[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (28 Apr 2017) 146 Raptors

Bradbury Mountain State Park
Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 28, 2017
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	1	1
Turkey Vulture	0	251	511
Osprey	5	297	297
Bald Eagle	2	30	65
Northern Harrier	2	164	168
Sharp-shinned Hawk	28	421	433
Cooper's Hawk	2	50	58
Northern Goshawk	0	5	7
Red-shouldered Hawk	0	76	124
Broad-winged Hawk	81	969	969
Red-tailed Hawk	2	94	156
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	12	413	414
Merlin	8	40	41
Peregrine Falcon	1	5	6
Unknown Accipiter	1	5	5
Unknown Buteo	0	3	4
Unknown Falcon	1	2	2
Unknown Eagle	0	1	1
Unknown Raptor	1	22	26
Total:	146	2849	3288

Observation start time:	10:00:00
Observation end time:	16:00:00
Total observation time:	5.5 hours
Official Counter	Zane Baker
Observers:	Dave Gulick

Visitors:
17 people stopped to say hello today, including a few people who stuck around to help me spot. We were treated to some nice views, as birds came through low and close.

Weather:
It was slightly disappointing to show up to the mountain, only to realize, there was no mountain. Once again, dense fog cloaked the area delaying the start. By noon, visibility had increased enough to start searching for birds. It took about an hour for the fog to recede back to the coastline though. The view on a horizontal plane was diminished, but unlimited looking straight up. Partly cloudy skies provided contrast for observing eyes. Winds remained light up until the final hour, when an onshore southeasterly breeze picked up. Temperatures were warm, borderline hot in the sun.

Raptor Observations:
Birds were perched and at the ready when the fog lifted. A pretty nice, diverse group of birds today. Something about today's conditions sure seemed to grab the attention of Merlins, matching the previous highest day count for the species this season. Another Peregrine Falcon came by at about eye level today. Judging by the distorted shape of the bird, it was clear it had recently found a snack to hold it over for the evening. I guess the old adage about swimming a half hour after eating doesn't apply to flying.

Non-raptor Observations:
Today saw a couple of new arrivals to the summit. Our first Fish Crow seen and heard from the summit called as it flew overhead. Also a Black-and-white Warbler vocalized from the nearby trees. More Tree Swallows were seen than were tallied today, due in part to dropping the Swallow count for raptors passing by. Estimates are probably closer to 100-125 for Tree Swallows. Northbound birds officially tallied included:

504 Double-Crested Cormorants

55 Tree Swallows

13 Blackbird species

9 Yellow-rumped Warblers

5 Great Blue Herons

4 Barn Swallows

1 Purple Finch

Predictions:
Clouds and some possible showers early should clear out by the afternoon. Temperatures could get into the 70s. Wind speeds may increase as the day progresses, but it should be a tail wind for the birds, coming mostly from the south and southwest. I think there may actually be some birds in the air tomorrow for the Feather Over Freeport event.

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Report submitted by Jeannette Lovitch (freeportwildbird@yahoo.com)
Bradbury Mountain State Park information may be found at: www.freeportwildbirdsupply.com/hawkwatch.asp