[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (02 Apr 2018) 56 Raptors

Bradbury Mountain State Park
Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 02, 2018
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	0	0
Turkey Vulture	47	311	515
Osprey	1	3	3
Bald Eagle	2	2	57
Northern Harrier	1	2	5
Sharp-shinned Hawk	1	22	43
Cooper's Hawk	2	3	24
Northern Goshawk	0	0	3
Red-shouldered Hawk	1	11	57
Broad-winged Hawk	0	0	0
Red-tailed Hawk	0	33	136
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	0	3	12
Merlin	1	3	6
Peregrine Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Accipiter	0	0	1
Unknown Buteo	0	0	1
Unknown Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Eagle	0	0	0
Unknown Raptor	0	0	2
Total:	56	393	865

Observation start time:	08:00:00
Observation end time:	16:00:00
Total observation time:	8 hours
Official Counter	Zane Baker
Observers:	Rick Hartzell, Susan Rowe

Visitors:
15 people visited the hawkwatch today. Thanks to those who put up with the poor conditions, in search of birds.

Weather:
My weather predictions for today were not entirely accurate. It was a cold, overcast, and calm start to the day. It wasn't long however, before the snow started to fly. Westerly winds quickly shifted to SE which drove the snow, which had been tracking offshore, up the face of the mountain. There was no accumulation, as the snow melted on contact with the ground. Snow flurries persisted for half of the day, reducing visibility to less than a half mile at times. Late afternoon saw a few breaks of sun and much better visibility. Temperatures hovered in the mid to low 30's.

Raptor Observations:
Turkey Vultures picked up where yesterday left off, with a large group of about 35 birds moving in unison during the first hour. While the snow was flying, visibility still poor, and not expecting much action, I was startled by a Bald Eagle flyby. Like Maverick and Goose from Top Gun, the Eagle appeared, unannounced,from behind the trees to my right, and ripped past my head. Maybe the closest Iv'e been to an Eagle at this site. Soon after the Eagle, an adult male Harrier, took a similar flight line, albeit slightly slower.

Non-raptor Observations:
As conditions were improving in the afternoon, a group of six Great Blue Herons were seen flying together, having what appeared to be some navigation difficulties.

Predictions:
Tomorrow looks like another cloudy day. Temps should reach the high 30's. Winds may be coming from due south for much of the day, with a slight shift to southeast in the afternoon. With southerly winds and some precipitation predicted for Tuesday evening, there could be some birds out ahead of the front.

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Report submitted by Jeannette Lovitch (freeportwildbird@yahoo.com)
Bradbury Mountain State Park information may be found at: www.freeportwildbirdsupply.com/bradbury-mountain-hawkwatch
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]

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