Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch
Waynesboro, Virginia, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Aug 24, 2008
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
BV 0 0 0
TV 0 0 0
OS 1 2 2
BE 1 4 4
NH 0 0 0
SS 2 9 9
CH 0 1 1
NG 0 0 0
RS 0 0 0
BW 66 231 231
RT 0 0 0
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: 70 247 247
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Observation start time: 07:30:00
Observation end time: 15:30:00
Total observation time: 8 hours
Official Counter: Vic Laubach
Observers: Brenda Tekin, Rose Thomas
Visitors:
Bob and Aline Cross (from Ivy) with their daughter Eva and her new hiking
boots!
Weather:
A very nice day, similar to yesterday but warmer and no fog in the morning.
The 7:30am temp was 24*C with a high reaching 32*C. Lots of clouds today
again but also mixed with blue sky. The sky turned pretty dark between
12-1pm with a couple of sprinkles which coincided with no birds flying.
Humidity was fairly low starting at 58% and ending at 44%. Light winds from
the SSE at 6-11km/hr.
Raptor Observations:
One Osprey observed in the afternoon followed soon after by an adult Bald
Eagle at 2:14pm (only 15 minutes after Brenda and Rose left!). The
Broad-Winged Hawks were flying well in the afternoon with an hourly count
of: 1 (9-10am), 6 (10-11am), 9 (11-12pm), 0 (12-1pm), 14 (1-2pm), 34
(2-3pm), 2 (3-3:30pm). Like yesterday, ALL BW hawks were flying high in
very loose groups on the east side of the mountain. Interestingly, both
Sharp-Shinned Hawks had quite a different flight path, rising above the
ridge to the north and heading south on the west side of the mountain.
Non-raptor Observations:
1 Hummingbird and 1 Monarch. A small group of Cedar Waxwings.
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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
Directions to site:
The Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch is held on the grounds of the Inn at Afton,
located on the southern side of Rockfish Gap in the Blue Ridge Mountains,
just above where I-64 (exit 99) intersects with the southern end of the
Skyline Drive and the northern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway, just east of
Waynesboro, VA and approximately 22 miles west of Charlottesville, VA.
