Observation start time: 09:00:00 Observation end time: 17:00:00 Total observation time: 8 hours
Official Counter: Emma Riley, Emma Riley, Soren Zappia
Observers: Marina Prado-Echeagaray
Visitors: We had 9 visitors at the Hawk Watch today including a couple that is hoping to come back soon.
Thanks to Janet Peters, Bill Young, Sara Jepsen, Marirosa Donisi, and Chip Dawes for volunteering their time today to help us spot migrants!
Soren came in to count for a half day on his day off. Thanks Soren!
Weather: Today started out cold with low 40 F temperatures but got up into the high 60s low 70s by the early afternoon. Cloud cover was consistent throughout the day making spotting birds a bit easier. Precipitation could be seen in the late afternoon south and west of us. Winds picked up in the late afternoon to a bft of 5 when precipitation could be seen, but died back down by the end of the day.
Raptor Observations: Today was another fun day of migration with a lot of Cooper's Hawks moving through! The first hour started out slow but picked up pretty quickly with our first bird being a Northern Harrier. Before we knew it we had a handful of Red-tailed Hawks, Sharp-shinned Hawks, and Cooper's hawks all in a thermal. Birds moved high and W for a good chunk of the day, before coming to a standstill once the winds picked up. In the late afternoon we had two adult Bald Eagles come by the ridge, with one of them coming so close we could hear the flap of its wings! One adult then chased the other one south before we lost both of them.
Local raptor activity was high and sometimes hard to pick apart from migrant activity during the peak. We got to see some Red-tailed Hawks kiting in the high winds which is always a treat.
Non-raptor Observations: White-throated Swift 5, Broad-tailed Hummingbird 1, Eurasian Collared-Dove 2, Double-crested Cormorant 1, American White Pelican 1, Say's Phoebe 1, Common Raven 2, Tree Swallow 1, Rock Wren 1, American Robin 2, House Finch 1, American Goldfinch 1, Spotted Towhee 1, Western Meadowlark 1
Predictions: Tomorrow's weather will be similar to today's with pleasant temperatures and some cloud cover. Some sources predict rain, some don't. Typical Colorado! ======================================================================== 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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