Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field OrnithologistsColorado, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 23, 2022 |
Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Turkey Vulture | 3 | 313 | 339 |
Osprey | 0 | 36 | 38 |
Bald Eagle | 0 | 21 | 54 |
Northern Harrier | 0 | 19 | 25 |
Sharp-shinned Hawk | 1 | 56 | 65 |
Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 147 | 158 |
Northern Goshawk | 0 | 5 | 7 |
Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 32 | 32 |
Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 304 | 719 |
Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Swainson's Hawk | 1 | 22 | 22 |
Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 9 | 63 |
Golden Eagle | 0 | 8 | 36 |
American Kestrel | 0 | 281 | 313 |
Merlin | 0 | 11 | 15 |
Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 7 | 14 |
Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 9 |
Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 12 | 12 |
Unknown Buteo | 0 | 8 | 14 |
Unknown Falcon | 0 | 2 | 4 |
Unknown Eagle | 0 | 3 | 3 |
Unknown Raptor | 0 | 1 | 6 |
Total: | 6 | 1299 | 1951 |
Observation start time: | 09:00:00 |
Observation end time: | 14:00:00 |
Total observation time: | 5 hours |
Official Counter | Emma Riley |
Observers: | Jeff Birek |
Visitors:Big thanks to Jeff Birek for helping spot and ID today! We had a new
volunteer, Roxanne Warner, up at the ridge for the last hour of the day and
we chatted about binoculars and how we all got into hawkwatching. Hopefully
she will make it up to the ridge again soon when birds are flying! Five
other visitors were seen at the ridge today.
Weather:Winds were from the W/NW today with gusts reaching up to 30 mph or 48 km/h.
The skies were partly cloudy and seemed to be great spotting conditions.
Raptor Observations:Migration was all but non-existent today. Three migrants were seen in the
first two hours, followed by three TV moving together at 1200 MST. Local RT
and TV were seen all around us throughout the day.
Non-raptor Observations:White-throated Swift, Violet-green Swallow, Tree Swallow, Broad-tailed
Hummingbird, and Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay were seen today. All bird activity
was eerily low today.
Predictions:Winds are light from the NE tomorrow with the chance of rain showers in the
afternoon. We are expecting (hoping for) a big push of migrants in the next
few days given the low numbers this week.
Report submitted by DAVID HILL (
)
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at:
http://www.dfobirds.orgMore information at
hawkcount.org: [
Site Profile] [
Day Summary] [
Month Summary]
Site DescriptionDinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawkwatch in Colorado and is the
best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Dinosaur Ridge may
be the best place in the country to see the rare dark morph of the Broad-winged
Hawk (a few are seen each spring). Hawkwatchers who linger long enough may see
resident Golden Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks and Prairie Falcons, in addition to
migrating Swainson's, Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels and
Turkey Vultures. Peregrine Falcons and Ferruginous Hawks are uncommon; Northern
Goshawk is rare but regular. Non-raptor species include Rock Wren, and sometimes
Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane, White-throated Swift, American White
Pelican or Dusky Grouse. Birders of any skill level are always welcome.
HawkWatch at Dinosaur Ridge is generally staffed by volunteers from about 9 AM
to around 3 PM from March 1st to May 7th.
Directions to site:From exit 259 on I-70 towards Morrison, drive south under freeway and take left
into first parking lot, the Stegosaurus lot. Follow small signs from the
southwest end of lot to the hawkwatch site. The hike starts heading east on an
old two-track and quickly turns south onto a trail on the west side of the
ridge. When the trail nears the top of the ridge, turn left, head through the
gate, and walk to the clearly-visible, flat area at the crest of the ridge.
(Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain: 259 feet)