Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies (16 Apr 2018) 12 Raptors
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Apr 17, 2018, 12:54:52 AM4/17/18
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Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Colorado, USA
Visitors:
Late in the morning, a fairly steady stream of visitors came on to the platform, mostly only for the view. One pair of hikers asked what birds had been seen and mentioned it would be a great place to watch for them; of course, this led to a brief but interesting conversation about HawkWatch and (spring) raptor monitoring as well as other topics such as what size prey a raptor might take. Also interested in “things geological”, they hoped to hike down to see the dinosaur footprints. Later in the afternoon, another pair of hikers also asked where the dinosaurs footprints were located. A determined trail runner ran the trail up and down several times, running up to and stopping briefly on the platform at least three times.
Weather:
It was a mostly cloudy day with scattered cloud-cover ranging from 60 to 70 percent most of the time but increasing to 90 percent by mid-afternoon. The winds, predominately from the east, were very mild in the morning but increased somewhat as the day progressed to low level Bft 3. Temperatures rose from 10 C to 19 C. Visibility was generally good, but an orange-tinged haze in the Denver Basin eventually spilled into and colored the whitish haze in the far southeastern valley.
Raptor Observations:
In the earlier part of the morning, most of the migrants tended to pass on the eastern side of the Ridge, while later in the watch, the migrants seemed to favor the western valley and ridges. The day leaned toward accipiters but the highlight was a dark-morph Red-tailed Hawk migrant. The local Red-tails were very scarce early in the watch but eventually made a few brief appearances. The local Turkey Vultures swept up and down the valleys and ridges, once in a group of seven. A local adult Golden Eagle came north over Rooney Valley, tailed by a pesky Common Raven that followed it very closely all the way to Green Mountain. A local adult Cooper's Hawk, with a full crop, was observed to carry then drop a thin stick (or heavy stalk of grass) over Rooney Valley before it headed west to the SubPeak area where it met up with another Cooper’s Hawk; they then circled there together.
Non-raptor Observations:
A Spotted Towhee sang loudly nearby for a good while in the morning. A pair of Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays shared the platform with me for almost a solid half-hour. One perched in the dead pine, waiting, while the other walked around carefully inspecting the platform gravel, occasionally grabbing up what I assumed were windfall juniper berries; rapid-fire cries of alarm erupted if I moved too quickly in any direction but then berry-hunting would recommence. Also seen or heard were Townsend's Solitaire, Black-billed Magpie, Western Meadowlark, Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's), American Robin, Black-capped Chickadee, White-throated Swift, Bushtit, a swallow species, Common Raven, American Crow, and Western Bluebird.
Report submitted by Matthew Smith (matt....@birdconservancy.org)
Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies information may be found at: http://www.birdconservancy.org/
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Site Description
Dinosaur 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 are always welcome.
The hawkwatch is generally staffed by volunteers from Bird Conservancy of the
Rockies 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 south
side of lot to 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.
Colorado, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 16, 2018 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 2 | 63 | 65 |
| Osprey | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 3 | 11 | 15 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 3 | 21 | 29 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 39 | 207 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| American Kestrel | 1 | 8 | 22 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 1 | 5 | 9 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 5 | 10 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 1 | 6 | 7 |
| Total: | 12 | 174 | 398 |
| Observation start time: | 07:45:00 |
| Observation end time: | 13:30:00 |
| Total observation time: | 5.75 hours |
| Official Counter | Joyce Commercon |
| Observers: |
Visitors:
Late in the morning, a fairly steady stream of visitors came on to the platform, mostly only for the view. One pair of hikers asked what birds had been seen and mentioned it would be a great place to watch for them; of course, this led to a brief but interesting conversation about HawkWatch and (spring) raptor monitoring as well as other topics such as what size prey a raptor might take. Also interested in “things geological”, they hoped to hike down to see the dinosaur footprints. Later in the afternoon, another pair of hikers also asked where the dinosaurs footprints were located. A determined trail runner ran the trail up and down several times, running up to and stopping briefly on the platform at least three times.
Weather:
It was a mostly cloudy day with scattered cloud-cover ranging from 60 to 70 percent most of the time but increasing to 90 percent by mid-afternoon. The winds, predominately from the east, were very mild in the morning but increased somewhat as the day progressed to low level Bft 3. Temperatures rose from 10 C to 19 C. Visibility was generally good, but an orange-tinged haze in the Denver Basin eventually spilled into and colored the whitish haze in the far southeastern valley.
Raptor Observations:
In the earlier part of the morning, most of the migrants tended to pass on the eastern side of the Ridge, while later in the watch, the migrants seemed to favor the western valley and ridges. The day leaned toward accipiters but the highlight was a dark-morph Red-tailed Hawk migrant. The local Red-tails were very scarce early in the watch but eventually made a few brief appearances. The local Turkey Vultures swept up and down the valleys and ridges, once in a group of seven. A local adult Golden Eagle came north over Rooney Valley, tailed by a pesky Common Raven that followed it very closely all the way to Green Mountain. A local adult Cooper's Hawk, with a full crop, was observed to carry then drop a thin stick (or heavy stalk of grass) over Rooney Valley before it headed west to the SubPeak area where it met up with another Cooper’s Hawk; they then circled there together.
Non-raptor Observations:
A Spotted Towhee sang loudly nearby for a good while in the morning. A pair of Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays shared the platform with me for almost a solid half-hour. One perched in the dead pine, waiting, while the other walked around carefully inspecting the platform gravel, occasionally grabbing up what I assumed were windfall juniper berries; rapid-fire cries of alarm erupted if I moved too quickly in any direction but then berry-hunting would recommence. Also seen or heard were Townsend's Solitaire, Black-billed Magpie, Western Meadowlark, Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's), American Robin, Black-capped Chickadee, White-throated Swift, Bushtit, a swallow species, Common Raven, American Crow, and Western Bluebird.
Report submitted by Matthew Smith (matt....@birdconservancy.org)
Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies information may be found at: http://www.birdconservancy.org/
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Site Description
Dinosaur 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 are always welcome.
The hawkwatch is generally staffed by volunteers from Bird Conservancy of the
Rockies 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 south
side of lot to 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.
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