Tussey Mountain Hawk Watch State College, Pennsylvania, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 04, 2025 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 17:00:00 Total observation time: 8.23 hours
Official Counter: Adam Bradley
Observers: Bob McLaughlin, Brandon Brogle, Paul Fritz, Regina Gaison
Visitors: Brandon Brogle Bob McLaughlin Paul Fritz and Regina Gaison Joyce and Jim Waugh Nick Bolgiano Jon Kauffman Joe Sabo Ken Bowman Peggy Wagoner Jeff Peters
Superb group of legendary Pennsylvanian hawk watchers out today to make sure no raptor migrated past Tussey Mountain Hawk Watch undetected. Brandon Brogle arrived early shortly after I did and got settled in. When Paul Fritz and Regina Gaison arrived, Regina quickly located the first raptor of the day with a close SS. The flight remained slow until Joe Sabo arrived and with his good spirits the flight picked up with several GE’s pouring through. Brandon located our 2nd NH and 3rd PG of the season helping us diversify the days flight. Jon Kauffman picked out some distant specks over Stone Mountain for us to sort through on non – traditional flight lines. Peggy Wagoner made sure we were getting all those sky high buteos trying to sneak by directly overhead. Jeff Peters a member of the State College Bird Club joined us on a fabulous day and was able to get on several migrating raptors. With a group of such dedicated hawk watchers I gained an entire new vocabulary and picked up some of the local hawk watching history. It was a special day at Tussey Mountain and I was lucky to enjoy it with such a fine group. I also appreciate Brandon doing some impromptu outreach for our hiker friends.
2 hikers.
Weather: A light drizzle, high winds and colder temps to start the morning. 28kph SSW winds for most of the count. Visibility to 13km with a haze present. Mostly cloudy skies until noon when it began to clear off fast. Low temperature of 2C at 08:30 and a high of 15C by 14:00.
Raptor Observations: GE A 10:52, A 11:49, A 12:35, A 12:43, A 12:48, A 12:51, A 12:58, A 12:59, A 13:21, A 13:39, A 13:48, U 13:54, A 13:54, A 14:15, A 14:20
TV 1 (76) BE 6 (26) NH 1 (2) CH 2 (4) RS (6) RT (8) GE 15 (63) PG 1 (3) UA 1 (2) UB 1 (3) Total 43 (75)
Golden Eagles led the flight today with a total of 15 coming through. Most flew parallel to the S of the ridge. The flight didn’t get underway until the noon hour with a total of 10 raptors coming through 6 of which were GE’s. The flight peaked in the 13:00 hour with 18 raptors migrating past and really good diversity. A NOHA shot through the gap providing close looks and another PEFA was zooming around over Leading Ridge. We also picked up our highest one-day totals thus far this season for RS and RT.
Our resident RT was frequently spotted along Leading Ridge, but may be seeing some challengers arriving to test the boundaries of its territory. It may also have a mate as there were times when two were kiting very close to one another. A resident BAEA flew S along the ridge several times as well.
Non-raptor Observations: Canada Goose 452 Tundra Swan 197 Wood Duck 1 Common Merganser 5 Killdeer 2 Black Vulture 2 Turkey Vulture 6 Blue Jay 1 American Crow 5 Common Raven 6 Black-capped Chickadee 1 Tufted Titmouse 1 White-breasted Nuthatch 1 American Pipit 1 House Finch 1 American Goldfinch 1 Red-winged Blackbird 14 Common Grackle 1
Predictions: Rain before 3pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 3pm and 4pm, then a chance of showers after 4pm. High near 56. Southeast wind 8 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
The trail is melting fast. I couldn’t believe how ice free the single track was on the hike out compared to the hike in this morning. The only stubborn section that remains is still close to the parking lot, however a strip has melted out where some vehicle drove through. I would hope after this rain event the trail should be looking pretty good.
======================================================================== Report submitted by Adam Richardson (<poecile.gambeli...>) Tussey Mountain Hawk Watch information may be found at: tusseymountainspringhawkwatch.org/
