Dinosaur Ridge Colorado, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 19, 2016 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 0 0 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 1 8 8 Northern Harrier 0 2 2 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 2 2 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 12 96 96 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Ferruginous Hawk 0 1 1 Golden Eagle 1 1 1 American Kestrel 0 6 6 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 1 1 Prairie Falcon 0 2 2 Mississippi Kite 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 1 1 Unknown Buteo 0 6 6 Unknown Falcon 0 4 4 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 2 2 Total: 14 132 132 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:00:00 Observation end time: 14:00:00 Total observation time: 5 hours Official Counter: Mitchell Blystone Observers: Mike Fernandez Visitors: None. Weather kept the people of the ridge and the best part was there was no motorcycle and shooting range noise! Weather: The day started out very cold but calm with nearly 100% cloudy cover. Throughout the day the clouds dissipated down to about 30% and a very light breeze came out of the southeast. Raptor Observations: We had several sightings of the local Red Tails as well as a Female Kestrel. The day started with most of the migrants being at or below the ridge but once the sun started breaking through almost all sightings were very high and really well lite from the snow reflection. Several times we had a lot of activity all at once then a slight lull and the another burst would appear. Non-raptor Observations: The best part of the early morning was a flock of around 20-40 Blue Birds (Mountain?) that hung around the pines along the east side. There were many Robin, Northern Flicker, Townsends Solitaire, Black-Capped Chickadee, sightings and at least one Scrub Jay. There was a Raven pair that entertained us all day as well. Predictions: Bring sunscreen! At times we found it easier to have our backs to the south (and sun) and find the birds high above but really well lite up against the clouds or blue sky. Hopefully an even better day than we had! ======================================================================== Report submitted by Bird Conservancy of the Rockies (jeff.bi...@birdconservancy.org) Dinosaur Ridge information may be found at: http://www.birdconservancy.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 Bird Conservancy of the Rockies from about 9 AM to around 3 PM from March 1st to May 7th. 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 unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/e3ee6d578e38b01ec8f27d54264fcdf7%40www.hawkcount.org. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
