[Maine-birds] Fwd: Bradbury Mountain State Park (18 Mar 2018) 6 Raptors

Bradbury Mountain State Park

Pownal, Maine, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 18, 2018
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	0	0
Turkey Vulture	3	24	24
Osprey	0	0	0
Bald Eagle	2	25	25
Northern Harrier	0	0	0
Sharp-shinned Hawk	0	0	0
Cooper's Hawk	0	8	8
Northern Goshawk	0	2	2
Red-shouldered Hawk	0	2	2
Broad-winged Hawk	0	0	0
Red-tailed Hawk	1	16	16
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	0	0	0
Merlin	0	1	1
Peregrine Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Accipiter	0	1	1
Unknown Buteo	0	0	0
Unknown Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Eagle	0	0	0
Unknown Raptor	0	0	0
Total:	6	79	79

Observation start time:	08:00:00
Observation end time:	16:00:00
Total observation time:	8 hours
Official Counter	Zane Baker
Observers:	Jeannette Lovitch, Tom Downing

Visitors:
43 People came by today to ask what I was looking for. A few people came prepared with their own optics. Afternoon hours brought more foot traffic than the morning. A few snowmobiles continue to make it to the summit, but from talking with some riders, it sounds like the trail quality is diminishing rapidly, maybe bringing an end to the sledding season.

Weather:
It was a cold Sunday at Bradbury today. Temps reached the low twenties, but a slight breeze which shifted from northwest to north and back again, made the air feel much cooler. The sun was shining bright for the whole day, with hardly a cloud in the sky. Visibility was decent but not great due to heat shimmer.

Raptor Observations:
There was not a lot of migrating taking place today. A steady, yet light headwind probably was playing a roll in some of the lower numbers seen today. A couple of Turkey Vultures chose to tough it out and continue northbound. Two more sub-adult Eagles followed suit. Two mature Red-tails continue to be seen hunting to the west.

Non-raptor Observations:
No new species were detected today. 30 American Crows moved to the north early in the day. 2 Barred owls were heard caterwauling briefly, somewhere near the switchback trail.

Predictions:
It appears there will be more sun tomorrow with slightly higher temperatures than today. Wind still looks like it could be an issue with speeds anywhere from 10-20 mph from the northwest. With snow still covering much of the ground, Turkey Vulture numbers could be on the low side, but with most rivers open, Eagles could still be on the move.

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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
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]

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