Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists Colorado, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 30, 2023 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 15 15 Osprey 0 2 2 Bald Eagle 0 31 31 Northern Harrier 0 11 11 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 8 8 Cooper's Hawk 0 18 18 Northern Goshawk 0 7 7 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 0 290 290 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Ferruginous Hawk 0 39 40 Golden Eagle 0 26 26 American Kestrel 0 60 60 Merlin 0 10 10 Peregrine Falcon 0 5 5 Prairie Falcon 0 5 5 Mississippi Kite 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 3 3 Unknown Buteo 0 1 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 2 2 Total: 0 533 534 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:30:00 Observation end time: 12:00:00 Total observation time: 3.5 hours Official Counter: Emma Riley Observers: Gary Rossmiller, Karen Fernandez, Mike Fernandez Visitors: Thank you to Gary Rossmiller and Karen & Mike Fernandez for sticking out the winds for the morning. We saw 9 visitors at the ridge, including John (did not catch his last name), a high school science teacher from Denver. He plans to return to the ridge soon. Weather: The sun was out today with little cloud cover, however winds were strong from the get go. Wind speeds averaged 13-16 mph for the first two hours, with gusts of 20-26 mph. Dust clouds could be seen at the gravel pits and scattered across the eastern horizon. By 1100 MST the gusts began to turn into the average speed, with debris getting kicked up. The count was ended at 1200 MST. Raptor Observations: No migrants were seen today. The local RT pair were seen throughout the morning utilizing the winds to kite while hunting, which was great to be able to watch. Non-raptor Observations: Non-raptor activity was all but gone today with 3 CORA, 3 AMCR, 2 TOSO, and 1 DEJU seen over the three and a half hours. Predictions: Tomorrow is again expected to see moderate temperatures and sun, but winds may be stronger than today. 20+ mph wind averages are expected at 0900 MST, with gale force winds predicted just a few hours after. If predictions are correct, our count will be halted. ======================================================================== Report submitted by DAVID HILL () Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at: http://www.dfobirds.org More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=123 Count data submitted via Dunkadoo - Project info at: https://dunkadoo.org/explore/denver-field-ornithologists/dinosaur-ridge-spring-2023 Site Description: Dinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawk watch in Colorado and is the best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Hawk watchers may see 17 species of migrating raptors; and it is an excellent site to see rare dark morph buteos including Broad-winged hawk, Swainson’s hawk, Ferruginous hawk, Rough-legged hawk and Red-tailed Hawk. Other raptors we see include Golden and Bald Eagles, Northern harrier, Osprey, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons, Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels, Merlin, and Turkey Vultures. Northern Goshawk is uncommon but also counted each season. Non-raptor species include Rock Wren, Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane, White-throated Swift, American White Pelican, and Dusky Grouse. Birders of any skill level are always welcome. The hawk watch at Dinosaur Ridge is staffed by a Hawk Counter and volunteers from 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM from March 1st to May 14th, weather permitting. Directions to site: >From exit 259 on I-70 towards Morrison, drive south under freeway and take left into first parking lot, the Stegosaurus lot. Follow hawk watch signs from the southwest end of the parking lot to the hawk watch site. The hike starts heading east on an old two-track and quickly turns south onto a trail on the west side of the ridge. When the trail nears the top of the ridge, turn left, and walk to the flat area at the crest of the ridge. (Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain: 259 feet) -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en * All posts should be signed with the poster's full name and city. Include bird species and location in the subject line when appropriate * Join Colorado Field Ornithologists https://cobirds.org/CFO/Membership/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/0101018734716039-4dc597a3-06d0-4921-b7d8-29bb0fb5a5b4-000000%40us-west-2.amazonses.com.
