[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (23 Mar 2021) 43 Raptors

Bradbury Mountain State Park
Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 23, 2021
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	2	2
Turkey Vulture	16	61	61
Osprey	0	0	0
Bald Eagle	1	31	31
Northern Harrier	2	5	5
Sharp-shinned Hawk	1	9	9
Cooper's Hawk	2	18	18
Northern Goshawk	0	0	0
Red-shouldered Hawk	13	40	40
Broad-winged Hawk	0	0	0
Red-tailed Hawk	7	65	65
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	0	0	0
Merlin	1	5	5
Peregrine Falcon	0	1	1
Unknown Accipiter	0	2	2
Unknown Buteo	0	2	2
Unknown Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Eagle	0	0	0
Unknown Raptor	0	4	4
Total:	43	245	245

Observation start time:	08:00:00
Observation end time:	16:00:00
Total observation time:	8 hours
Official Counter	Derek Lovitch, Jeannette Lovitch
Observers:	Jim Pinfold

Visitors:
19 people visited the hawkwatch today.

Weather:
A few more clouds were had today than in past days, making viewing a little easier. But, nonetheless, another beautiful day at the Brad. Light wind out of the SW, shifting to more moderate south as the day went on, with temperatures topping out at 59F. Low clouds and fog during the first hour were below the summit, and cleared out fairly soon thereafter. The still-chilly afternoon seabreeze kicked up once again.

Raptor Observations:
With so many days in a row of beautiful, benign weather, it was no surprise to have a rather slow day despite the optimal conditions. A 18-bird hour just after the seabreeze picked up does make one wonder how many birds were missed high overhead or far out over the coastal plain once again. A pair of Cooper's Hawks were actively displaying over the fog in the early morning, and although the last two hours saw very few migrants, it did feature a good show of local Turkey Vultures, Bald Eagles, and Red-shouldered, Red-tailed, and Cooper's Hawks. A dogfight between a migrant Sharp-shinned and a displaying local Cooper's Hawk was quite a show.

Non-raptor Observations:
A very-good-for-March total of 35 species were seen and/or heard from the summit today. Very rare at the summit, a Fox Sparrow and a Song Sparrow joined the hawkwatch juncos. Also a great finch day with 5 species: American Goldfinch, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Red Crossbill, and Common Redpoll. Non-raptors deemed migrating: 429 Common Grackles 79 American Crows 53 blackbird spp. 47 Canada Geese 33 American Robins 20 Red-winged Blackbirds 2 Killdeer 2 Eastern Bluebirds 2 COMMON REDPOLLS 1 European Starling 1 PINE SISKIN (FOY) 1 RED CROSSBILL

Predictions:
After 4 days in a row of gorgeous spring weather, the massive dome of high pressure finally begins to slide northeastward. Although above average temperatures will continue, we're going to start getting a little more unsettled. The offshore fog bank is expected to move inland overnight, with dense fog by dawn. It's forecast to be a little thicker, and a little more persistent inland, perhaps causing a delayed opening. While some clouds are welcome, increasing clouds during the day may make for overcast conditions for much of the count. However, with another day of light southwest becoming south, perhaps a few more birds will be moving ahead of some weather, or at least be easier to spot with some background. Andrew is insisting on an "exact prediction" so I will set the over/under at 44. Vegas is taking bets.

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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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