SUPER QUICK POST: We have family visiting for the weekend, so no time for a real post, but I had an immature GOLDEN EAGLE at Mount Peter Hawkwatch this afternoon! The bird made a relatively low pass over the viewing platform, allowing for incredible views and and decent photos. Full hawkwatch report to follow tomorrow!
Mount Peter Ski Area is known as “The Friendly One”. I think the same can be said for Mount Peter Hawkwatch, where the birding is great but camaraderie is awesome too. I was basically rained out yesterday (I managed only one relatively rain-free hour at the watch, where I had 5 Sharp-shinned Hawks stream through), so I headed up to Mount Pete this morning get my fix. There was a strong WNW wind and I was hoping for a good flight and maybe even a Golden Eagle. I wasn’t the only one that had that idea – Mt. Pete counters Judy Cinquina, Tom Millard, and Denise Farrell all joined me and the official counter of the day, Ken Witkowski on the viewing platform. There were also several visitors and they all seemed to be serious hawkwatchers too. It was a great group and I really enjoyed my time up there today. Birding often serves as an escape for me, time to get away from everything and everyone, but hawkwatching is one of the exceptions to this and the social aspect is often just as rewarding as the birding.
As for the hawks – the wind was very strong up on the mountain, making it difficult to keep my binoculars steady and early on, I wondered if the wind was too strong for a good flight. Thankfully, that was not the case. In the 4 hours I spent on the mountain, we had a good Sharp-shinned Hawk flight with over 40 Sharpies being counted. Red-tailed Hawks and Red-shouldered Hawks were also moving a little bit, with 10 and 5 birds counted respectively. It was interesting to us that on a day with such strong winds, it was the little Sharpie that was braving the wind, rather than the larger birds. We had only two Bald Eagles while I was there, one was a local bird that headed north, and the other migrated. As for Golden Eagles, I’m sure one migrated through shortly after I left the watch (as of this writing the report had not been completed). It was a great day at the watch and it made up nicely for missing my day of counting yesterday.
I was not very optimistic as I headed out to do my Saturday of counting at Mount Peter Hawkwatch. The wind direction was not going to be favorable, and additionally, the forecast was for clear blue skies all day, which is a hawkwatcher’s worst sky. I was pleasantly surprised to have a pretty good flight in spite of the adverse conditions. I had a total of 52 migrating raptors, most of which were Sharp-shinned Hawks. The highlight of the day was getting absolutely killer looks at a couple of adult Red-shouldered Hawks in the scope as they migrated through. Big thanks to Denise Farrell who helped me out for most of the day. Here’s my report:
Official Counter: Matt Zeitler
Observers: Denise Farrell
Visitors:
Pam Bryant and Joe Zera
Weather:
Sunny with almost no clouds. Gentle winds from the east early on and shifting to the south. Temperatures ranged from 6 to 19 degrees Celsius.
Raptor Observations:
-One immature Bald Eagle -One unknown, one immature, and 3 adult Red-shouldered Hawks. -One unknown American Kestrel
Non-raptor Observations:
Other species: Cedar Waxwing (30), American Crow (13), Common Raven (4), Black-capped Chickadee (6), Ruby-crowned Kinglet (1), Blue Jay (25), Canada Goose (11), Northern Cardinal (1), American Goldfinch (5), White-breasted Nuthatch (1), Red-breasted Nuthatch (1), Blackpoll Warbler (1), Eastern Bluebird (2), Yellow-rumped Warbler (4), American Robin (2), House Finch (1), Red-bellied Woodpecker (2), Ring-billed Gull (4), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (1).
I counted at Mount Peter Hawkwatch today, and it was a pretty good day. The rain held off and the heavy cloud cover kept the birds low. Actually, it was a really good morning with many birds flying very low and giving excellent looks, but then the afternoon was less productive. Kyle Dudgeon is home from college for the weekend and he spent most of the day helping me out with his young eyes. We had two Sharp-shinned Hawks take a run at the owl, one of which flew right at Kyle’s head, turning off at the very last second. In the early afternoon Maria Loukeris and Heather Thoma stopped by and brought the best songbirds of the day; we had a Blue-headed Vireo, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and a Golden-crowned Kinglet. To see more data on Mount Peter or any other hawkwatch, you can visit Hawkcount. Here’s my report for the day.
Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 15:30:00
Total observation time: 7.5 hours
Official Counter Matt Zeitler
Visitors:
Kyle Dudgeon, Maria Loukeris, and Heather Thoma.
Weather:
Very cloudy with a very slight wind from the south. Temperatures ranged from 13 to 20 degrees Celsius.
Raptor Observations:
It was a fun day at the watch with most birds flying quite low. Two Sharp-shinned Hawks and one Merlin took a pass at the owl, giving really great looks. One immature Northern Harrier and one unknown American Kestrel.
Non-raptor Observations:
Other Species: Black-capped Chickadee (4), Tufted Titmouse (3), Blue Jay (65), Red-bellied Woodpecker (1), European Starling (14), American Crow (2), Common Raven (2), Eastern Bluebird (3), Cedar Waxwing (30), Northern Flicker (2), American Robin (72), White-breasted Nuthatch (1), Red-breasted Nuthatch (1), Red-winged Blackbird (18), American Goldfinch (16), Mourning Dove (3), Double-crested Cormorant (3), Eastern Phoebe (1), Pileated Woodpecker (1), Eastern Towhee (1), Blue-headed Vireo (1), Golden-crowned Kinglet (1), Ruby-crowned Kinglet (1), and Monarch Butterfly (2).
I had a pretty good day at Mount Peter Hawkwatch today, especially early in the morning while there was a good northwest wind and heavy cloud cover. I had 435 migrating hawks, with 407 of them being Broad-winged Hawks. I had many visitors today, and I want to thank them because they were instrumental in finding many of the raptors, especially once the clouds had cleared and the birds were harder to locate. Here’s my report for the day:
Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 16:00:00
Total observation time: 8 hours
Official Counter Matt Zeitler
Observers: Rob Stone
Visitors:
Luke Driscoll, Thomas Driscoll, Mike Limatoli, Sue Dougherty, Peter & Glyn Nixon, Anne and Phil Ribolow, and Matt Vrydacjis.
Weather:
Cloudy and cool for the first hour and a half of the watch, then nearly cloudless and warm for the remainder. Wind from the northwest for most of the day. Temperatures ranged from 13 to 21 degrees Celsius.
Raptor Observations:
One adult and one immature Bald Eagle, one unknown Northern Harrier, one unknown Red-shouldered Hawk, and one male American Kestrel.
Non-raptor Observations:
Non Raptor Species: Highlight was a flock of approximately 30 Double-crested Cormorants that passed through, which was very interesting to watch. Other species: Blue Jay (85), Black-capped Chickadee (2), Red-breasted Nuthatch (1), White-breasted Nuthatch (1), Common Raven (2), American Crow (4), Northern Flicker (1), American Goldfinch (2), Ring-billed Gull (7), Chimney Swift (2), Cape May Warbler (2).
Things are starting to heat up at Mount Peter Hawkwatch; right now is prime time for Broad-winged Hawk migration. In the past three days they have counted over 1,300 migrating BWHAs. I was up on the mountain on Tuesday and although I did get some birds, I didn’t have any kettles of Broadies. Today was a different story, I got my first taste of the Broad-winged Hawk migration, seeing two smaller kettles pass over the viewing platform, one with 38 birds and the other with 48 birds. I’m looking forward to seeing how many Broadies we will get this year!
On a side note, I was out of commission last weekend as I was away on a golf trip in Vermont. This weekend we are spending an extended weekend up in the Adirondacks. I plan on doing plenty of birding while I’m there, so I will certainly post about it next Thursday when we return.
The hawkwatch season at Mount Peter finally began this past Thursday. I made my first visit on Friday, joining the official counter for the day, Denise Farrell in the early afternoon. Raptor migration was on the slow side for most of the day, but she had been entertained by the several RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES that were in the area. I was excited to hear about these birds because I did not have them in Orange County for the year. It took a little while, but one finally made an brief appearance, I didn’t get any photos, but still, I was happy. Meanwhile, the hawks were starting to move through. In the 2 1/2 hours I was there, we had 22 raptors migrate through, giving Denise a total of 27 for the day. The highlight for me was a ‘mini-kettle’ of five Broad-winged Hawks observed over the valley.
Today was my first day of the season as official counter. Right off the bat I knew it could be a good day when I had two very close Red-breasted Nuthatches on the trail from the parking lot to the viewing platform. And I was able to get some photos!
