[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (09 May 2024) 3 Raptors

Bradbury Mountain State Park
Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: May 09, 2024
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	0	0
Turkey Vulture	0	0	628
Osprey	1	25	418
Bald Eagle	0	11	58
Northern Harrier	1	10	148
Sharp-shinned Hawk	1	90	477
Cooper's Hawk	0	8	38
American Goshawk	0	0	1
Red-shouldered Hawk	0	0	30
Broad-winged Hawk	0	156	1367
Red-tailed Hawk	0	0	50
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	0	15	309
Merlin	0	11	56
Peregrine Falcon	0	1	3
Unknown Accipiter	0	0	9
Unknown Buteo	0	0	4
Unknown Falcon	0	0	11
Unknown Eagle	0	0	0
Unknown Raptor	0	3	17
Total:	3	330	3624

Observation start time:	08:00:00
Observation end time:	16:00:00
Total observation time:	8 hours
Official Counter	Zane Baker
Observers:	Dick Baker, Jim Pinfold, Ted Michalek

Visitors:
Only 3 visitors, as many others were turned away at the gate due to paving of the parking area.

Weather:
Today was one of those days where just a little direct sunlight would have made a huge difference in the overall feel of the day. The sky was mostly cloudy with a few breaks which rarely lined up with the sun and summit. Temps were cool and in the low 50's, and with a light breeze from the N it felt a little chilly after standing still for a while. Not an uncomfortable day by any means but not what I was looking forward to for the start of May. Visibility was very good today.

Raptor Observations:
Another day of very little activity. Most of what we were witnessing seemed to be local commuter traffic and foraging behavior.

Non-raptor Observations:
The trees surrounding the mountain seemed devoid of bird life for much of the day. Pine Warblers continue to collect nesting materials and make circuitous routes back to the nesting site, making it difficult to determine which tree is home to the build. A Nashville Warbler spent quite a lot of time out in the open, looking for morsels on or near the ground around us. A male and female Black-and-white Warbler hitched their way along oak trunks for a few minutes before disappearing into the deeper woods. Later in the afternoon a group of 6 shorebirds cruised over Little Bradbury ridgeline, likely Lesser Yellowlegs but I wasn't super confidant in my ID. Circumstantial evidence seems to add up though.

Predictions:
Tomorrow looks like a repeat of today but with a little more sun. We seem to be stuck in a little bit of unseasonably cool and wet weather at the moment and I really hope something changes before the middle of next week. We are still looking for our first identifiable immature Broad-winged Hawk. It feels like there are still more birds to come but maybe I'm wrong.

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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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