[va-bird] HSR: Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch (28 Sep 2003) Raptor counts (total=608)

Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch, VA
Waynesboro, Virginia, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 28, 2003
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
BV                           0              0              0
TV                           0              0              0
OS                          33            114            120
BE                           6             26             31
NH                           1             10             10
SS                          22            177            183
CH                           4             40             41
NG                           0              3              3
RS                           1              3              3
BW                         513           8581           8634
RT                           1             26             31
RL                           0              0              0
GE                           1              1              2
AK                          16             63             68
ML                           1             12             13
PG                           9             21             21
MK                           0              0              1
UA                           0              5              6
UB                           0              4              5
UF                           0              1              1
UE                           0              0              0
UR                           0              5              5

Total:                     608           9092           9178
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Observation start time: 08:00:00 
Observation end   time: 17:15:00 
Total observation time: 9.25 hours

Official Counter: Brenda Tekin

Observers:        Brenda Tekin, Donna Lewis, Gordy Adamski, Pat Alther

Visitors:
Many visitors and great observers finding birds.
BJ Westervelt and John Little playing hooky from Snickers Gap.,
Rob Clay who got to see his first Bald Eagle!  As an added bonus, he got
to see two, an adult and 3rd year fly in side-by-side!
Pat Alther,
Gordy Adamski,
Donna Lewis who took the reigns as official counter late afternoon so I
could dash off to see Lou Graham in concert, Sarah Splaun, Peter Dutnell,
Nancy Davidson who found a small group of BW way out over the eastern
Piedmont that turned into two large kettles totaling over 100 birds, Matt
Gentry from Roanoke area.


Weather:
What a day! 

Cold front barrelled though last night producing thunderstorms.  By early
morning sky clearing with strong NW winds averaging 15mph with gusts up to
21mph.  Mostly cloudy the first hour, clear visibility for miles, humidity
53%

By 10 a.m. EST, clouds diminishing and winds more southerly and birds very
hard to see in bright blue sky.  By 2 p.m. EST, wind about 5 mph or less
with a south to SW flow, producing few more clouds increasing to nice
cirrus and puffy clouds that greatly helded in finding birds, in including
several large kettles.  Several times large kettles of vultures, mostly
Black, would appear to the north circling and gaining altitude that were
soon joined by BW and Osprey.  Osprey were coming in in 2's and 3's at
times.

Observations:
Great start in the first hour with birds zipping across low on strong NW
wind.  25 in first hour (8-9 EST)that included 19 BW, 2 OS, 4 SS plus 7
Sandhill Crane.  Second hour 80 BW, 2 OS, along with handful of accipiters
and 1 AK.  Then things slowed down considerably for next several hours and
with bright blue sky and period of no clouds, very difficult to spot what
few birds were flying.  Between 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. EST, a total of 80 birds,
many very hard to pick out in bright blue sky.  By then we also had
tallied 5 BE, all adults except one 3rd year that flew in side-by-side
with one of the adults.

All I can say is thank goodness for all the wonderful help that showed up
this afternoon after BJ Westervelt and John Little from Snickers Gap
departed.  Winds dropped to less than 5mph and more out of the WSW and
birds began popping up all over the place!!  From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., it was
pretty much non-stop with birds found to the east, to the west and
overhead.  We tallied 9 Peregrine, setting the single day record.  Many of
these zoomed by close for good looks.  Between 2-3 p.m. EST we tallied 12
OS, 1 im.BE, 1 juv. Golden Eagle, 9 kestrel, 4 Peregrine, and 198 BW along
with handful of SS.  Between 3-4 p.m., 158 BW, 4 OS, 3 kestrel and 4
Peregrine.  4-5 p.m. yieled only 1 BW, 2 kestrel, our first Merlin, 1
Peregrine and SS.  Last bird was OS between 5-5:15.

The six BE tied 3rd place for single day record as did the 33 Osprey.    

Sandhill Crane - 7 observed out over Waynesboro between 8:28 - 8:34 a.m.
EST flying very close together tracking SW on western side of ridge with a
strong NW wind gusting up to 21mph, remaining in tight formation.  In
fact, they were so close that one observer was undercounting because two
birds would appear as one very large bird.  They continued tracking SW,
well above our observation point and ascending.  Less than 5 minutes after
they passed a single Osprey came on west side of gap and zipped through
the gap heading east and then around to the south well below eye level.

Blue Jay - good numbers with at least 35 counted for the day
Red-headed Woodpecker - 2 adults
Chiminey Swift - still good numbers passing through
Monarch Butterfly - many


Predictions:
Hopefully good weather for good flight. 

We need volunteer counters and NO one has signed up!!!!
========================================================================
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


***Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch, VA - Established 1976***
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.  

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