FreeLists / va-bird / [va-bird] HSR: Snickers Gap (11 Oct 2003) Raptor counts (total=81)

[reports@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Snickers Gap Hawkwatch
20 Miles West of Leesburg, Virginia, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 11, 2003
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Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0              0              0
Turkey Vulture               0              0              0
Osprey                       1             43            247
Bald Eagle                   0             17             97
Northern Harrier             5             42            101
Sharp-shinned Hawk          64            390            922
Cooper's Hawk                4             50            123
Northern Goshawk             0              3              4
Red-shouldered Hawk          2             15             37
Broad-winged Hawk            0             74          11646
Red-tailed Hawk              3             32            136
Rough-legged Hawk            0              0              0
Golden Eagle                 0              0              3
American Kestrel             0             29            160
Merlin                       0              4             18
Peregrine Falcon             0             13             41
Unknown                      2             31             57

Total:                      81            743          13592
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Observation start time: 08:30:00 
Observation end   time: 15:30:00 
Total observation time: 10 hours

Official Counter: Ian Topolsky

Observers:        BJ Westervelt, Jon Little

Visitors:
  Harry Gurkin- again pulling specks, today out of the heavy fog. Come back
soon. Bill Cox and a friend from Anchorage visited briefly. David- our
local Bluemontian, with some good eyes.


Weather:
  Miserable, dismal and dank. Thick fog, that never lifted as much as I had
hoped it would, was present upon arrival to the site at 9:30 EDT. 100%
cloudcover until the last hour or so of observation, when some blue rolled
in from the east. Winds were rock-steady out of the W at 2-3+ Beaufort
Scale and temp topped off at 52F. 

Observations:
  I almost left the site three times today. In the first hour (and 1/2 an
hour apart)- 2 Sharp-shinneds, 1 Northern Harrier. For the next 2-3 hours,
1 Sharpie. The bulk of our birds, oddly enough, came in the 2 hours before
the sun and the blue skies peeked through the veil of clouds. When it
finally cleared up, the numbers dropped like a rock. Hmmm...
  Though it never felt like it, it turned out better than could be
expected. 1 Osprey, not packing a lunch.

Blue Jay- 214, Yellow-shafted Flicker- 7, Common Raven- 5.
  
  To kill some time, and keep my sanity, I took the liberty of looking for
some dickie birds on the trails up towards Bear's Den, etcetera. Not much
to speak of but for 2 close encounters with either one, or two different,
tailless, creeping Winter Wrens. The others:
 Magnolia Warbler     2
 A. Redstart          1
 Cedar Waxwing        9
 Red-eyed Vireo       3
 Downy Woodpecker     1
 Red-bellied          2
 Monarch Butterfly   11

Predictions:
 Tomorrow's a new day, can we expect better conditions?

The Mystical Smoking Head Of Bob (www.resort.com/~banshee/Misc?8ball?) 
replies, "MOST LIKELY".
========================================================================
Report submitted by Ian Topolsky (ict_earth@xxxxxxxxx)


     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.  


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