Date: 3/29/25 7:36 pm From: 'SUE RICCIARDI' via Maryland & DC Birding <mdbirding...> Subject: [MDBirding] Fort Smallwood Park (29 Mar 2025) 1325 Raptors
Fort Smallwood Park Pasadena, Maryland, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 29, 2025
Species
Day's Count
Month Total
Season Total
Black Vulture
16
122
124
Turkey Vulture
1085
4658
4806
Osprey
23
170
170
Bald Eagle
8
45
47
Northern Harrier
6
8
8
Sharp-shinned Hawk
59
87
87
Cooper's Hawk
17
70
70
American Goshawk
0
0
0
Red-shouldered Hawk
88
167
171
Broad-winged Hawk
0
0
0
Red-tailed Hawk
13
42
54
Rough-legged Hawk
0
0
0
Golden Eagle
0
0
0
American Kestrel
6
23
23
Merlin
2
7
7
Peregrine Falcon
0
0
0
Unknown Accipitrine
0
1
1
Unknown Buteo
0
5
5
Unknown Falcon
0
2
2
Unknown Eagle
0
0
0
Unknown Raptor
2
6
6
Total:
1325
5413
5581
Observation start time:
8:45 am
Observation end time:
5:45 pm Daylight Time
Total observation time:
9 hours
Official Counter
Chris Reed, Hal Wierenga
Observers:
Dan Walker, Hal Wierenga, Hugh Hoffman, Sue Ricciardi
Visitors: Group from Wild Bird Unlimited (18), Melanie, Linda Vitchock
Weather: Mostly cloudy with haze later in the day; 64 to 83 degrees; good to fair visibility; winds southwesterly most of the day with a couple of hours in the afternoon where the wind was from the west, 8-22 mph gusting to 29 mph
Raptor Observations: A most wonderful migration day! The complete cloud cover in the first several hours apparently stalled the eventual huge flight, as once the cloud cover broke up a bit, all hawk broke loose and the spectacle began. From 1 to 2 pm clock time, we counted ten species totaling 262 raptors, including 163 Turkey Vultures, 34 Sharp-shinned Hawks, and an amazing 45 Red-shouldered Hawks. The total of 88 red-shoulders for the day was remarkable. One kettle of vultures totaled 106 individuals. Accipiters finally showed up in bigger numbers. 23 Ospreys and 6 Northern Harriers were also impressive daily totals. A local Peregrine Falcon clinched the falcon trifecta.
Non-raptor Observations: Several hundred Tree Swallows; first butterfly of the season
Site Description Fort Smallwood Park is located on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Patapsco River, 11 miles south of Baltimore, MD. Best winds are from the southwest.
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