Derby Hill Bird Observatory
Mexico, New York, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 05, 2025
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 0 1 3
Turkey Vulture 240 5348 20525
Osprey 3 17 50
Bald Eagle 4 26 197
Northern Harrier 7 50 243
Sharp-shinned Hawk 79 279 712
Cooper's Hawk 4 29 259
American Goshawk 1 1 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 26 744
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0
Red-tailed Hawk 49 235 1350
Rough-legged Hawk 2 3 52
Golden Eagle 3 4 54
American Kestrel 7 35 145
Merlin 5 8 24
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 5
Unknown Accipitrine 0 0 0
Unknown Buteo 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 0 0
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 0 0 0
Total: 405 6062 24365
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Observation start time: 07:00:00
Observation end time: 16:30:00
Total observation time: 9.5 hours
Official Counter: David Brown
Observers: Chris Tessaglia-Hymes, John Askildsen, Kim Steininger,
Sam Beguin
Visitors:
8
Weather:
Moderate to strong southeast winds all day. Light drizzle for the first
several hours then overcast for two hours. Clearing to partly sunny for one
hour starting around 12pm EST then overcast again. Some drizzle again shut
the flight down with only a few raptors getting up after the rain.
Raptor Observations:
Only about one raptor per hour migrating for the first several hours. A
good flight was launched when the sun came out in the afternoon and
continued for about 2.5 hours. The flight was low all day with most raptors
giving excellent looks.
A few hundred Turkey Vultures came through low and slow. Small numbers of
Ospreys and Bald Eagles. Seven Northern Harriers including some nice looks
at adult males. A steady flight of sharpies with 79 total, but only four
Cooper's Hawks. Nearly fifty red-tails, but only one red-shouldered (a
juvenile that came directly overhead very low). Seven kestrels and five
Merlins.
Several visitors had good timing and arrived as the flight was picking up.
The first good raptor was a subadult Golden Eagle that gave a nice look off
to our left. About ten minutes later a second subadult Golden Eagle took
the same flight line. Two visitors had just pulled in and got to start
their list off well. Half an hour later I spotted a large hawk with a long
tail out in front. I called out "There's a large Accipiter over four. It's
probably just a Cooper's but it is worth checking." As it came in it dipped
down showing a very mottled topside and suddenly I'm calling out "That's a
gos!" This juvenile AMERICAN GOSHAWK continued in and came on our side of
the closest treeline, practically skimming the ground and passing just
above the number 9 sign. It banked both ways giving us excellent views of
both the topside and underside. After passing it threaded through the trees
and kept going. Not only an epic bird, but a very satisfying pass that
allowed for great looks and photos. This was our second goshawk of the
season. Later, another subadult Golden Eagle was followed by an adult male
light-morph Rough-legged Hawk that we watched as it came in and made a nice
pass on the lake side. A second Rough-legged Hawk came through at the end
of the count. It was an extremely memorable few hours of hawk watching!
Derby Hill 2025 Daily Summary Videos:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB8baxseGlb44fA7Uio0ifcrbLjT2-GE7
Non-raptor Observations:
Sage Creek Marsh: Winter Wren
https://ebird.org/checklist/S223268550
North Lookout: 9 Killdeer, 21 Common Loons, Great Egret, 12 Great Blue
Herons, 2 Common Ravens, Purple Martin, 4 Barn Swallows, Purple Finch, Pine
Siskin, Fox Sparrow, 2 Eastern Meadowlarks, 10 Rusty Blackbird.
https://ebird.org/checklist/S223260869
New species for season: Winter Wren
Predictions:
TOMORROW: Cloudy early, then partial clearing. High 41F. Winds W at
10-20mph. Probably South Lookout. Expect light to moderate migration.
MONDAY: Partly cloudy. High near 45F. Winds W at 5-10mph. Probably South
Lookout. Expect light to moderate migration.
TUESDAY: Windy with morning show showers. Temps in the low to mid 30s.
Winds WNW at 20-30mph. Expect light migration.
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Report submitted by David Brown ([email protected] )
Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at:
http://onondagaaudubon.com/derby-hill-bird-observatory/
More site information at hawkcount.org:
https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=358
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