Date: 10/25/24 6:57 pm From: <reports...> Subject: [cobirds] Mount Zion Hawk Watch at Windy Saddle Park (25 Oct 2024) Raptors
Mount Zion Hawk Watch at Windy Saddle Park
Golden, Greater Denver, Colorado, USA
This is a new raptor migration site identified and designated so only in mid-September 2024. This is Colorado's 1st fall hawk watch. To get to the site which is along Lookout Mountain Rd. in Golden, enter either Windy Saddle Park or Mount Zion into Google Maps on your favorite navigation app, or enter the coordinates 39.7368,-105.2454. From the parking lot ascend the stone steps to the watch site.
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 25, 2024
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Observation start time: 09:15:00
Observation end time: 13:00:00
Total observation time: 3.5 hours
Official Counter: Ajit Antony
Observers:
Visitors:
A young man said he saw "white birds" on Lookout Mountain where he had
parked his car. I suggested they were probably gulls. He said there were
26. I showed him an image of a Sandhill Crane in flight in Merlin, and he
said that's what he had seen. I played a Sandhill Crane call and told him
about the Merlin free app, which he immediately looked for on his phone.
I mentioned to a couple that I could hear cranes, and She found them, a
large flock of cranes flew past, and I let them look at them through my
scope at them – they were thrilled. So also a group of young men, 1 of
whom said "Tell us if you see anything," many enjoying the look through the
scope at another large flock of cranes.
One paraglider at 12:45 PM MDT who had some lift, getting above my
elevation, but not a whole lot higher.
Weather:
Light ENE winds, temperature 10-12°C, humidity 26-29%, barometric pressure
steady, cloud cover 7045%, visibility 19 km with some haziness. Excellent
cloud cover from N>E>SE>S.
The Soaring Forecast from the NWS was for only fair thermals for gliders
– up to 6036 feet above ground level – but enough for raptors.
Raptor Observations:
This was what I thought would be a reasonable flight with ENE winds which
we have seen to be favorable earlier In the season, but this is the 2nd day
with no migrant raptors seen, so it could be that the migration is slowing
down for the season.
Non-migrant raptors: BE adult with a strong dihedral (a ridge-linked
effect) which flew West, RT 3 adults and 1 juvenile.
Non-raptor Observations:
Sandhill Crane 770 in groups of 35 to 160, Townsend's Solitaire 1, Mountain
Chickadee 1, Common Raven 7 – one attacked an RT, Black-billed Magpie 1,
American Crow 5.
Predictions:
I will continue coming up on what I think are favorable winds to see if
there are any late GE, Prairie Falcon, or Rough-legged Hawk migrating.
These are all early spring migrants in March at the Dinosaur Ridge Hawk
Watch, so correspondingly they would be late migrants in fall – this
follows as a general rule.
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Report submitted by Ajit Antony (<aiantony...>)
Directions to site:
From I-70 from Northeast Denver, take Route 58, then a left turn going
south on Route 6, the 1st exit is for Lookout Mountain Road, turn right and
follow the clothes to find Windy Saddle Park parking lot on the right.
From I-70 from points west of Denver, take the Lookout Mountain Road and
follow it to the Windy Saddle Park parking lot, a longer route.
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