Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies (18 Mar 2019) 19 Raptors
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Mar 18, 2019, 10:03:14 PM3/18/19
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Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Colorado, USA
Visitors:
Only two hikers (one with a puppy) came to the platform—but only for the view. There were more hikers on the trail than one might have expected given its muddy slushy slickness, which will likely be its condition again tomorrow.
Weather:
The day was partly sunny with about 70-percent cloud-cover that was mobile and occasionally translucent, with blue skies at the southern and western horizons. Mild winds, rarely reaching bft 3, were from the east-northeast. Visibility was barely 10 km and seemed to decrease slightly during the watch with haze beginning to be visible even just south of Mount Morrison. Patchy snow was scattered across the valleys and ridges on all sides. Temperatures rose from 2 C to 8 C.
Raptor Observations:
A stream of Red-tailed Hawks (and a couple other raptors) moved north over Rooney Valley and overtop Dinosaur Ridge from about 9:30am to 11:30am MST. The flow of migrants slowed somewhat during the afternoon and also shifted more toward the far western ridges. Highlights included, in the early morning, an adult Ferruginous Hawk coming up Rooney Valley just below eyelevel to the Ridge and, in the afternoon, a Sharp-shinned Hawk that circled up to the limit of naked-eye visibility overtop the platform before shooting north. Three local adult Red-tailed Hawks interacted, circling and tussling, in the afternoon, mostly west of the Ridge. Occasionally one would escort a local Golden Eagle or a northward-headed migrant. A pair of local Golden Eagles was seen a few times during the day, once circling together in the northern part of the west side valley.
Non-raptor Observations:
Also seen or heard were Black-billed Magpie, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay, American Crow, Slate-colored Dark-eyed Junco, Townsend's Solitaire, Common Raven, and Rock Pigeon.
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: Mar 18, 2019 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 2 | 8 | 8 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 12 | 46 | 46 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Buteo | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Unknown Raptor | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Total: | 19 | 63 | 63 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 14:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 6 hours |
| Official Counter | Joyce Commercon |
| Observers: |
Visitors:
Only two hikers (one with a puppy) came to the platform—but only for the view. There were more hikers on the trail than one might have expected given its muddy slushy slickness, which will likely be its condition again tomorrow.
Weather:
The day was partly sunny with about 70-percent cloud-cover that was mobile and occasionally translucent, with blue skies at the southern and western horizons. Mild winds, rarely reaching bft 3, were from the east-northeast. Visibility was barely 10 km and seemed to decrease slightly during the watch with haze beginning to be visible even just south of Mount Morrison. Patchy snow was scattered across the valleys and ridges on all sides. Temperatures rose from 2 C to 8 C.
Raptor Observations:
A stream of Red-tailed Hawks (and a couple other raptors) moved north over Rooney Valley and overtop Dinosaur Ridge from about 9:30am to 11:30am MST. The flow of migrants slowed somewhat during the afternoon and also shifted more toward the far western ridges. Highlights included, in the early morning, an adult Ferruginous Hawk coming up Rooney Valley just below eyelevel to the Ridge and, in the afternoon, a Sharp-shinned Hawk that circled up to the limit of naked-eye visibility overtop the platform before shooting north. Three local adult Red-tailed Hawks interacted, circling and tussling, in the afternoon, mostly west of the Ridge. Occasionally one would escort a local Golden Eagle or a northward-headed migrant. A pair of local Golden Eagles was seen a few times during the day, once circling together in the northern part of the west side valley.
Non-raptor Observations:
Also seen or heard were Black-billed Magpie, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay, American Crow, Slate-colored Dark-eyed Junco, Townsend's Solitaire, Common Raven, and Rock Pigeon.
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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