Snickers Gap
20 Miles West of Leesburg, Virginia, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 15, 2011
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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 0 1 242
Bald Eagle 0 40 185
Northern Harrier 0 23 102
Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 65 1396
Cooper's Hawk 0 8 187
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 85 131
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 37520
Red-tailed Hawk 2 336 554
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Golden Eagle 0 8 10
American Kestrel 0 0 117
Merlin 0 0 19
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 26
Unknown Accipiter 0 1 12
Unknown Buteo 0 3 12
Unknown Falcon 0 0 4
Unknown Eagle 0 1 2
Unknown Raptor 0 0 22
Total: 3 571 40541
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Observation start time: 08:30:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 6.5 hours
Official Counter: Larry Brindza
Observers:
Visitors:
Only two hikers today.
Weather:
100% cloud cover all day. There were "drizzle showers" off and on all day.
Visability to the west varied with the drizzle showers as they moved west
to east. Winds were light and from the west and west-north-west
Raptor Observations:
Two Red-tailed Hawks and one Red-shouldered Hawk on the west side of the
ridge. That was it!
Non-raptor Observations:
16 Robins and 12 Starlings flew west through the gap.
Predictions:
Rain followed by a cold front.
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Report submitted by Larry Brindza (ljbrindza@xxxxxxx)
Site Description:
The Snickers Gap Hawkwatch was established in 1990. It is located in
northern Virginia, on the Clarke and Loudoun County line. It is reached by
taking VA Route 7 to the county line, which runs atop the ridge at Snickers
Gap. On the south side of Route 7 is a commuter parking lot. The count is
conducted from there. It is a volunteer site, and is counted in fall only,
from late August until late November or early December. There are no
facilities at the site, so bring a snack, drinks,and a chair. Many of the
birds can be distant,and a scope is helpful.
As a volunteer site, we are always looking to increase our pool of
counters. We are eager to train those who have never counted, but are
skilled with hawk identification. We are also willing to pair inexperienced
observers with experienced counters. Please contact the compiler, Todd Day,
at blkvulture@xxxxxxx with any questions or if you are interested in
participating in the count.
