Fort Smallwood Park (11 Apr 2026) 209 Raptors

[SUE RICCIARDI]

Fort Smallwood Park

Pasadena, Maryland, USA

Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 11, 2026
Species	Day's Count	Month Total	Season Total
Black Vulture	0	24	83
Turkey Vulture	158	1494	7168
Osprey	9	73	189
Bald Eagle	2	16	62
Northern Harrier	3	15	21
Sharp-shinned Hawk	21	91	139
Cooper's Hawk	8	32	81
American Goshawk	0	0	0
Red-shouldered Hawk	0	17	255
Broad-winged Hawk	0	4	4
Red-tailed Hawk	2	8	66
Rough-legged Hawk	0	0	0
Golden Eagle	0	0	0
American Kestrel	6	35	70
Merlin	0	8	9
Peregrine Falcon	0	0	0
Unknown Accipitrine	0	2	4
Unknown Buteo	0	2	6
Unknown Falcon	0	1	2
Unknown Eagle	0	0	0
Unknown Raptor	0	4	5
Swallow-tailed Kite	0	1	1
Total:	209	1827	8165

Observation start time:	9:00 am Daylight Time
Observation end time:	3:45 pm
Total observation time:	6.75 hours
Official Counter	Chris Reed
Observers:	Hal Wierenga, Hugh Hoffman, Lynn Davidson, Sue Ricciardi

Visitors: Wild Birds birding group visited a short time

Weather:
Partly cloudy becoming sunny; 63-68 degrees; good visibility with some haze early; winds northerly, often with a northwest component, 8-16 mph gusting to 25 mph

Raptor Observations:
An enjoyable day of hawkwatching with the flight staying on the low side due to the NW in the winds. Ospreys, accipitrines and kestrels the more numerous species besides Turkey Vultures. All three harriers were male gray ghosts and gave good looks.

Non-raptor Observations:
First Chimney Swifts (3) of the season, Surf Scoter 9. Bugs, seemingly flies and bees, flying north past us, maybe at one per second.

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Report submitted by Sue Ricciardi (susi...@comcast.net)
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]

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Site Description
Fort Smallwood Park is located on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay at the
mouth of the Patapsco River, 11 miles south of Baltimore, MD. Best winds are
from the southwest.