Snickers Gap Hawkwatch
Virginia, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 10, 2004
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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 13 37 55
Bald Eagle 3 23 30
Northern Harrier 3 12 14
Sharp-shinned Hawk 8 35 40
Cooper's Hawk 1 13 25
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 3 3
Broad-winged Hawk 41 156 266
Red-tailed Hawk 2 15 29
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 4 13 17
Merlin 0 3 3
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0
Unknown 0 4 4
Total: 76 314 486
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Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 14:30:00
Total observation time: 6.5 hours
Official Counter: Ian Topolsky
Observers: BJ Westervelt, Bob Cosgriff, Dick Homan, George Wheaton
Weather:
What you see is what you get. Wind, was rocksteady at 2+ Beaufort Scale
up to the last hour of coverage. Skies were fair, with optimal Cloudcover
for the majority of the day. High Temp was 80F.
Observations:
Somewhere in the beginning of every season there is always that single,
turning-point day that tells you it's time to get down to business; there
will be no more scrimmages from here on out. The flight becomes more
orderly and little patterns emerge here and there. Lines become more
direct, birds show purpose. Enough of the scenic route, time for the
highway. I love it.
Double-digit Osprey day, first of the season- 13 birds, none packing a
lunch.
Bald Eagle breakdown: 1- ad, 4- 1st yr birds.
Double-crested Cormorant- 1, Baltimore Oriole- 2, Red-headed Woodpecker-
5, Chimney Swift- 200+, Tree Swallow- 29, Swallow sp- 8, Hummingbird sp-
13, Cedar Waxwing- 31, American Robin- 14, Blue Jay- 15, Carolina Wren- 1,
Common Raven- 2, American Crow- 32.
Predictions:
The eightball's night off- use your imagination.
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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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