Observation start time: 08:15:00 Observation end time: 14:00:00 Total observation time: 5.75 hours
Official Counter: Eric Mueller
Observers: David Proietti, Fay Baird, Marilyn Cugini, Mary Wetzel, Tom Gottschang
Visitors: Thanks to our small stalwart crew who braved the elements to record what few migrating birds passed by. Joining them on the platform were Nina Bailey, Dorothy Prioetti, Larry Wilson, Stephanie Markham and Michael Pappone.
In addition to a small contingent of hikers and sightseers, the summit was covered for an hour by at least 100 boisterous "Woolies" from Millbury Jr/Sr High School.
Weather: Another bright, blustery day featuring ENE to NE winds with average speeds between 10-14 mph and regular gusts to 18-22 mph. Temps rose from 50 to 59 F, which combined with the wind to make for very chilly conditions on the summit. The day started with high stratus clouds to the south, but soon, low fair weather cumulus clouds came streaming in from the coast, and as they rose over time, aligned themselves in relatively straight rows that extended as far as we could see to the north. Visibility was very good.
Raptor Observations: The "observer discomfort-to-bird count" ratio was very high today. We bundled up but the strong wind seemed to find every crack in our armor, while the migrating birds were few and far between. We spent most of the day watching the local Red-tails flying around, kiting and diving on each other and on the ravens. We didn't see any Broad-wings, and the birds that we did see stayed low. It's likely that a number of birds passed by below our sight lines.
In celebration of our 50th anniversary year on Wachusett, here's a look back at events on this date: In 1979, we had the 2nd largest American Kestrel daily count (43) and 3rd largest Sharp-shinned Hawk count (162) in Wachusett Mt history.
In 1983, we had the 16th largest Sharp-shinned Hawk count (107) in Wachusett history.
In 2008, Steve Olson wrote: Non-raptor notes: Porcupine - 1. This guy must be the most photographed mammal in the world by this point. Thoroughly expect to see him in a centerfold in some nature magazine next year. He is not afraid of people.
In 2010, Steve Olson wrote: Observers/Visitors: Betsey Villaume (Very Good), Ken MacLeod (Very Good), Clayton A. Swanson, Bill Rasku (Eric�s note: apparently Steve wasn�t all that impressed with the hawk spotting capabilities of these last two at the time...;-)
In 2005, we had the 25th largest Broad-wing count (4,782) and the 25th largest Total Raptor count (4,840) in Wachusett history. Jane Stein wrote: "Shortly after the passage of a very dark low cloud mass just before 4 PM EST, close to 4,000 birds poured through over the course of about 20 minutes in one enormous, extended mass that went to our West, to our East and directly overhead. Whew!" "Major thanks to Rachel Scherer, one-time Watatic regular, who happened to be visiting for the day and managed to lead the way in calmly counting this giant slug of birds while many of the rest of us were frequently floundering under the deluge." (other observers - Rod Chase, Ted Mara, Bruce Scherer, Jacob Morris-Siegel, Tabitha Hobbs and Taylor Yeager.)
In 2022, we tied with 9/19/21 for the 5th largest Bald Eagle count (24) in Wachusett history. Non-raptor Observations: Non-raptors: Rock Dove-1 (a rarity up here), Blue Jay-1, Comm Raven-14, B-C Chickadee-2, E Towhee-2.
Plus a young porcupine that blithely wandered around the summit, munching on grass, while a dozen people took photos (shades of 2008).
Predictions: We'll have to grind through 2 more days of the same strong NE winds and cool temps. After that, a strong "nor'easter" storm is currently expected to rain us out on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. It will be interesting to see if any Broad-wings are left after that. Hopefully the TV migration will be strong this year. ======================================================================== Report submitted by ERIC MUELLER (<ericmueller1912...>) Wachusett Mountain information may be found at: http://www.massbird.org/emhw
