Observation start time: 09:00:00 Observation end time: 18:00:00 Total observation time: 8.5 hours
Official Counter: Emma Riley, Soren Zappia
Observers:
Visitors: We had 11 visitors stop by during our busy day today.
Thank you to our fabulous volunteers Cayce and Chris Gulbransen, Dale Campau, Ryan Gannon, and Jeff Birek for their help spotting distant birds today. Busy days like today would be much more chaotic without your help.
Weather: As we arrived to the ridge today winds were gusting higher than expected. Temperatures were high and clouds were scattered. Winds quickly died out revealing even warmer temperatures that settled in for the day. Cloud cover increased throughout the day before covering the sky when we left. Winds shifted a few times throughout the day but mostly stayed calm until the end of the day. A cold front is moving through this evening and we saw that in lowered temps and light precipitation on the hike out. Smoke from wildfires in Nebraska moved into the area in the late afternoon impacting visibility greatly.
Raptor Observations: What a day! Today was our highest count in March since 2022. The flight started immediately when we arrived and continued through about 1730 MST. Birds took the common western line- first spotted around Mt Morrison before getting great heights and heading N. Red-tailed Hawks dominated much of the morning for species, with American Kestrels dominating the second half of the day. In the early afternoon we had our busiest hour of 51 birds! During this hour birds seemed to pour out of the sky overhead and west of us, with the occasional bird coming E of us.
Highlights of the day include our FOY Osprey (three of them!), our FOY American Goshawk (a distant juvenile), and a number of close overhead Northern Harriers. We also got to enjoy our first kettle of Turkey Vultures.
Non-raptor Observations: Feral Pigeon 2, Sandhill Crane 4, American White Pelican 10, Steller's Jay 1, Woodhouse's Scrub Jay 1, Common Raven 2, Black-capped Chickadee 2, American Bushtit 3, American Robin 2, Western Meadowlark 1
Predictions: Precipitation may come in overnight leaving temperatures low tomorrow with heavy cloud cover. The trail may 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
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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