Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch, VA
Virginia, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Aug 15, 2004
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
BV 0 0 0
TV 0 0 0
OS 1 1 1
BE 1 1 1
NH 0 0 0
SS 3 3 3
CH 1 1 1
NG 0 0 0
RS 0 0 0
BW 41 41 41
RT 3 3 3
RL 0 0 0
GE 0 0 0
AK 0 0 0
ML 0 0 0
PG 0 0 0
UA 0 0 0
UB 0 0 0
UF 0 0 0
UE 0 0 0
UR 0 0 0
Total: 50 50 50
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Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 16:15:00
Total observation time: 8.25 hours
Official Counter: Brenda Tekin
Observers: Gordy Adamski, Wm. (Bill) Gallagher
Weather:
What a welcome change! Lots of sunshine and cloud cover and it seemed more
typical of a mid-September day.
Wind: WNW 29-38km/h changing to out of SE with diminishing winds.
Temp: High 22.5c
Humidity: 69% decreasing to 62%
Bar Pressure: 952
Cloud cover: mostly cloudy to cloudy (by 4 p.m. dark gray storm clouds
were moving in.)
Very hazy both sides of ridge early morning. With shift in winds to out
of SE, haze diminished by early afternoon.
Observations:
WOW! Hard to believe this was only the 3rd day of our season and
mid-August at that. This was certainly one for the records.
First official migrant of the season, a BW at 9:25 a.m. (EST) First few
hours very difficult to see low birds on the eastern side of the gap due
to thick haze.
BWs were coming mostly in small groups 4-5 at a time and they were NOT in
a hurry!!!
At one point we had 4 RT's soaring together; one, an imm. took off heading
south. Two adults were later observed heading south following the ridge.
First season's Osprey was spotted way out to the NE at 3:06 p.m. (EST).
No sooner had I totalled up the days count and packing it up I happened to
see a vulture flapping coming low across the interstate toward NE corner
of the building. Looking back to north ridge I saw four "black" birds and
one flashed a bright "white" tail. The seasons's first Bald Eagle, and
adult, low not even half a glass off top of ridge as it sailed across the
interstate and flew overhead at 3:52 p.m. (EST). Within less than 1 minute
a BW came across just a little above eye level, a close view! The last
bird for the day was a single BW a little after 4 p.m. (EST) after I had
tallied the sheet a second time.
Earlier in the day we observed a BW that pursued a vulture and actually
"latched" on to it's back.
Amer.Tree Swallow - small bands throughout the day
Barn Swallow
Common Raven - resident - a group of four milling around
Humminbird: 5 (unidentified)
Eastern Swallowtail
Cabbage White
several species of dragonfly (enjoyed by the BWs!)
Predictions:
More of the same and a bit warmer.
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Report submitted by Brenda Tekin (bt8x@xxxxxxxxxxxx)
Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch, VA information may be found at:
http://home.ntelos.net/~btkin/rockfish_gap_hawk_watch
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