> On Aug 30, 2026, at 7:40 PM, Barbara Volkle <barb620...> wrote:
>
> Date: Sun, 30 Aug 2026 21:42:36 +0000
> From: <reports...>
> Subject: Wachusett Mountain (30 Aug 2026) 3 Migrating Raptors
>
>
> Wachusett Mountain
> Princeton, Massachusetts, USA
> Daily Raptor Counts: Aug 30, 2026
> -------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
> ------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
> Black Vulture 0 0 0
> Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
> Osprey 2 6 6
> Bald Eagle 0 7 7
> Northern Harrier 0 1 1
> Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0
> Cooper's Hawk 0 2 2
> American Goshawk 0 0 0
> Red-shouldered Hawk 0 1 1
> Broad-winged Hawk 0 9 9
> Red-tailed Hawk 0 0 0
> Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
> Golden Eagle 0 0 0
> American Kestrel 0 0 0
> Merlin 0 0 0
> Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0
> Unknown Accipitrine 0 0 0
> Unknown Buteo 0 3 3
> Unknown Falcon 0 0 0
> Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
> Unknown Raptor 1 5 5
>
> Total: 3 34 34
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Observation start time: 08:15:00 Observation end time: 13:15:00 Total observation time: 5 hours
>
> Official Counter: Eric Mueller
>
> Observers: Lena Ficco, Lisa Burwell, Tom Gottschang
>
> Visitors:
> Hundreds of runners/walkers at an UltraTrax endurance event on the mountain
> added to the usual busy scene of hikers and sightseers here on a summer
> weekend, resulting in a veritable United Nations of people at the summit.
>
>
> Weather:
> The day started with thin cirrus clouds overhead that thickened over time
> until they became quite dense by 11 am EST. A mild haze in the air left all
> but the farther mountains in NH visible at first. The haze seemed to
> thicken along with the clouds, but that might have just been an effect of
> the lower light levels. The clouds thinned around noon and the visibility
> improved. Winds began the day from the West at 8-12 mph, but shifted a bit
> to WSW, and began to gentle to 4-7 mph around 10 am.
>
> Raptor Observations:
> A strange day on the summit. We weren't expecting many migrating birds
> because of solid SW winds that were forecasted, but even with the slightly
> lighter wind speeds and more westerly direction, we expected to see some
> local TVs and ravens in the morning. Usually they are the first birds to
> circle up each day, but neither of those species made an appearance until
> just after noon EST. The few migrating birds that we did see (2 OS & 1 UR)
> all showed up before them in the 11 am hour.
>
> Non-migrating raptors:
> TV-7, SS-1, BW-1 (Ad with missing tail feathers), AK-1.
>
> Non-raptor Observations:
> A quiet day for the Non-raptors as well:
> Blue Jay-1, Comm Raven-5, Cedar WW-4, D-E Junco-5, E Towhee-2.
>
> Predictions:
> Better conditions are expected on Monday. The forecast calls for partly
> cloudy skies, temps in the mid-60's to mid-70's, moderate humidity and
> light winds moving from N to NE to E and then to SW after noon.
> Bill Rasku will lead the watch.
> ========================================================================
> Report submitted by ERIC MUELLER (<ericmueller1912...>)
> Wachusett Mountain information may be found at:
> http://www.massbird.org/emhw >
>
> More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=228 >
