[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (06 May 2018) 14 Raptors

Bradbury Mountain State Park

Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: May 06, 2018
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	0	0
Turkey Vulture	0	0	564
Osprey	1	38	313
Bald Eagle	0	1	76
Northern Harrier	0	4	82
Sharp-shinned Hawk	10	117	459
Cooper's Hawk	0	6	75
Northern Goshawk	0	2	8
Red-shouldered Hawk	0	2	78
Broad-winged Hawk	1	352	1580
Red-tailed Hawk	0	5	189
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	0	67	309
Merlin	2	11	47
Peregrine Falcon	0	1	3
Unknown Accipiter	0	1	8
Unknown Buteo	0	2	8
Unknown Falcon	0	0	1
Unknown Eagle	0	0	0
Unknown Raptor	0	9	24
Total:	14	618	3824

Observation start time:	07:00:00
Observation end time:	16:00:00
Total observation time:	8.33 hours
Official Counter	Zane Baker
Observers:	Dave Fensore, Derek Lovitch

Visitors:
Possibly due to the weather, this was a rather quite Sunday for early May. Only 39 people visited the hawkwatch today, and not many more passers by.

Weather:
It was a very calm day on the mountain, with a very light, occasional breeze, from the SW. Temperatures climbed into the mid 60's, and with the addition of some humid air, it was quite comfortable. The skies remained cloudy for the entire day, and by noon time a few rain drops began to fall. The heavier rain remained to the south, but for the rest of the count period there was a steady drizzle. Visibility was good, with the exception of the last 90 minutes or so, when more rain pushed a little closer, and reduced the view by a couple of miles.

Raptor Observations:
The majority of birds came through during the first half of the day, ahead of the rain. I was hoping the SW wind would encourage a few more birds to take flight. Even local birds weren't as active today. The local Coop was spotted, displaying for a few brief moments. One Merlin popped up out of the trees right in front of the mountain, which was the highlight of the day.

Non-raptor Observations:
Very few other species were on the move this morning. Only thirty species were seen or heard, and unfortunately I couldn't find any new species for the season, from the summit that is.

Predictions:
Tomorrow should be a little bit brighter, but temps may be a little lower, in the high 50's to low 60's. Winds are predicted to be From the NNE at about 12mph in the morning and slowly tapering down as the day progresses. With only two Mondays left in the season, I hope Derek and Jeannette get to see some birds moving by, or one cool rarity.

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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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