Being so early in the year, I figured I would not have any company. I could not have been more wrong. I had plenty of help, especially early in the day, with visits from Rob Stone, Beverly Robertson, Will Test, Diane Held, Maria Loukeris, Sharon Ayling, Tom Mitchell, and PJ Singh. It was a pretty good day especially for being so early in the season; I had a total of 31 migrating raptors in 7 hours. The highlight for me was watching a local adult Bald Eagle escort an immature migrant Bald Eagle through the area. Once the young bird had gone far enough, the adult turned back and headed north. Here is my report for the day:
Official Counter: Matt Zeitler
Observers: Beverly Robertson, Rob Stone, Will Test
Visitors:
Sharon Ayling, Tom Mitchell, Maria Loukeris, Diane Held, and PJ Singh.
Weather:
Warm, sunny with clouds. Gentle winds mostly out of the North/Northeast. Temperatures ranged from 18 to 22 degrees Celsius.
Raptor Observations:
Migrating Raptors: One unknown American Kestrel migrated in the first hour. In the 6th hour an adult Bald Eagle escorted an immature Bald Eagle through the territory. The immature migrated and the adult went back north. Non-migrating Raptors: Two local Red-tailed Hawks and many local Turkey Vultures and Black Vultures.
Non-raptor Observations:
Other bird species observed: Blue Jay (15), Red-breasted Nuthatch (3), Cedar Waxwing (24), Common Raven (1), American Robin (18), American Crow (3), American Goldfinch (15), Gray Catbird (2), Red-bellied Woodpecker (2), Scarlet Tanager (1), Black-capped Chickadee (4), Northern Flicker (2), Rock Pigeon (1), Ruby-throated Hummingbird (3), Pileated Woodpecker (1), Chimney Swift (3).
SHOREBIRD UPDATE: I’ve also checked 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary for new shorebirds the past couple of days. The only new birds that I have observed were a couple of SEMI-PALMATED PLOVERS. I have not been in the black dirt but have received reports that Buff-breasted Sandpipers and American Golden-Plovers are still being seen.
In an effort to beat the heat and catch the good light, Kyle picked me up at my house at 5:30 this morning. We loaded up the kayaks and headed for Morningside Park, which is undoubtedly the best local spot to photograph shorebirds. We arrived just after 6:30 and the air was relatively cool and the light was perfect. We paddled out to the islands where throughout the morning we had 5 species of shorebird:
Semipalmated Sandpiper (2)
Least Sandpiper (6)
Wilson’s Snipe (1)
Solitary Sandpiper (1)
Spotted Sandpiper (1)
As usual, the peeps were super cooperative for photos. The other birds not so much, although I was able to get one shot of the snipe. We spent some time shooting the peeps and also just paddling around the lake to see what other birds might be around – we totaled 27 species on the lake for the morning.
On our way back we stopped at the Bashakill; I had to meet up with Linda Lou Bartle and we figured we’d do some quick birding while we were there. Surprisingly, it was a great morning for raptors there, we had:
Turkey Vulture (1)
Red-tailed Hawk (1)
Red-shouldered Hawk (3)
Broad-winged Hawk (2)
Cooper’s Hawk (1)
Bald Eagle (3)
Osprey (1)
You know with all those raptors that Kyle and I were both very happy! Hawkwatch starts in less than 3 weeks!
When this Red-tailed Hawk actually took flight TOWARDS me, it was so unexpected that I almost panicked. I picked up the bird fairly early as it took flight (shots #1 and #2). Then I lost focus for a moment but was able to get it back again as the bird came closer (shots #3, #4, and #5). After shot #5, I lost focus again, but this time I think the bird may have been too close for my focus setting. Pretty exciting to get an opportunity like this and to not completely blow it!
I met up with Kyle Dudgeon this morning to try to photograph Peregrine Falcons. The lighting was tough, so with the exception of a few photos such as the one at the top of this post, we ended up having more success shooting video with the iPhone through my spotting scope. We ended up with what I think is some remarkable footage; I’ve included three short clips in this post. The first one shows the birds mating, which was incredible to see live and Kyle and I were flipping out:
The male left the area for a short while, successfully hunted, and then came back with prey. In this video he eats a portion of the prey and then takes off to share the remainder with the female:
and finally, here is a very short clip of the female finishing up preening and taking flight, flying out of view and then cutting right in front of the scope again.