Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists (27 Sep 2025) 2 Raptors
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Sep 27, 2025, 11:09:37 PMSep 27
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Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists
Golden, Colorado, USA
Visitors:
A Chinese woman hiker came up and asked what I was looking for, and I discussed raptor migration and she asked me a number of questions, Her companion, an older white gentleman then came up, and he seemed to want to impress me with his knowledge of raptors. He said some decades ago he was up here and the paid counter whose salary he mentioned too, told him that he had seen 27,000 raptors in one day! I told him that there is no such record at this site in Hawkcount, and the maximum seen in a whole season would be around 6500, He then dropped his number to 2700 a day. He then claimed that hawks were not tasty to eat. I told him that he should be careful, or he could get arrested under the Migration Bird Treaty! Amusing.
Weather:
The forecast for the winds aloft was 29 km/hr from the south, and so it was the watch, temperature 17 - 20 C, low humidity 25-33%, cloud cover minimal initially only to the south and by noon MDT there was a bank of cumulus clouds to the west, visibility 24 km. With the south winds, no cloud cover with increasing thermalic cumulus clouds (my neologism, the -ic suffix indicating 'pertaining to') from the west, and a good soaring forecast with lift of 3.9 m/sec, and maximum height of thermals 8989 feet above ground level, I knew it was in for a tough time finding migrants, though I hoped to see a few raptors before they got too high to be seen even with binoculars.
Raptor Observations:
Exploratory fall count 2025. See: https://groups.google.com/g/cobirds/c/Oznn4uc6MBk There were only 2 adults RT I found migrating today at 10:28 AM, they acted like non-migrants, dropping below the ridge top, then I saw them over Mount Morrison to the SW, and they took off to the SSE. Non migrant raptors: RT 2, TV 3.
Non-raptor Observations:
Blue Jay 3, American Robin 3, Northern Flicker 10, Common Raven 3, House Finch 2. 3 paragliders.
Predictions:
The winds aloft are expected to be from the WSW at 14 km/hr. The surface forecast is for light winds from the west, gradually changing over to NE with gusts to 18 mph by 2:00 PM, but with better cloud cover 40% at 9:00 AM, and increasing.
Report submitted by Official Counter of the day shown above (dinor...@gmail.com)
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at: www.dinosaurridgehawkwatch.org
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Site Description
Dinosaur 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
Hawk Counter(s) and volunteers from March through early May.
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)
Golden, Colorado, USA
| Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 27, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 11 | 15 |
| Osprey | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 13 | 18 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 20 | 22 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 17 | 17 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 2 | 18 | 31 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 18 | 68 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 4 | 6 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 29 | 35 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 6 | 8 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 5 | 6 |
| Short-eared Owl | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 2 | 149 | 237 |
| Observation start time: | 08:45:00 |
| Observation end time: | 11:15:00 |
| Total observation time: | 2.5 hours |
| Official Counter | Ajit Antony |
| Observers: |
Visitors:
A Chinese woman hiker came up and asked what I was looking for, and I discussed raptor migration and she asked me a number of questions, Her companion, an older white gentleman then came up, and he seemed to want to impress me with his knowledge of raptors. He said some decades ago he was up here and the paid counter whose salary he mentioned too, told him that he had seen 27,000 raptors in one day! I told him that there is no such record at this site in Hawkcount, and the maximum seen in a whole season would be around 6500, He then dropped his number to 2700 a day. He then claimed that hawks were not tasty to eat. I told him that he should be careful, or he could get arrested under the Migration Bird Treaty! Amusing.
Weather:
The forecast for the winds aloft was 29 km/hr from the south, and so it was the watch, temperature 17 - 20 C, low humidity 25-33%, cloud cover minimal initially only to the south and by noon MDT there was a bank of cumulus clouds to the west, visibility 24 km. With the south winds, no cloud cover with increasing thermalic cumulus clouds (my neologism, the -ic suffix indicating 'pertaining to') from the west, and a good soaring forecast with lift of 3.9 m/sec, and maximum height of thermals 8989 feet above ground level, I knew it was in for a tough time finding migrants, though I hoped to see a few raptors before they got too high to be seen even with binoculars.
Raptor Observations:
Exploratory fall count 2025. See: https://groups.google.com/g/cobirds/c/Oznn4uc6MBk There were only 2 adults RT I found migrating today at 10:28 AM, they acted like non-migrants, dropping below the ridge top, then I saw them over Mount Morrison to the SW, and they took off to the SSE. Non migrant raptors: RT 2, TV 3.
Non-raptor Observations:
Blue Jay 3, American Robin 3, Northern Flicker 10, Common Raven 3, House Finch 2. 3 paragliders.
Predictions:
The winds aloft are expected to be from the WSW at 14 km/hr. The surface forecast is for light winds from the west, gradually changing over to NE with gusts to 18 mph by 2:00 PM, but with better cloud cover 40% at 9:00 AM, and increasing.
Report submitted by Official Counter of the day shown above (dinor...@gmail.com)
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists information may be found at: www.dinosaurridgehawkwatch.org
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Site Description
Dinosaur 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
Hawk Counter(s) and volunteers from March through early May.
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)
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