the East and away from Dinosaur Ridge. https://tinyurl.com/bp9az5hr the green circle roughly marks the location of Dinosaur Ridge. At the watch the winds were Level 4 with gusts to Level 6-7 from the West, temperature 16-80°C, humidity only 17%, steady barometer, minimal cloud cover 5–15%, clear visibility to 25 km. Interestingly while it was extremely windy on the west side of the watch, taking only 10 steps to the east side of the watch and it was barely breezy. Raptor Observations: The 1st 2 raptors found by Shmuel "Sammy" Korengut at 7:45 AM MST before I got to the watch were an adult GE which flew south then West, then south again; and an immature BE which flew south. Non-migrant raptors: RT 3 including 1 Western–type with a darker back and a dark throat. Non-raptor Observations: Mountain Chickadee 3, Barn Swallow 3, Townsend's Solitaire 3, Western Scrub-Jay 5, Northern Flicker 1, Black-billed Magpie 1, Common Raven 5. Predictions: Similar conditions as today. ======================================================================== Report submitted by DAVID HILL () Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at: http://www.dfobirds.org More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=123 Site Description: Dinosaur 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. Northern 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 a Hawk Counter and volunteers from 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM from March 1st to May 14th, weather permitting. 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 southwest end of lot to the 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. (Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain: 259 feet) -- -- 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] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/01010183c8e9e9b0-2b57c559-4498-4a32-9569-3eaea3e9079f-000000%40us-west-2.amazonses.com.
