Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field OrnithologistsColorado, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 24, 2024 |
Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Turkey Vulture | 22 | 256 | 286 |
Osprey | 2 | 37 | 43 |
Bald Eagle | 0 | 13 | 43 |
Northern Harrier | 1 | 11 | 16 |
Sharp-shinned Hawk | 5 | 53 | 69 |
Cooper's Hawk | 17 | 137 | 158 |
American Goshawk | 0 | 5 | 6 |
Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Broad-winged Hawk | 33 | 73 | 73 |
Red-tailed Hawk | 10 | 126 | 387 |
Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Swainson's Hawk | 6 | 36 | 36 |
Ferruginous Hawk | 1 | 4 | 16 |
Golden Eagle | 1 | 7 | 18 |
American Kestrel | 18 | 324 | 346 |
Merlin | 0 | 14 | 18 |
Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 8 | 10 |
Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 5 |
Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Unknown Accipiter | 1 | 10 | 11 |
Unknown Buteo | 2 | 4 | 4 |
Unknown Falcon | 0 | 4 | 5 |
Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Unknown Raptor | 1 | 3 | 3 |
Total: | 120 | 1127 | 1553 |
Observation start time: | 09:00:00 |
Observation end time: | 17:00:00 |
Total observation time: | 8 hours |
Official Counter | Emma Riley |
Observers: | Bill Young, Chip Dawes, Clay Gibson, Karen Fernandez, Ric Olson |
Visitors:We had another great day on the ridge with 47 visitors today including a
birder from England looking for his 7000th life species. Thank you to all
that showed up today and helped spot and keep track of our crazy day, both
on and off our volunteer schedule. I am expecting another busy day
tomorrow.
Weather:Today was a hot one with scattered clouds but rarely clouds covering the
sun. Winds stayed pretty consistent all day today from the general E
direction. Humidity was low and in the last 2 hours a pretty thick haze
settled into the west valley.
Raptor Observations:The second I got to the ridge today migration was off with a bang with our
best BW day and overall day this season! We had small kettles of 2-5 BW
moving consistently for the first hour and then they continued to come one
by one for much of the morning, dwindling off throughout the day. At one
point we had 4 BW, 1 RT, and 1 FH all in the same kettle. We did get to
see one BW in the last hour of the day as well. We are also seeing SW
moving throughout the day and expect this to continue. Migration as a whole
is truly in its peak currently and we are loving it!
Local RT activity was high and steady all day with up to 6 seen up at one
time. We continue to see 5 local TV moving around the western ridge. We
also saw the local PG, GE, AK, and CH today.
Non-raptor Observations:Spring migration has also picked up for passerines as we continue to see
FOY birds, with todays being both WBNU and RBNU. Other passerines seen or
heard today include BTHU, BCCH, WEME, SPTO, WTSW, BARS, VGSW, CORA, and
others. WTSW activity was not as high as it has been in the last few days
but they were still active. It goes without saying that the CORA continue
to be active through the day.
Predictions:Tomorrow morning will be sunny with winds from the SE. Rain is possible in
the afternoon, potentially kicking off our predicted rainy weekend. As
always I cannot promise anything, but am hopeful for more BW in the
morning.
Report submitted by Official Counter (
j.f.pe...@gmail.com)
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 hawk watch in Colorado and is the
best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Hawk watchers may
see 17 species of migrating raptors; and it is an excellent site to see rare
dark morph buteos including Broad-winged hawk, Swainson’s hawk, Ferruginous
hawk, Rough-legged hawk and Red-tailed Hawk. Other raptors we see include Golden
and Bald Eagles, Northern harrier, Osprey, Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons,
Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels, Merlin, and Turkey
Vultures. American Goshawk is uncommon but also counted each season. Non-raptor
species include Rock Wren, Bushtit, Western Bluebird, Sandhill Crane,
White-throated Swift, American White Pelican, and Dusky Grouse. Birders of any
skill level are always welcome. The hawk watch at Dinosaur Ridge is staffed by a
Hawk Counter and volunteers from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM from March 1st to May 10th,
weather permitting.
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 hawk watch signs from the
southwest end of the parking lot to the hawk watch 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, and walk to
the flat area at the crest of the ridge. (Distance: 0.56 miles, Elevation gain:
259 feet)