Saturday, 22 April 2017

[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (22 Apr 2017) Raptors


Bradbury Mountain State Park
Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 22, 2017
SpeciesDay's CountMonth TotalSeason Total
Black Vulture011
Turkey Vulture0251511
Osprey0277277
Bald Eagle02762
Northern Harrier0156160
Sharp-shinned Hawk0366378
Cooper's Hawk04250
Northern Goshawk057
Red-shouldered Hawk075123
Broad-winged Hawk0677677
Red-tailed Hawk088150
Rough-legged Hawk000
Golden Eagle000
American Kestrel0371372
Merlin02728
Peregrine Falcon012
Unknown Accipiter044
Unknown Buteo034
Unknown Falcon011
Unknown Eagle011
Unknown Raptor01822
Total:023912830


Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 13:00:00
Total observation time: 5 hours
Official CounterZane Baker
Observers:



Visitors:
34 seemingly bewildered people stopped to ask why I was standing motionless in the mist. For all of the birds, of course. About 15 young Cub Scouts sat nearby as I talked to them about birds of prey. Attention spans quickly waned and focus turned to my Leica spotting scope. Despite cold wet fingers, I was able to maintain a vice like grip on the tripod. 5 people with rakes, shovels, and pitchforks walked past early in the day, looking for witches, or, maybe they were clearing the trails. No no, definitely witches.

Weather:
Today's weather refused to change for the entire count period. Dense fog severely limited visibility from the mountain. There was not much wind to speak of, except for the occasional light breeze from the north northeast. Temperatures remained slightly below normal. Drizzle and heavy mist persisted until the time at which I decided there wasn't much use in sticking around.

Raptor Observations:
I did not see or hear any birds of prey today.

Non-raptor Observations:
Four Wild Turkeys visited the summit this morning. I could just barely see the tops of their heads as they climbed up and over the granite face of the mountain. They made a quick dash through some Juniper bushes before taking flight towards the northeast.

Predictions:
There should be some clearing by tomorrow. Partly cloudy skies are predicted, with a north northwest wind switching to more south southeast by the afternoon. A sea breeze could keep temps on the cooler side, especially closer to the coast, maybe in the high 40s to mid 50s. Wind speeds could be 10-15mph. Finally a little more sun in the forecast. Let's hope it holds true. Northwest wind is certainly better than northeast. Tomorrow is looking promising at the moment. The final verdict will be made at 5pm tomorrow.


Report submitted by Jeannette Lovitch (freeportwildbird@yahoo.com)
Bradbury Mountain State Park information may be found at: www.freeportwildbirdsupply.com/hawkwatch.asp

0 comments:

Post a Comment