Date: 5/18/25 9:23 am From: Florence Sanchez via groups.io <sanchezucsb11...> Subject: [sbcobirding] Cuyama Swainson's Hawks
I'm sure Linus will send out a full report of this weekends survey of the Cuyama Valley and adjacent areas, but I thought I'd mention that we were treated to an unexpected show of Swainson's Hawks over the weekend, primarily along Aliso Canyon Road. My high count over the two-day period was 7 at this location, but I met another birder who saw 12. John Callender has some great photos in his eBird Alert report.
It is unusual to find such numbesr in the Cuyama Valley this late in the spring, but we were treated to a full variety of the various plumages. We had strong Westerly winds both days, which helped us see so many. Alisos Canyon Road has a gradually rising scarp on the east side of the road for the first 2-3 miles. The West wind catches this scarp and rises, creating ideal conditions above for the hawks to hover (or "kite") with little effort for long periods of time. And it's not just the Swainson's Hawks that were taking advantage of the conditions. On Saturday I had 7 Swainson's, 4 Red-tailed Hawks, and 5 Ravens all up in the air along this stretch of road between about 12:45 and 1:15 p.m.
Florence Sanchez
