Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies (06 May 2019) 3 Raptors
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May 6, 2019, 7:42:03 PM5/6/19
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Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Colorado, USA
Visitors:
A few visitors came up for the view only. One lady who had recently moved here from Maine was curious to know about the hiking trails visible from the platform.
Weather:
The early morning's mostly-cloudy skies, still with a lot of thin, translucent clouds, eventually gave way to 100-percent cloud-cover of thick clouds, with heavy gray ones moving in to the west and north and bringing a bit of light rain. Winds initially from the east and east-northeast (bft 2) shifted by 10:30am MST to come from the northeast (bft 3). A constant haze lessened visibility somewhat to the south and noticeably affected the view of Mount Morrison, Cabrini Shrine Hill and Green Mountain. Temperatures rose from 14 C to 18 C then dropped to 16 C as the wind shifted and the heavier clouds moved in. Thunder was heard as the watch ended.
Raptor Observations:
All three migrants came along Dinosaur Ridge and were readily visible if not particularly close, just the right distance to have time to enjoy them as they passed by. The adult, light-morph Broad-winged Hawk was a pleasant surprise. There was very little local raptor activity noted, just a handful of sightings of a few of local Turkey Vultures and a couple local Red-tailed Hawks.
Non-raptor Observations:
There was quite a bit of non-raptor activity, at least until the sky darkened. A male Blue-gray Gnatcatcher called very insistently for several minutes near the platform, finally popping up on a bare branch of a shrub, where a female Blue-gray Gnatcatcher soon came from the opposite direction to join him; they both took off north up the Ridge. He (or maybe another male Blue-gray Gnatcatcher) was seen and heard few times again near the platform, but he was calmer by then. Two brightly-colored adult male Western Tanagers stopped briefly together on the dead tree southeast of the platform before heading north. A Western Kingbird flew north along the west side of the Ridge. A Western Meadowlark crossed the platform as it headed east, arching down into Rooney Valley. (Up on the platform, I usually only hear these guys!) At least two, and likely a few more, Audubon's Yellow-rumped Warblers moved about the Ridge during the morning. Also seen or heard were White-throated Swift, Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Black-billed Magpie, Spotted Towhee, Tree Swallow, Red-winged Blackbird, Blue Jay, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay, American Goldfinch, Common Raven, American Robin, and Violet-green Swallow.
Predictions:
Tuesday, May 7, is the last official day of the 2019 Dinosaur Ridge HawkWatch season. Thank you to all the counters who took the time to collect and enter the data as well as share observations about migrating and local raptors' movement and behavior. I also enjoy reading everyone's daily reports; we counters are rarely together on the platform, but we do share a passion. Thank you also to all those who came up to help spot and watch raptors; more eyes on the skies allows us to catch more migrants.
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: May 06, 2019 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 14 | 119 |
| Osprey | 0 | 2 | 27 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 1 | 5 | 60 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 1 | 4 | 98 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 7 | 323 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 3 | 59 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Total: | 3 | 38 | 808 |
| Observation start time: | 07:45:00 |
| Observation end time: | 11:15:00 |
| Total observation time: | 3.5 hours |
| Official Counter | Joyce Commercon |
| Observers: |
Visitors:
A few visitors came up for the view only. One lady who had recently moved here from Maine was curious to know about the hiking trails visible from the platform.
Weather:
The early morning's mostly-cloudy skies, still with a lot of thin, translucent clouds, eventually gave way to 100-percent cloud-cover of thick clouds, with heavy gray ones moving in to the west and north and bringing a bit of light rain. Winds initially from the east and east-northeast (bft 2) shifted by 10:30am MST to come from the northeast (bft 3). A constant haze lessened visibility somewhat to the south and noticeably affected the view of Mount Morrison, Cabrini Shrine Hill and Green Mountain. Temperatures rose from 14 C to 18 C then dropped to 16 C as the wind shifted and the heavier clouds moved in. Thunder was heard as the watch ended.
Raptor Observations:
All three migrants came along Dinosaur Ridge and were readily visible if not particularly close, just the right distance to have time to enjoy them as they passed by. The adult, light-morph Broad-winged Hawk was a pleasant surprise. There was very little local raptor activity noted, just a handful of sightings of a few of local Turkey Vultures and a couple local Red-tailed Hawks.
Non-raptor Observations:
There was quite a bit of non-raptor activity, at least until the sky darkened. A male Blue-gray Gnatcatcher called very insistently for several minutes near the platform, finally popping up on a bare branch of a shrub, where a female Blue-gray Gnatcatcher soon came from the opposite direction to join him; they both took off north up the Ridge. He (or maybe another male Blue-gray Gnatcatcher) was seen and heard few times again near the platform, but he was calmer by then. Two brightly-colored adult male Western Tanagers stopped briefly together on the dead tree southeast of the platform before heading north. A Western Kingbird flew north along the west side of the Ridge. A Western Meadowlark crossed the platform as it headed east, arching down into Rooney Valley. (Up on the platform, I usually only hear these guys!) At least two, and likely a few more, Audubon's Yellow-rumped Warblers moved about the Ridge during the morning. Also seen or heard were White-throated Swift, Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Black-billed Magpie, Spotted Towhee, Tree Swallow, Red-winged Blackbird, Blue Jay, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay, American Goldfinch, Common Raven, American Robin, and Violet-green Swallow.
Predictions:
Tuesday, May 7, is the last official day of the 2019 Dinosaur Ridge HawkWatch season. Thank you to all the counters who took the time to collect and enter the data as well as share observations about migrating and local raptors' movement and behavior. I also enjoy reading everyone's daily reports; we counters are rarely together on the platform, but we do share a passion. Thank you also to all those who came up to help spot and watch raptors; more eyes on the skies allows us to catch more migrants.
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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