Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 21, 2026 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 5 11 Turkey Vulture 211 21377 34375 Osprey 1 124 137 Bald Eagle 31 232 439 Northern Harrier 7 321 415 Sharp-shinned Hawk 96 1807 1985 Cooper's Hawk 2 86 278 American Goshawk 0 1 2 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 83 495 Broad-winged Hawk 1935 15781 15781 Red-tailed Hawk 17 1596 2475 Rough-legged Hawk 1 15 68 Golden Eagle 1 30 60 American Kestrel 8 313 378 Merlin 1 33 63 Peregrine Falcon 0 4 8 Unknown Accipitrine 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Swainson's Hawk 0 1 1 Total: 2311 41809 56971 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 17:00:00 Total observation time: 9 hours Official Counter: David Brown Observers: Dave Wheeler, Karen Lee Lewis, Kim Steininger Visitors: 15 Weather: A bit of early morning sun then overcast. Moderate south winds shifting SE for the last few hours. Temperatures starting below freezing and reaching the low 50s. Raptor Observations: An impressive total but most of the day the flight was distant over the lake. We counted just under 2,000 Broad-winged Hawks but it is likely many more were too distant to see. Some better looks at the end of the day when the winds shifted southeast. The Turkey Vulture flight was moderate with 211 and was mostly over land. Good Bald Eagle flight with 31 including the first southern juvenile of the season. Nearly a hundred sharpies. One immature Golden Eagle which was a target species for a first time visitor. One light-morph Rough-legged Hawk gave a distant view over the lake. For falcons we had eight kestrels and an end of day Merlin. Derby Hill 2026 Daily Summary Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB8baxseGlb6YYCLHXEKtIckpJtq1srVm Non-raptor Observations: Minimal morning flight due to the cold conditions. 13 Common Loons, 100 Blue Jays, 2 Pine Warblers. https://ebird.org/checklist/S325261876 No new species for season. Predictions: TOMORROW: Overcast. High 61F. Winds SE at 10mph shifting WNW in the mid-afternoon with a little late day sun. Good winds in the morning. Southerly winds overnight may get some songbirds on the move and will hopefully result in a decent morning flight. Winds less favorable in the afternoon, but fairly weak so perhaps the flight will continue at the South Lookout. Moderate conditions overall, but still peak migration time so a larger flight is always a possibility. THURSDAY: Partly cloudy. High 57F. Winds NW at 10-15mph. South Lookout. Expect light to moderate migration. FRIDAY: Cloudy early then partly cloudy. High 53F. Winds N at 5-10mph. South Lookout. ======================================================================== Report submitted by David Brown ([email protected] ) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: http://onondagaaudubon.com/derby-hill-bird-observatory/ More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=358 Count data submitted via Trektellen.org - Project info at: https://trektellen.org/count/view/3860/20260421 -- Oneidabirds-L List Info: Visit: http://LISTS.cornell.edu for more information Posting Address: [email protected] Sightings: Please submit your observations to eBird at http://www.ebird.org. --
