Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists
Colorado, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 02, 2023
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
Osprey 0 0 0
Bald Eagle 0 0 0
Northern Harrier 0 0 0
Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0
Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0
Red-tailed Hawk 9 14 14
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0
Ferruginous Hawk 0 1 2
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 0 0 0
Merlin 1 1 1
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0
Prairie Falcon 1 1 1
Mississippi Kite 0 0 0
Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0
Unknown Buteo 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 0 0
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 0 0 0
Total: 11 17 18
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Observation start time: 09:30:00
Observation end time: 16:30:00
Total observation time: 5.5 hours
Official Counter: Emma Riley
Observers: Dave Erickson, Gary Rossmiller, Janet Peters,
Marianne Erickson, Sammy Korengut
Visitors:
We had 12 visitors total today, and I had the help ofJanet Peters, Gary
Rossmiller, Sammy Korengut, and Marianne & Dave Erickson for todays count.
Weather:
Today was a pleasant spring day with a high of 10 degrees Celsius and sunny
conditions all day, a great change from yesterday. Wind was mild for most
of the day, with a slight chill in the morning. Winds were predicted to be
variable but instead were consistently coming from the NE. A haze was
present and limiting visibility slightly for most of the day, lifting
towards the end of the count.
Raptor Observations:
We had another great early season day with 11 raptors counted including RT
(9), ML (1), and PR (1). We also had local GE, BE, and what we believe to
be the nesting RT pair that was here last year. The flight was high today,
with a westerly flight line in the morning. The flight line eventually
shifted to overhead, but birds were still migrating at high altitudes.
Non-raptor Observations:
Non-raptor species seen today include WOSJ (2), HAWO (1), NOFL (1), AMCR
(4), CORA (4), BCCH (2), TOSO (5), AMRO (3), and our first MOBL (5) of the
season. We also spotted four elk just along the horizon right of the Mother
Cabrini figure.
Predictions:
Another sunny day that will likely start out a bit brisk. Winds may have a
westerly component tomorrow, which often brings a slow flight to Dinosaur
Ridge. Cloud cover is variable but predicted to be sparse for most of the
day. We are yet again hoping for a nice early season day.
========================================================================
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
Count data submitted via Dunkadoo - Project info at:
https://dunkadoo.org/explore/denver-field-ornithologists/dinosaur-ridge-spring-2023
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 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)
--
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
Groups "Colorado Birds" group.
To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com
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 cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit
https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/01010186a50af5a4-fe6820ad-a57c-42a0-afd4-989b1652ed9b-000000%40us-west-2.amazonses.com.
