Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists (15 Mar 2026) Raptors
12 views
Skip to first unread message
rep...@hawkcount.org
Mar 15, 2026, 8:40:42 PM (10 hours ago) Mar 15
to cob...@googlegroups.com
Dinosaur Ridge - Denver Field Ornithologists
Golden, Colorado, USA
Visitors:
Visitors stayed home today- zero seen.
Weather:
It was a snowy and cold day on the ridge today with very limited visibility to start with. Precipitation wasn't originally predicted to linger for the day but alas, the predictions were wrong. The count was ended early at 1300 MST due to low visibility and high precipitation.
Raptor Observations:
One lone male American Kestrel was seen hovering and perched on a nearby phone line. Zero migrants were seen today. We had a nice variety of Dark-eyed Juncos today with Oregon, Slate-colored, Gray-headed, and Pink-sided all seen! Mountain Bluebirds also added some color to the otherwise white day.
Non-raptor Observations:
Northern Flicker 1, Woodhouse's Scrub Jay 1, Black-billed Magpie 1, Common Raven 3, Black-capped Chickadee 1, Mountain Bluebird 26, Dark-eyed Junco 4, Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 2, Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 1
Predictions:
Temperatures will pick up back up a bit tomorrow to a nice mild before we reach the heat that's expected at the end of the week. Winds are predicted to be a bit all over the place at a moderate breeze. The trail will likely be muddy!
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]
Count data submitted via Trektellen.org - [Project Details]
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, and American White Pelican. 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: Mar 15, 2026 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 32 | 32 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson's Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Mississippi Kite | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 0 | 54 | 54 |
| Observation start time: | 09:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 12:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 3 hours |
| Official Counter | Emma Riley, Soren Zappia |
| Observers: | Marina Prado-Echeagaray |
Visitors:
Visitors stayed home today- zero seen.
Weather:
It was a snowy and cold day on the ridge today with very limited visibility to start with. Precipitation wasn't originally predicted to linger for the day but alas, the predictions were wrong. The count was ended early at 1300 MST due to low visibility and high precipitation.
Raptor Observations:
One lone male American Kestrel was seen hovering and perched on a nearby phone line. Zero migrants were seen today. We had a nice variety of Dark-eyed Juncos today with Oregon, Slate-colored, Gray-headed, and Pink-sided all seen! Mountain Bluebirds also added some color to the otherwise white day.
Non-raptor Observations:
Northern Flicker 1, Woodhouse's Scrub Jay 1, Black-billed Magpie 1, Common Raven 3, Black-capped Chickadee 1, Mountain Bluebird 26, Dark-eyed Junco 4, Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 2, Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 1
Predictions:
Temperatures will pick up back up a bit tomorrow to a nice mild before we reach the heat that's expected at the end of the week. Winds are predicted to be a bit all over the place at a moderate breeze. The trail will likely be muddy!
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]
Count data submitted via Trektellen.org - [Project Details]
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, and American White Pelican. 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)
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages