Observation start time: 09:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 6 hours
Official Counter: Julie Brown, Phil Brown
Observers: Chuck Carlson, Julie Brown, Tom Momeyer
Visitors: 30. Just as in the raptor count - low in quantity, but high in quality. Young Lily, Emma, and Savannah were the day's first visitors, their grandparents in tow, on their weekly visit to see Gina the plastic owl. Young birder, Evan, and family from Hollis spent some time with us, working on mastering his new digital camera. Michelle from the Harris Center picked the right hour to visit Pack! And hello to the Sanders family from Peterborough.
Weather: Unseasonably warm for November (55-61 F). High cloud cover in the morning hours broke enough for some sunshine in early afternoon. Winds were light, starting from the west and shifting sw. Hazy skies to the distant horizons.
Raptor Observations: Another 'golden day' at Pack with three more immature golden eagles migrating in the early afternoon. The first bird, seen by about a dozen observers, was found by the ravens just east of North Pack just before 1 pm. Chuck spotted the first visible ravens of the day, which alerted us to the presence of the eagle, which circled slowly and lazily from thermal to thermal for an incredibly, long 20-minute look! The next excitement came an hour later in the form of the 126th northern harrier, an adult male, setting a new season record high. The final hour brought ANOTHER TWO immature goldens circling up together along with ANOTHER male harrier over the Lyndeboros, producing another 10 minutes of golden eagle watching for several more lucky observers.
Non-raptor Observations: Evening grosbeak - 1 Pine siskin - 1 Purple finch - 2 Ruby-crowned kinglet - 1 Yellow-rumped warbler - 1 And a handsome little yellow Microleafhopper (look it up)
Predictions: Warmer, southwest winds, and sunshine, so perhaps not a lot of birds, but Julie thinks another Golden is in the works. Phil is not inclined to bet against her. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Phil Brown (<brown...>) Pack Monadnock Raptor Migration Observatory information may be found at: www.harriscenter.org
