Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies (11 Mar 2020) 8 Raptors
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Mar 11, 2020, 7:24:04 PM3/11/20
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Dinosaur Ridge - Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Colorado, USA
Visitors:
Austin Stokes, from Massachusetts, arrived early at about 7:30am MST, collecting his 15th HawkWatch site and hoping to see some western-specific raptors. Jim Low also came up a bit later and helped spot. Their help was appreciated since many of the raptors spotted, migrant or local, were rather distant. One hiker that stopped by did express an interest in what we were doing and seeing.
Weather:
Sunny blue skies with minimal cloud-cover (20-30%) that rested mostly along the horizons until after noon. Warm, with temperatures rising from 12 C to 15.5 C. Winds were from the East and Southeast at a fairly steady bft 3. Western Ridges had a fair amount of patchy snow. Visibility was generally about 10 km, but visibility seemed less than 10 km directly to the west due to an apparent haze past the western ridges.
Raptor Observations:
Nearly all of the migrants were along or on the far side of the western ridges. These distant identifications were further hampered especially in late morning by a haze that seemed to hang just past these ridges. A Sub-adult Bald Eagle, possibly a Sub-adult II (in its third-year), was the first migrant of the morning along these ridges, and although rather distant, it was luckily not obscured by any haze. One of the Red-tailed Hawk migrants was almost dismissed as a local when it was spotted circling up over I70 just after noon, but then a true local RTHA dove at it with such violence that it almost winged it; the shaken RTHA stopped circling upward and headed north immediately.
Non-raptor Observations:
After noon, a Common Raven that had landed in the dead tree just southwest of the platform was observed to hop about inspecting the bare branches and then testing them; it eventually broke off two medium-sized specimens (each less than a foot long) and proceeded to carry them in its beak to another bare-branched tree just to the north, where it could be heard again breaking off branches. Soon this same Raven flew, with an empty beak, south along the Ridge only to return north carrying a decent-sized, lightly-branched stick. Apparently it had finally found just the right one. Several bluebirds moved north along the Ridge today; at least one was seen to be a Mountain Bluebird and a couple were identified by their chirruping as Western Bluebirds. Also seen or heard today were Townsend's Solitaire, American Robin, House Finch, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay, Slate-colored Junco, Bushtit, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Black-billed Magpie.
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 11, 2020 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 1 | 6 | 6 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 4 | 32 | 32 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Merlin | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Buteo | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Total: | 8 | 49 | 49 |
| Observation start time: | 09:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 13:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 4 hours |
| Official Counter | Joyce Commercon |
| Observers: | Jim Low |
Visitors:
Austin Stokes, from Massachusetts, arrived early at about 7:30am MST, collecting his 15th HawkWatch site and hoping to see some western-specific raptors. Jim Low also came up a bit later and helped spot. Their help was appreciated since many of the raptors spotted, migrant or local, were rather distant. One hiker that stopped by did express an interest in what we were doing and seeing.
Weather:
Sunny blue skies with minimal cloud-cover (20-30%) that rested mostly along the horizons until after noon. Warm, with temperatures rising from 12 C to 15.5 C. Winds were from the East and Southeast at a fairly steady bft 3. Western Ridges had a fair amount of patchy snow. Visibility was generally about 10 km, but visibility seemed less than 10 km directly to the west due to an apparent haze past the western ridges.
Raptor Observations:
Nearly all of the migrants were along or on the far side of the western ridges. These distant identifications were further hampered especially in late morning by a haze that seemed to hang just past these ridges. A Sub-adult Bald Eagle, possibly a Sub-adult II (in its third-year), was the first migrant of the morning along these ridges, and although rather distant, it was luckily not obscured by any haze. One of the Red-tailed Hawk migrants was almost dismissed as a local when it was spotted circling up over I70 just after noon, but then a true local RTHA dove at it with such violence that it almost winged it; the shaken RTHA stopped circling upward and headed north immediately.
Non-raptor Observations:
After noon, a Common Raven that had landed in the dead tree just southwest of the platform was observed to hop about inspecting the bare branches and then testing them; it eventually broke off two medium-sized specimens (each less than a foot long) and proceeded to carry them in its beak to another bare-branched tree just to the north, where it could be heard again breaking off branches. Soon this same Raven flew, with an empty beak, south along the Ridge only to return north carrying a decent-sized, lightly-branched stick. Apparently it had finally found just the right one. Several bluebirds moved north along the Ridge today; at least one was seen to be a Mountain Bluebird and a couple were identified by their chirruping as Western Bluebirds. Also seen or heard today were Townsend's Solitaire, American Robin, House Finch, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay, Slate-colored Junco, Bushtit, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Black-billed Magpie.
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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