Bradbury Mountain State ParkPownal, Maine, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: May 03, 2024 |
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 628 |
| Osprey | 11 | 11 | 404 |
| Bald Eagle | 10 | 10 | 57 |
| Northern Harrier | 5 | 5 | 143 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 54 | 54 | 441 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 3 | 3 | 33 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 30 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 138 | 138 | 1349 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 0 | 50 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Kestrel | 8 | 8 | 302 |
| Merlin | 1 | 1 | 46 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 3 | 3 | 17 |
| Total: | 234 | 234 | 3528 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 16:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 8 hours |
| Official Counter | Zane Baker |
| Observers: | Amanda Petry, Ben Fortin, Biz Houghton, Dave Fensore, Don Thompson, Jim Pinfold |
Visitors:7 visitors.
Weather:A mix of clouds and sun with temps in the upper 50's. The morning was cool then warm as the clouds move passed the sun but by the afternoon it was comfortably warm. Winds were mostly N and E with a stretch of complete calm in the early afternoon. Visibility was good. Wind charts were showing varied wind directions in the southern and midcoast region which may have influenced the good flight.
Raptor Observations:With a few days of birds being held up on their northward movement the flood gates seemed to be cracked open again. Even with less than propitious winds around our location birds didn't seem phased by it and found plenty of lift and picked up some good speed. The first two hours were not looking good but by the third hour a sudden kettle of 16 Broad-wings kicked of a decent flight. Most birds were very far and only visible with a scope but by later in the day there was more activity closer to the mountain but now very high overhead and still barely visible. I may be a little more conservative than other counters when it comes to counting Eagles at this site. Since there are so many residents in the area and we see them constantly interacting with each other I tend to be a little more skeptical as to whether some of them are truly migrants or just roaming for the day. Today however, all but a couple of Bald Eagles spotted were counted. Eagles were consistently being spotted to the S and very high above, moving in laser-straight lines to the N and NE without so much as a twitch of a wingbeat. Almost no Eagles were sighted moving in a southerly direction. Sort of a highlight today was another Peregrine for the season, despite appearing as a small grey silhouette, high to the SE.
Non-raptor Observations:Big highlight today was a single song from one of the birds which made me more interested in birding, that being a Black-throated Blue Warbler. 31 species were seen or heard today.
Predictions:Tomorrow looks like a repeat of today's forecast with NE winds switching to SE in the afternoon. Temps should be in the 50's again and maybe with a fewer clouds.
Report submitted by Jeannette Lovitch (
freeportwildbird@yahoo.com)
Bradbury Mountain State Park information may be found at:
www.freeportwildbirdsupply.com/bradbury-mountain-hawkwatchMore information at
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