This afternoon I joined official counter Jeanne Cimorelli and Tom Millard at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch. Early on, it was mostly uneventful, with a smattering of the usuals – Sharp-shinned Hawks, Coopers Hawks, Red-shouldered Hawks, and a Northern Harrier. But, just before 3:00, Jeanne located a number of distant birds… and they seemed to be kettling up. They were quite distant, just specs in the bins, but Jeanne got on the kettle with her scope and they were Turkey Vultures! Over the next 45 minutes, we watched as over 850 Turkey Vultures passed through, forming multiple massive kettles as they did so. It was pretty incredible! We surpassed last year’s total count for Turkey vultures in a mere 45 minutes. I believe the previous daily record for migrating TUVUs was around 200 birds; that record was shattered today. Photos don’t do it justice, but here’s several that I took as it was happening.
Matt,
There is no way to predict moments like this, but they are always a great experience. Good for you all! John
Yeah, I never would have predicted anything like that John, but boy did I enjoy it. Thanks for checking in. Matt
What an amazing sight. So glad you were there to capture it with the camera. Right place at the right time. Wonderful work Matt!
Yeah, it’s really great when the timing works out. Hard to capture what was going on totally with still shots, but I think the effect is pretty good in the pics. Thanks Dave!
Matt