From: reports@hawkcount.org
Date: April 14, 2014 at 8:04:54 PM EDT
To: freeportwildbird@yahoo.com
Subject: HSR: Bradbury Mountain State Park (14 Apr 2014) 1257 Raptors
Reply-To: freeportwildbird@yahoo.com
Bradbury Mountain State Park
Pownal, Maine, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 14, 2014
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 12 155 380
Osprey 229 467 468
Bald Eagle 2 14 62
Northern Harrier 36 110 118
Sharp-shinned Hawk 254 513 538
Cooper's Hawk 6 33 62
Northern Goshawk 0 4 8
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 65 186
Broad-winged Hawk 508 544 544
Red-tailed Hawk 11 169 394
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 1
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 185 304 307
Merlin 6 23 27
Peregrine Falcon 1 2 2
Unknown Accipiter 0 2 3
Unknown Buteo 0 6 11
Unknown Falcon 1 1 1
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 5 28 34
Snowy Owl 0 1 1
Total: 1257 2441 3147
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Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 17:00:00
Total observation time: 9 hours
Official Counter: Katrina Fenton
Observers: Don Thompson, Julie Krasne, Lionel Quirion, Peter Vickery,
Tom Downing, Zane Baker
Visitors:
A big thanks to all the volunteers and 15 visitors who were a part of
today's count! Everyone who bore witness to today's flight will have
memories of it for years to come, from the morning's "grey ghosts" slipping
overhead, to clouds of raptors usually reserved for fall counts in New
England, to the none-stop falcons zipping by or snagging insects on the
wing.
Weather:
Dense fog smothered the mountain at the start of the count, but by the time
the first hour ended, visibility had improved enough to see most of the
landmarks. Haze continued to linger at the coast all day, but overhead, the
sky was strung with clouds spread thin enough to see the blue behind them.
The wind was out of the SSW, soft and subtle to start before blowing in at
15+mph with more than a few hat-snatching gusts in the afternoon.
Temperatures quickly jumped from the upper 30s to 60 once the sun was able
to penetrate.
Raptor Observations:
Where to begin...? An American Kestrel led off today's record surge of
migrants, materializing out of the fog for a few seconds before being
swallowed back up in the gray. Once visibility improved, where was hardly a
moment without a bird in view. Kettles were streaming in through the gap
and skirting us to the east. At the height, 38 Broad-winged Hawks, 4
Ospreys, and a handful of Sharp-shinned Hawks and American Kestrels broke
out of their kettle and raced over the hawkwatch, a concentrated sampling
of the 650+ birds counted in just 2 hours. New day high records were set
for Ospreys and Broad-winged Hawks, and Northern Harriers and American
Kestrels had their second highest single day totals. The full array of
Maine's raptors was on display; sharp-shinneds comparing wing shape with
kestrels, lanky young Red-tailed Hawks sticking out from their compact
broad-winged traveling companions. All you had to do was look up to get a
lesson in the diversity of raptor shapes and sizes.
Non-raptor Observations:
The hawkwatch had its first-of-year Winter Wren and Hermit Thrush this
morning, part of the 43 species observed over the course of the day.
Non-raptor Migrants:
Double-crested Cormorant- 25 Common Loon- 4
Canada Goose- 50 American Black Duck- 1
Common Merganser- 2 waterbird sp.- 1
Great Blue Heron- 1 Tree Swallow- 72
American Robin- 43 Pine Warbler- 1
Red-winged Blackbird- 88 RUSTY BLACKBIRD- 1
Common Grackle- 14 blackbird sp.- 6
American Goldfinch- 4 finch sp.- 2 passerine sp.- 10
Predictions:
There's a cold front moving in tonight into tomorrow, bringing morning fog,
overcast skies, and a chance of rain. A strong south wind will be blowing
at 20-30mph, and temperatures will be in the 50s. If there's enough
visibility and the rain holds off, thee may be some countable hours, but
most migrants will probably wait for less wind and dryer weather to
continue north.
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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
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