Date: 3/15/26 5:40 pm
From: <reports...>
Subject: [cobirds] Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists (15 Mar 2026) Raptors
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists
Golden, Colorado, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 15, 2026
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
Osprey 0 0 0
Bald Eagle 0 6 6
Northern Harrier 0 0 0
Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 1 1
Cooper's Hawk 0 5 5
American Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0
Red-tailed Hawk 0 32 32
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0
Ferruginous Hawk 0 5 5
Golden Eagle 0 1 1
American Kestrel 0 1 1
Merlin 0 0 0
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0
Prairie Falcon 0 2 2
Mississippi Kite 0 0 0
Unknown Accipitrine 0 0 0
Unknown Buteo 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 1 1
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 0 0 0

Total: 0 54 54
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Observation start time: 09:00:00
Observation end time: 12:00:00
Total observation time: 3 hours

Official Counter: Emma Riley, Soren Zappia

Observers: Marina Prado-Echeagaray

Visitors:
Visitors stayed home today- zero seen.




Weather:
It was a snowy and cold day on the ridge today with very limited visibility
to start with. Precipitation wasn't originally predicted to linger for the
day but alas, the predictions were wrong. The count was ended early at 1300
MST due to low visibility and high precipitation.

Raptor Observations:
One lone male American Kestrel was seen hovering and perched on a nearby
phone line. Zero migrants were seen today.

We had a nice variety of Dark-eyed Juncos today with Oregon, Slate-colored,
Gray-headed, and Pink-sided all seen! Mountain Bluebirds also added some
color to the otherwise white day.

Non-raptor Observations:
Northern Flicker 1, Woodhouse's Scrub Jay 1, Black-billed Magpie 1, Common
Raven 3, Black-capped Chickadee 1, Mountain Bluebird 26, Dark-eyed Junco 4,
Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 2, Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 1

Predictions:
Temperatures will pick up back up a bit tomorrow to a nice mild before we
reach the heat that's expected at the end of the week. Winds are predicted
to be a bit all over the place at a moderate breeze. The trail will likely
be muddy!
========================================================================
Report submitted by Official Counter of the day shown above (<dinoridgehw...>)
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at:
www.dinosaurridgehawkwatch.org


More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=123
Count data submitted via Trektellen.org - Project info at:
http://trektellen.org/count/view/4515/20260315

Site Description:
Dinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawk watch in Colorado and is
the best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Hawk
watchers may see 17 species of migrating raptors; and it is an excellent
site to see rare dark morph buteos including Broad-winged hawk,
Swainson’s hawk, Ferruginous hawk, Rough-legged hawk and Red-tailed Hawk.
Other raptors we see include Golden and Bald Eagles, Northern harrier,
Osprey, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons, Cooper's and Sharp-shinned
Hawks, American Kestrels, Merlin, and Turkey Vultures. American Goshawk is
uncommon but also counted each season. Non-raptor species include Rock
Wren, Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane, White-throated Swift, and
American White Pelican. Birders of any skill level are always welcome. The
hawk watch at Dinosaur Ridge is staffed by Hawk Counter(s) and volunteers
from March through early May.

Directions to site:
From exit 259 on I-70 towards Morrison, drive south under freeway and take
left into first parking lot, the Stegosaurus lot. Follow hawk watch signs
from the southwest end of the parking lot to the hawk watch site. The hike
starts heading east on an old two-track and quickly turns south onto a
trail on the west side of the ridge. When the trail nears the top of the
ridge, turn left, and walk to the flat area at the crest of the ridge.
(Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain: 259 feet)


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