Snickers Gap Hawkwatch
20 Miles West of Leesburg, VA, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 22, 2002
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 0 0
Osprey 1 137 150
Bald Eagle 0 52 57
Northern Harrier 2 29 32
Sharp-shinned Hawk 17 222 230
Cooper's Hawk 0 35 37
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 10 10
Broad-winged Hawk 0 2462 2482
Red-tailed Hawk 0 41 42
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Golden Eagle 0 2 3
American Kestrel 0 35 38
Merlin 0 5 5
Peregrine Falcon 1 7 7
Unknown 0 32 32
Total: 21 3069 3125
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Observation start time: 09:00:00
Observation end time: 16:00:00
Total observation time: 7 hours
Site Coordinator: Joan Boudreau and Bob Abrams
Observers: Ian Topolsky, Jon Little
Visitors:
Bev Leuwenberg, Larry Cartright, Chuck Studholm, Bob Cosgriff, Dwayne
Schilling and numerous others.
Weather:
Weather was pretty much a replay of yesterday. Low fog that slowly burnt
off leaving total cloudcover. East wind all day (when there was wind).
Temps from 70-85F. Visibility 15km.
Observations:
A Peregrine that made it's way through in the early afternoon was
probably the highlight of the day.
Several spots in close proximity to the lot yielded some decent
non-raptors; Canada, Tennessee, Magnolia, Wilson's Warblers, A.Redstart,
Scarlet Tanager, White-eyed Vireo, GC Flycatcher and numerous Empids were
seen.
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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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