Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 16:00:00 Total observation time: 8 hours
Official Counter: Kate McKay
Observers: Chuck Carlson, Jim McCoy
Visitors: 118. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to chat with us even though it was cold, and shoutout to Chuck for volunteering in the wind the whole day.
Weather: Partly sunny with variable cloud cover. Fog rolled by in the morning, obscuring visibility at times. Temps ranged from 44 to 53 degrees. Stiff winds, mostly from the west. Wind speed often near 20 mph, sometimes closer to 15 mph, and occasionally reaching 30 mph.
Raptor Observations: Nice diversity of raptors again with representatives from eleven species trickling by throughout the day. Peregrines won the prize for the highest number today (six). Cooper's Hawks tied with sharpies for the first time this season (four each). An immature goshawk flew by shortly after 1pm, pausing briefly to ride the winds with a raven. Non-migrants included six Turkey Vultures, two Bald Eagles, two red-tails, and two Merlins.
The one unidentified raptor today was an interesting bird. First spotted near the Camel Humps, it flew behind North Pack and circled once above the Lyndeboroughs, revealing a clean white belly, before disappearing again towards the southeast. A very distant bird, it had long wings and was flapping like a harrier or gull. It was also reminiscent of an Osprey but seemed too brown on top. Oh well. It was probably just a Swainson's Hawk.
Non-raptor Observations: Song Sparrow mixed in with the juncos and white-throats. Eastern Phoebe made a brief appearance, and a beautiful Black-throated Green Warbler foraged in the spruce trees. Eighteen ravens enjoyed playing in the wind all across the sky.
Monarchs: 4/830
Predictions: Sunshine and northwest winds tomorrow. It will be even colder than today, hopefully encouraging more birds to migrate. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Kate McKay (<northernjay444...>) Pack Monadnock Raptor Migration Observatory information may be found at: www.harriscenter.org
