Kiptopeke Hawkwatch
Tip of Virginia's Eastern Shore, Virginia, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 03, 2012
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
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Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
Osprey 2 15 2873
Bald Eagle 3 8 199
Northern Harrier 15 38 534
Sharp-shinned Hawk 38 194 2603
Cooper's Hawk 6 28 1375
Northern Goshawk 0 1 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 1 31
Broad-winged Hawk 1 1 275
Red-tailed Hawk 11 19 153
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Golden Eagle 2 2 4
American Kestrel 1 12 3634
Merlin 4 21 887
Peregrine Falcon 0 1 749
Unknown Accipiter 0 0 45
Unknown Buteo 0 0 2
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 1 9
Unknown Raptor 0 0 23
Swallow-tailed Kite 0 0 1
Total: 84 342 13399
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Observation start time: 06:30:00
Observation end time: 16:00:00
Total observation time: 9.5 hours
Official Counter: Steve Kolbe
Observers: Ned Brinkley, Steve Thornhill
Weather:
Strong northwest winds made it a bit chilly. A mix of heavy clouds, fluffy
clouds, and clear skies today.
Raptor Observations:
Two Golden Eagles today! Both juveniles, the first passed by in the late
morning with a "transition" Bald Eagle diving on it. The second bird went
past in the late afternoon and had much less white on the underwing.
Other than the eagles, the main story was once again the large northbound
flight of (hunting?) Sharp-shinned Hawks. The early morning featured quite
a few raptors milling around, but activity slowed pretty quickly.
Non-raptor Observations:
Today's highlight was a group of four American White Pelicans that was
detected soaring to the southeast over Route 13.
Right now, there are a ton of birds around. American Robins, Pine Siskins,
Tree Swallows, blackbirds, Dark-eyed Juncos, Hermit Thrushes, etc. Come on
over to enjoy them all!
Predictions:
Mostly cloudy tomorrow with lighter northwest winds. Sounds like more
Golden Eagles?
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Report submitted by Brian Taber (Taberzz@xxxxxxx)
Kiptopeke State Park information may be found at:
www.cvwo.org