A crisp, cold and bluebird morning on Tussey Mountain. Winds were light out
of the NW at 6-11kph. By 11:00 the winds had shifted to the SE at 6kph.
Visibility was good and improved later in the day when the sun was to the
south and the light was good to Stone Mountain. Clear skies for the entire
survey. Low temperature of 2C at 08:15 and high of 17C by 15:00.
Raptor Notes
TV 24 (126) BE 2 (48) NH 2 (8) RS 3 (31) RT 5 (116) GE 3 (123) AK 1 (7) UB
2 (10) UR 1 (6) Total 43 (526)
GE A 11:31, A 13:37, A 17:31
The flight got underway as the temperature rose in the 10:00 hour with a
total of 5 raptors coming through and the first GE of the day. Since winds
where light raptors were making use of thermals off the south slope of
Tussey Mountain. Most raptors had to work the thermals coming off the
mountain to hopscotch north along Leading Ridge. From the OP almost all the
migrants appeared to be out over Stone Valley. The flight was pretty
consistent until the 14:00 hour when some large kettles of TV’s were
spotted over Stone Mountain. The TV kettles also helped with locating other
migrating raptors as they honed in on the good thermal activity the TV’s
were working. This approach yielded both of the days NOHA’s. Another kettle
of TV’s formed in the gap between Leading Ridge and Tussey Mountain and all
the birds streamed out high along the ridge top. A few minutes later even
higher yet I lucked onto a sky-high GE just below the late afternoon sun.
This eagle worked the thermals effortlessly and glided N along the ridge
top to close the days effort out.
The first raptor to take to the skies was the Leading Ridge RTHA at 09:47.
At 11:09 3 BAEA were dogfighting over Leading Ridge and a fourth adult
appeared just S of the OP enroute to sort them out. A juvenile RTHA was
spotted at 12:17 dogfighting with a CORA, possibly the one adept at aging
raptors. At 16:23 two BAEA were taking friendly swipes at one another and
at one point it looked like they locked talons briefly. The Leading Ridge
RTHA keeps gliding down into the forest on the slope near the OP. I was
able to scope the bird eventually and I will be curious to see if there is
nest building going on in there.
Non-raptor Notes
Mourning Dove 1
American Herring Gull 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Pileated Woodpecker 2
American Crow 5
Common Raven 2
Black-capped Chickadee 4
Horned Lark 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
Eastern Bluebird 7
American Robin 1
American Pipit 5
House Finch 7
Pine Siskin 3
American Goldfinch 4
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 6
Red-winged Blackbird 5
Rusty Blackbird 1
Common Grackle 5
Visitors
None
3 hikers.
Next Day Forecast
Mostly sunny, with a high near 69. Light southeast wind becoming south 6 to
11 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 24 mph.
