[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (28 Mar 2018) 132 Raptors

Bradbury Mountain State Park
Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 28, 2018
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	0	0
Turkey Vulture	64	143	143
Osprey	0	0	0
Bald Eagle	6	46	46
Northern Harrier	0	0	0
Sharp-shinned Hawk	5	7	7
Cooper's Hawk	4	20	20
Northern Goshawk	0	3	3
Red-shouldered Hawk	21	35	35
Broad-winged Hawk	0	0	0
Red-tailed Hawk	30	77	77
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	1	1	1
Merlin	0	2	2
Peregrine Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Accipiter	0	1	1
Unknown Buteo	1	1	1
Unknown Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Eagle	0	0	0
Unknown Raptor	0	1	1
Total:	132	337	337

Observation start time:	08:00:00
Observation end time:	16:00:00
Total observation time:	8 hours
Official Counter	Zane Baker
Observers:	Dave Fensore, Tom Downing

Visitors:
21 people stopped by the hawkwatch today. Thanks to the people who helped me spot some birds today.

Weather:
Today was calm and cool to start, the sky dark with clouds, which slowly receded, becoming mostly sunny for the better part of the day. Winds remained very light, and we actually saw a few brief moments of SW and SE which was a first for the season. Temperatures were pleasant, in the high 40's. Visibility remained clear, with a slight haze in the afternoon.

Raptor Observations:
Raptors took to the air early on and continued to increase in number, hitting their zenith around mid afternoon. Eagles put on a good show for visitors, soaring and chasing each other directly overhead, vocalizing multiple times at a young Red-tailed Hawk who was looking for a fight. Our first American Kestrel came in close to the summit, its reddish tail feathers lit up by the afternoon sun. The bird could be seen grabbing a snack in mid flight.

Non-raptor Observations:
Non raptor species also took advantage of the propitious flying weather. Birds deemed migrating included: 1005 Blackbird spp. 381 Canada Geese 38 American Crows 29 European Starlings 4 Common Mergansers 2 Killdeer (FOY) 1 Great Blue Heron (FOY)

Predictions:
Tomorrow is shaping up to be a pretty nice day. Winds don't appear to be ideal, but should remain light and from the north, with a possible shift to east by the afternoon. Temps may climb even higher than today, reaching 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Partly cloudy skies could turn to mostly cloudy as another small weather system approaches for Friday.

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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
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]

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Also, the 2018 Hawkwatch t-shirts are now available: 

https://www.freeportwildbirdsupply.com/product-page/bradbury-spring-hawkwatch-t-shirt