Observation start time: 12:30:00 Observation end time: 16:00:00 Total observation time: 3.5 hours
Official Counter: Jerry McWilliams
Observers: John DePaul, Julie Leonard, Katie Andersen
Visitors: John DePaul, Katie Andersen, and Julie Leonard assisted with the count. Sam Paulson stopped for a visit.
Weather: Cloudy with rain in the AM then clearing by mid-day with strong SSE wind and quite warm.
Raptor Observations: Wow! What a surprise! My only regret is that I didn't get to the hawk watch 30 minutes earlier when all hell broke loose. The sky was full of Broad-wings when I arrived with and estimated 1500 birds in the air in three kettles and they were still coming. I estimated 7300 BWs in the first 30 minutes of the watch. Today was a record-breaking day for BWs. A man doing bird counts from the tower said they started pouring through around 1200 hrs. EST. He had already recorded twice as many birds before I arrived. With the strong south wind and approaching low pressure system birds were stacked up along the lake. After the 1300 hr. when more clouds moved in, the number of birds dropped significantly, but was still steady. Many Sharp-shins were mixed among them, but were difficult to sort out and count among the huge kettles of BWs. Highlight was a Golden Eagle passing high overhead.
Non-raptor Observations: Tree Swallow, Cliff Swallow 1 (early), Double-crested Cormorant, blackbirds, Northern Flickers, Canada Goose, Ring-billed and Herring Gull.
Predictions: Cloudy in the AM becoming partly cloudy with west winds and cooler. After today's big show not expecting much unless we get a wind shift to the south.Jerry McWilliamsErie, Erie County, <Pa.jerrymcw...>
