Hawk Watch Wednesday October 13, 2010

It started out on a good note this morning with respectable numbers of Sharp-shinned Hawks and Northern Harriers then a decent kettle of Broad-winged Hawks formed as well. But as the clouds disappeared and the winds grew faint, birds soared ever higher and higher making them quite difficult to detect. Thankfully, some clouds made their way to the point in the afternoon giving my eyes some relief. Unfortunately, the winds shifted towards the East around the same time so migration slowed down considerably. Tomorrow doesn't look very promising with a forecast of East winds and rain developing sometime in the early afternoon.

Cape May
Cape May Point, New Jersey, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 13, 2010
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Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture               10             53             99
Turkey Vulture              47            287            485
Osprey                      46           1564           4305
Bald Eagle                  10            149            325
Northern Harrier            30            538           1009
Sharp-shinned Hawk         520           7064          12284
Cooper's Hawk               89           1728           2612
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          2             22             27
Broad-winged Hawk           38            689           1142
Red-tailed Hawk             12             98            237
Rough-legged Hawk            0              0              0
Golden Eagle                 0              0              0
American Kestrel            18           1487           4286
Merlin                      22            828           1649
Peregrine Falcon            19            817           1094
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              0
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              1
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              0

Total:                     863          15324          29555
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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:
Light and variable North winds turning to East by the end of the day. 
Clear skies for most of the day then becoming partly cloudy.

Raptor Observations:
Decent number of migrants early on but with the light winds and clear
skies, high-flying birds most likely went by unnoticed.

Non-raptor Observations:
20 Snow Geese, 2 Common Loon

Predictions:
Doesn't look very promising tomorrow with variable East winds and rain
starting around midday.