Hawk Watch Sunday September 19, 2010

I know you've probably already heard all about the incredible Monarch migration that went through Cape May Point yesterday, but I can't help but repeat it again. It was such a huge part of the count yesterday that it would be wrong not to mention it. The Monarchs were simply unbelievable!! You could clearly see the huge influx wherever you looked, but when I would scan with my binoculars (on the lookout for raptors, of course), I couldn't stop myself from being amazed. I wouldn't say I was speechless, however. In fact, I probably said some things my mother would not approve of, but I just couldn't help myself! It was outrageous!!

Well, I suppose I should mention something about the hawks. This is the Hawk Watch afterall. It was a relatively quiet day. There was some movement, but most birds were high and/or far away so it wasn't exactly fun to count. We did have one Peregrine fly relatively close past the platform which was a nice treat. Other non-raptor highlights included 1 Northern Gannet, a flock of 9 Spotted Sandpipers flying over, 1 distant Common Loon, and 1 Hudsonian Godwit foraging on Bunker Pond for most of the day.


Cape May
Cape May Point, New Jersey, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 19, 2010
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 4 4 4
Turkey Vulture 17 138 138
Osprey 87 2096 2096
Bald Eagle 1 144 144
Northern Harrier 10 241 241
Sharp-shinned Hawk 250 1862 1862
Cooper's Hawk 69 537 537
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 5 5
Broad-winged Hawk 4 422 422
Red-tailed Hawk 5 102 102
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 22 1716 1716
Merlin 16 351 351
Peregrine Falcon 2 25 25
Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0
Unknown Buteo 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 0 0
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 0 0 0

Total: 487 7643 7643
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Observation start time: 05:45:00
Observation end time: 16:00:00
Total observation time: 10.25 hours

Official Counter: Melissa Roach

Observers:

Weather:
Calm in the morning with a brief period of light West winds then turning to
Southwest. Partly cloudy until noon when it become clear and sunny.

Raptor Observations:
Some movement but most birds very high due to the sparse cloud cover and
light winds.

Non-raptor Observations:
Hundreds of thousands of Monarchs migrating; Northern Gannet; 9 Spotted
Sandpiper (flyby); Common Loon (flyby); Hudsonian Godwit

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